Paul Pisk
Encyclopedia
Paul Amadeus Pisk was an Austria-born composer
and musicologist. A prize named in his honor is the highest award for a graduate student paper at the annual meeting of the American Musicological Society
.
Pisk earned his doctorate
in musicology from Vienna University in 1916, studying under Guido Adler
. Afterwards he studied conducting
at the Imperial Academy of Music and the Performing Arts graduating in 1919. His teachers there included Franz Schreker
(counterpoint
). Pisk also studied privately with Arnold Schoenberg
from 1917 to 1919. He then taught at the Vienna Academy and gave adult education lectures, especially at the Volkshochschule Volksheim Ottakring, where from 1922 to 1934 he was director of the music department.
He also taught at the New Vienna Conservatory
from 1925 to 1926 and the Austro-American Conservatory near Salzburg
from 1931 to 1933.
Pisk's students included Leopold Spinner
.
He was also a board member, secretary, and pianist in Schoenberg's Society for Private Musical Performances
. He was among the founding members of the International Society for Contemporary Music
and from 1920 to 1928 was coeditor of Musikblätter des Anbruch and music editor of the Arbeiter-Zeitung
.
The first airing of his music by the British Broadcasting Corporation took place on July 3, 1930, when Austrian pianist Friedrich Wührer
played Pisk's Suite for Piano.
In 1936 he emigrated to the United States and taught at the University of Redlands
(1937-1951), the University of Texas at Austin
(1951-1963), and Washington University in St. Louis
(1963-1972). He composed orchestral works, ballets, chamber music and songs, as well as writings in music theory. His notable students include Leopold Spinner
, Samuel Adler
and Gary Lee Nelson
.
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...
and musicologist. A prize named in his honor is the highest award for a graduate student paper at the annual meeting of the American Musicological Society
American Musicological Society
The American Musicological Society is a membership-based musicological organization founded in 1934 to advance scholarly research in the various fields of music as a branch of learning and scholarship; it grew out of a small contingent of the Music Teachers National Association and, more directly,...
.
Pisk earned his doctorate
PHD
PHD may refer to:*Ph.D., a doctorate of philosophy*Ph.D. , a 1980s British group*PHD finger, a protein sequence*PHD Mountain Software, an outdoor clothing and equipment company*PhD Docbook renderer, an XML renderer...
in musicology from Vienna University in 1916, studying under Guido Adler
Guido Adler
Guido Adler was a Bohemian-Austrian musicologist and writer.His father Joachim, a physician, died of typhoid fever in 1857...
. Afterwards he studied conducting
Conducting
Conducting is the art of directing a musical performance by way of visible gestures. The primary duties of the conductor are to unify performers, set the tempo, execute clear preparations and beats, and to listen critically and shape the sound of the ensemble...
at the Imperial Academy of Music and the Performing Arts graduating in 1919. His teachers there included Franz Schreker
Franz Schreker
Franz Schreker was an Austrian composer, conductor, teacher and administrator. Primarily a composer of operas, his style is characterized by aesthetic plurality , timbral experimentation, strategies of extended tonality and...
(counterpoint
Counterpoint
In music, counterpoint is the relationship between two or more voices that are independent in contour and rhythm and are harmonically interdependent . It has been most commonly identified in classical music, developing strongly during the Renaissance and in much of the common practice period,...
). Pisk also studied privately with Arnold Schoenberg
Arnold Schoenberg
Arnold Schoenberg was an Austrian composer, associated with the expressionist movement in German poetry and art, and leader of the Second Viennese School...
from 1917 to 1919. He then taught at the Vienna Academy and gave adult education lectures, especially at the Volkshochschule Volksheim Ottakring, where from 1922 to 1934 he was director of the music department.
He also taught at the New Vienna Conservatory
Neues Wiener Konservatorium
The Neues Wiener Konservatorium was a music school established in Vienna by Theobald Kretschmann in 1909. In 1929 it had the largest number of enrolled students during its lifetime....
from 1925 to 1926 and the Austro-American Conservatory near Salzburg
Salzburg
-Population development:In 1935, the population significantly increased when Salzburg absorbed adjacent municipalities. After World War II, numerous refugees found a new home in the city. New residential space was created for American soldiers of the postwar Occupation, and could be used for...
from 1931 to 1933.
