Alan Walker (writer on music)
Encyclopedia
Alan Walker, FRSC
(born 6 April 1930
) is an English
-Canadian
musicologist and university professor best known as a biographer and scholar of composer
Franz Liszt
.
, Lincolnshire
. He received an LGSM
certificate in 1949, ARCM
in 1950, a Bachelor of Music
from University of Durham
in 1956, and a Doctor of Music
in 1965. Between 1957 and 1960 he studied privately with Hans Keller
, an association which he has always acknowledged as formative. These lessons were resumed, albeit irregularly, once Walker joined Keller at the BBC in 1961.
From 1958-61 Walker lectured at the Guildhall School of Music, having studied piano there with Alfred Nieman
, noted for teaching improvisational techniques. He also taught at the University of London
from 1954 to 1960. Walker worked at the BBC Radio
Music Division as a producer between 1961 and 1971. Seeking to return to his "first love", teaching, Walker gave up radio production and took an appointment as Professor of Music at McMaster University
in Hamilton
, Ontario
, where he chaired the Department of Music 1971-1980 and 1989-1995. In 1981, he was responsible for the establishment at McMaster of the first graduate program in music criticism
in Canada. Since 1995, he has been Professor Emeritus at McMaster. From 1984-87, he was a Distinguished Visiting Professor of Music at City University
in London.
His three-volume biography of Franz Liszt, which took him 25 years to complete, has been very influential. Common adjectives attached to the work include "monumental" and "magisterial", and it is said to have "unearthed much new material and provided a strong stimulus for further research". Walker himself says that when he found, as a BBC producer compiling notes for program announcers, that "there wasn't a decent book in English on Liszt", he eventually decided to write one himself, but was determined "not to make a major statement that couldn't be supported by documents ... and because Liszt himself was a traveller the archives were everywhere."
The first volume won the James Tait Black Memorial Prize
in biography for 1983 and best book on music from the Yorkshire Post Newspapers
in 1984. The three-book series was given the Royal Philharmonic Society
Book Award in 1998.
TIME Magazine praised the biography as "a textured portrait of Liszt and his times without rival", saying that Walker's work was "equally strong on the music and the life", which discussed Liszt's corpus "with greater understanding and clarity than any previous biographer". The New York Times, reviewing the second volume, tutted of Walker's passion for his subject, "Mr. Walker can see only the good, and will stand for no criticism of his hero", but still called Walker's extensive research "incredible.... Mr. Walker seems to know everything about Liszt, and anything connected with Liszt, during every single day of the long life of that genius." The Washington Post music critic Tim Page
, including the third volume in his best books of the year list, called it "unquestionably a landmark" and "meticulously detailed, passionately argued and sometimes wrenchingly moving".
Walker has also written substantially about Robert Schumann
and Frédéric Chopin
, and continues to lecture in Canada, the US, and UK on all three musicians.
Walker lives in Ancaster
, Ontario
. He is director of "The Great Romantics", an annual festival in Hamilton, Ontario
.
Walker has also written over 100 articles for scholarly music journals, including the biography article on Liszt for Grove's Dictionary of Music and Musicians (2001). Journal articles include:
Royal Society of Canada
The Royal Society of Canada , may also operate under the more descriptive name RSC: The Academies of Arts, Humanities and Sciences of Canada , is the oldest association of scientists and scholars in Canada...
(born 6 April 1930
) is an English
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
-Canadian
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
musicologist and university professor best known as a biographer and scholar of composer
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
Franz Liszt
Franz Liszt
Franz Liszt ; ), was a 19th-century Hungarian composer, pianist, conductor, and teacher.Liszt became renowned in Europe during the nineteenth century for his virtuosic skill as a pianist. He was said by his contemporaries to have been the most technically advanced pianist of his age...
.
Biography
Walker was born in ScunthorpeScunthorpe
Scunthorpe is a town within North Lincolnshire, England. It is the administrative centre of the North Lincolnshire unitary authority, and had an estimated total resident population of 72,514 in 2010. A predominantly industrial town, Scunthorpe, the United Kingdom's largest steel processing centre,...
, Lincolnshire
Lincolnshire
Lincolnshire is a county in the east of England. It borders Norfolk to the south east, Cambridgeshire to the south, Rutland to the south west, Leicestershire and Nottinghamshire to the west, South Yorkshire to the north west, and the East Riding of Yorkshire to the north. It also borders...
. He received an LGSM
Guildhall School of Music and Drama
Guildhall School of Music and Drama is an independent music and dramatic arts school which was founded in 1880 in London, England. Students can pursue courses in Music, Opera, Drama and Technical Theatre Arts.-History:...
certificate in 1949, ARCM
Royal College of Music
The Royal College of Music is a conservatoire founded by Royal Charter in 1882, located in South Kensington, London, England.-Background:The first director was Sir George Grove and he was followed by Sir Hubert Parry...
in 1950, a Bachelor of Music
Bachelor's degree
A bachelor's degree is usually an academic degree awarded for an undergraduate course or major that generally lasts for three or four years, but can range anywhere from two to six years depending on the region of the world...
from University of Durham
Durham University
The University of Durham, commonly known as Durham University, is a university in Durham, England. It was founded by Act of Parliament in 1832 and granted a Royal Charter in 1837...
in 1956, and a Doctor of Music
Doctorate
A doctorate is an academic degree or professional degree that in most countries refers to a class of degrees which qualify the holder to teach in a specific field, A doctorate is an academic degree or professional degree that in most countries refers to a class of degrees which qualify the holder...
in 1965. Between 1957 and 1960 he studied privately with Hans Keller
Hans Keller
Hans Keller was an influential Austrian-born British musician and writer who made significant contributions to musicology and music criticism, as well as being an insightful commentator on such disparate fields as psychoanalysis and football...
, an association which he has always acknowledged as formative. These lessons were resumed, albeit irregularly, once Walker joined Keller at the BBC in 1961.
From 1958-61 Walker lectured at the Guildhall School of Music, having studied piano there with Alfred Nieman
Alfred Nieman
Alfred Nieman was a British pianist and composer.Born in the East End of London in 1914 to Polish immigrant parents, Alfred Nieman was playing piano for the silent cinema by the age of fourteen. His talent as a pianist was spotted and the result was that he won a piano scholarship to the Royal...
, noted for teaching improvisational techniques. He also taught at the University of London
University of London
-20th century:Shortly after 6 Burlington Gardens was vacated, the University went through a period of rapid expansion. Bedford College, Royal Holloway and the London School of Economics all joined in 1900, Regent's Park College, which had affiliated in 1841 became an official divinity school of the...
from 1954 to 1960. Walker worked at the BBC Radio
BBC Radio
BBC Radio is a service of the British Broadcasting Corporation which has operated in the United Kingdom under the terms of a Royal Charter since 1927. For a history of BBC radio prior to 1927 see British Broadcasting Company...
Music Division as a producer between 1961 and 1971. Seeking to return to his "first love", teaching, Walker gave up radio production and took an appointment as Professor of Music at McMaster University
McMaster University
McMaster University is a public research university whose main campus is located in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. The main campus is located on of land in the residential neighbourhood of Westdale, adjacent to Hamilton's Royal Botanical Gardens...
in Hamilton
Hamilton, Ontario
Hamilton is a port city in the Canadian province of Ontario. Conceived by George Hamilton when he purchased the Durand farm shortly after the War of 1812, Hamilton has become the centre of a densely populated and industrialized region at the west end of Lake Ontario known as the Golden Horseshoe...
, Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
, where he chaired the Department of Music 1971-1980 and 1989-1995. In 1981, he was responsible for the establishment at McMaster of the first graduate program in music criticism
Music criticism
See also Music journalism for reporting on classical and popular music in the media.The Oxford Companion to Music defines music criticism as 'the intellectual activity of formulating judgments on the value and degree of excellence of individual works of music, or whole groups or genres'. In this...
in Canada. Since 1995, he has been Professor Emeritus at McMaster. From 1984-87, he was a Distinguished Visiting Professor of Music at City University
City University, London
City University London , is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom. It was founded in 1894 as the Northampton Institute and became a university in 1966, when it adopted its present name....
in London.
His three-volume biography of Franz Liszt, which took him 25 years to complete, has been very influential. Common adjectives attached to the work include "monumental" and "magisterial", and it is said to have "unearthed much new material and provided a strong stimulus for further research". Walker himself says that when he found, as a BBC producer compiling notes for program announcers, that "there wasn't a decent book in English on Liszt", he eventually decided to write one himself, but was determined "not to make a major statement that couldn't be supported by documents ... and because Liszt himself was a traveller the archives were everywhere."
The first volume won the James Tait Black Memorial Prize
James Tait Black Memorial Prize
Founded in 1919, the James Tait Black Memorial Prizes are among the oldest and most prestigious book prizes awarded for literature written in the English language and are Britain's oldest literary awards...
in biography for 1983 and best book on music from the Yorkshire Post Newspapers
Yorkshire Post Newspapers
Yorkshire Post Newspapers are publishers of the Yorkshire Post and Yorkshire Evening Post. They are based at offices in Wellington Street, Leeds, West Yorkshire...
in 1984. The three-book series was given the Royal Philharmonic Society
Royal Philharmonic Society
The Royal Philharmonic Society is a British music society, formed in 1813. It was originally formed in London to promote performances of instrumental music there. Many distinguished composers and performers have taken part in its concerts...
Book Award in 1998.