Pisk's students included Leopold Spinner
Leopold Spinner
Leopold Spinner was a Ukrainian-born, British-domiciled composer and editor.-Biography:Spinner was born of Austrian parentage in Lemberg...
.
He was also a board member, secretary, and pianist in Schoenberg's Society for Private Musical Performances
Society for Private Musical Performances
The Society for Private Musical Performances was an organization founded in Vienna in the Autumn of 1918 by Arnold Schoenberg with the intention of making carefully rehearsed and comprehensible performances of available to genuinely interested members of the musical public...
. He was among the founding members of the International Society for Contemporary Music
International Society for Contemporary Music
The International Society for Contemporary Music is a music organization that promotes contemporary classical music.ISCM was established in 1922, in Salzburg. Its core activity is the World Music Days Festival, held every year at a different location. The festival includes cutting edge productions...
and from 1920 to 1928 was coeditor of Musikblätter des Anbruch and music editor of the Arbeiter-Zeitung
Arbeiter-Zeitung (Vienna)
For the Chicago anarchist newspaper, see Arbeiter-Zeitung The Arbeiter-Zeitung was started as a Socialist newspaper on July 12, 1889 by Victor Adler. The paper was banned in 1934 after the Feb. 13 issue , but reappeared on Aug...
.
The first airing of his music by the British Broadcasting Corporation took place on July 3, 1930, when Austrian pianist Friedrich Wührer
Friedrich Wührer
Friedrich Wührer was an Austrian-German pianist and piano pedagogue. He was a close associate and advocate of composer Franz Schmidt, whose music he edited and, in the case of the works for left hand alone, revised for performance with two hands; he was also a champion of the Second Viennese...
played Pisk's Suite for Piano.
In 1936 he emigrated to the United States and taught at the University of Redlands
University of Redlands
The University of Redlands is a private liberal arts and sciences university located in Redlands, California. The university's campus sits on near downtown Redlands. The university was founded in 1907 and was associated with the American Baptist Church. The land for the university was donated by...
(1937-1951), the University of Texas at Austin
University of Texas at Austin
The University of Texas at Austin is a state research university located in Austin, Texas, USA, and is the flagship institution of the The University of Texas System. Founded in 1883, its campus is located approximately from the Texas State Capitol in Austin...
(1951-1963), and Washington University in St. Louis
Washington University in St. Louis
Washington University in St. Louis is a private research university located in suburban St. Louis, Missouri. Founded in 1853, and named for George Washington, the university has students and faculty from all fifty U.S. states and more than 110 nations...
(1963-1972). He composed orchestral works, ballets, chamber music and songs, as well as writings in music theory. His notable students include Leopold Spinner
Leopold Spinner
Leopold Spinner was a Ukrainian-born, British-domiciled composer and editor.-Biography:Spinner was born of Austrian parentage in Lemberg...
, Samuel Adler
Samuel Adler (composer)
Samuel Hans Adler is an American composer and conductor.-Biography:Adler was born to a Jewish family in Mannheim, Germany, the son of Hugo Chaim Adler, a cantor and composer, and Selma Adler. The family fled to the United States in 1939, where Hugo became the cantor of Temple Emanuel in...
and Gary Lee Nelson
Gary Lee Nelson
Gary Lee Nelson is a composer and media artist who taught at Oberlin College in the Technology in Music and Related Arts department. He specializes in algorithmic composition, real-time interactive sound and video along with digital film making.-Biography:In 1964, Nelson attended Utrecht...
.
Major publications
- PA Pisk, "Max Reger, Briefwechsel mit Herzog Georg II von Sachsen-Meiningen." Journal of the American Musicological Society, Vol. 3, No. 2,149-151. Summer, 1950. JSTOR
- PA Pisk - "Subdivision of Tones: A Modern Music Theory and Philosophy" Bulletin of the American Musicological Society, 1942, v.36 JSTOR
- PA Pisk "The Fugue Themes in Bach's Well-Tempered Clavier" Bulletin of the American Musicological Society, No. 8 (Oct., 1945), pp. 28-29- JSTOR