TIME Magazine praised the biography as "a textured portrait of Liszt and his times without rival", saying that Walker's work was "equally strong on the music and the life", which discussed Liszt's corpus "with greater understanding and clarity than any previous biographer". The New York Times, reviewing the second volume, tutted of Walker's passion for his subject, "Mr. Walker can see only the good, and will stand for no criticism of his hero", but still called Walker's extensive research "incredible.... Mr. Walker seems to know everything about Liszt, and anything connected with Liszt, during every single day of the long life of that genius." The Washington Post music critic Tim Page
Tim Page (music critic)
Tim Page is a writer, editor, music critic, producer and professor. He is a Pulitzer Prize-winning music critic for the Washington Post and also played an essential role in the revival of American author Dawn Powell.-Career:Page grew up in Storrs, Connecticut, where his father, Ellis B...
, including the third volume in his best books of the year list, called it "unquestionably a landmark" and "meticulously detailed, passionately argued and sometimes wrenchingly moving".
Walker has also written substantially about Robert Schumann
Robert Schumann
Robert Schumann, sometimes known as Robert Alexander Schumann, was a German composer, aesthete and influential music critic. He is regarded as one of the greatest and most representative composers of the Romantic era....
and Frédéric Chopin
Frédéric Chopin
Frédéric François Chopin was a Polish composer and virtuoso pianist. He is considered one of the great masters of Romantic music and has been called "the poet of the piano"....
, and continues to lecture in Canada, the US, and UK on all three musicians.
Walker lives in Ancaster
Ancaster, Ontario
Ancaster is a picturesque and historic community located on the Niagara escarpment, within the greater area of the city of Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. This former town was founded officially in 1793 and was one of the oldest European communities established in present day Ontario along with Windsor...
, Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
. He is director of "The Great Romantics", an annual festival in Hamilton, Ontario
Hamilton, Ontario
Hamilton is a port city in the Canadian province of Ontario. Conceived by George Hamilton when he purchased the Durand farm shortly after the War of 1812, Hamilton has become the centre of a densely populated and industrialized region at the west end of Lake Ontario known as the Golden Horseshoe...
.
Honours
- Honorary Fellow of the Guildhall School of Music, 1974.
- Hungarian Liszt Society Medal, 1980
- American Liszt Society Medal, 1984
- Fellow of the Royal Society of CanadaRoyal Society of CanadaThe Royal Society of Canada , may also operate under the more descriptive name RSC: The Academies of Arts, Humanities and Sciences of Canada , is the oldest association of scientists and scholars in Canada...
, 1986 - Pro Cultura Hungaria Medal (Government of HungaryHungaryHungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
), 1995 - Honorary D. Litt (honoris causa) from McMaster University, 2002
Notable publications
- A Study in Music Analysis, 1962.
- An Anatomy of Musical Criticism, 1966.
- Symposium on Chopin (Editor), 1967.
- Symposium on Liszt (Editor), 1970.
- Franz Liszt: The Man and His Music. New York: Taplinger Publishing, 1970. ISBN 0-8008-2990-5.
- Robert Schumann: The Man and His Music, 1972. ISBN 0-214-66805-3.
- Symposium on Schumann (Editor), 1972.
- Liszt: v. 1. The virtuoso years, 1811-1847. Hardcover publisher Knopf, 1983, Softcover publisher Ithaca: Cornell University Press and revised, 1987. ISBN 0-394-52540-X for all three hardcover. ISBN 0-8014-9421-4 for v. 1 revised.
- Liszt: v. 2. The Weimar years, 1848-1861. Knopf and Cornell University Press (no new material), 1989. Revised ISBN 0-8014-9721-3.
- Liszt, Carolyne, and the Vatican: The Story of a Thwarted Marriage (Co-author, with Gabriele Erasmi). 1991.
- The Diary of Carl Lachmund: An American Pupil of Liszt (Editor), 1995.
- Liszt: v. 3. The final years, 1861-1886. Knopf and Cornell University Press, 1996 and 1997. Cornell edition has ISBN 0-8014-8453-7.
- The Death of Franz Liszt: Based on the Unpublished Diary of his Pupil Lina Schmalhausen (Editor). Cornell University Press, 2002. ISBN 0-8014-4076-9.
- Reflections on Liszt, 2005.
- Hans von Bülow: a Life and Times, OUP, 2009.
Walker has also written over 100 articles for scholarly music journals, including the biography article on Liszt for Grove's Dictionary of Music and Musicians (2001). Journal articles include:
- 'Aesthetics versus Acoustics', The Score, No.27, July 1960.
External links
- The Alan Walker Fonds
- Great Romantics Festival
- American Liszt Society
- Review of New Light on Liszt and His Music: Essays in Honor of Alan Walker's 65th Birthday, Pendragon PressPendragon pressThere are three unrelated publishers with the name Pendragon Press. One is a British small press based in Maesteg in Wales and specialising in science fiction, fantasy, horror and weird fiction. It is run by Christopher Teague. In 2005 the press was nominated for a British Fantasy Award for best...
, ISBN 0-945193-73-4