Allen Sapp (1922, Philadelphia – 1999, Cincinnati) was a

composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and def ...

of music for piano, voice, chamber, and orchestral music.

Education and family

A native of

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

, Pennsylvania, Sapp was a

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...

veteran who had served as a

cryptanalyst Cryptanalysis (from the Greek ''kryptós'', "hidden", and ''analýein'', "to analyze") refers to the process of analyzing information systems in order to understand hidden aspects of the systems. Cryptanalysis is used to breach cryptographic se ...

in England, France, Belgium, and Germany during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. During the 1940s, Sapp earned bachelor's and master's degrees from

Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...

, having studied primarily with

Walter Piston Walter Hamor Piston, Jr. (January 20, 1894 – November 12, 1976), was an American composer of classical music, music theorist, and professor of music at Harvard University. Life Piston was born in Rockland, Maine at 15 Ocean Street to Walter ...

and Irving Fine, and privately with

Nadia Boulanger Juliette Nadia Boulanger (; 16 September 188722 October 1979) was a French music teacher, conductor and composer. She taught many of the leading composers and musicians of the 20th century, and also performed occasionally as a pianist and organis ...

and

Aaron Copland Aaron Copland (, ; November 14, 1900December 2, 1990) was an American composer, critic, writer, teacher, pianist, and conductor of his own and other American music. Copland was referred to by his peers and critics as the "Dean of American Compos ...

. Allen married Norma Bertolami, a concert pianist and sister of the concert violinist Viviane Bertolami Kirkwood.

Career

Sapp joined the Harvard music faculty in 1950. After a brief appointment at

Wellesley College Wellesley College is a Private university, private Women's colleges in the United States, historically women's Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Wellesley, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1870 by Henr ...

(1958–61), he was appointed Chair of the music department at the University of Buffalo (later, State University of New York (SUNY) at Buffalo). While at Buffalo, Sapp presided over many significant projects promoting contemporary music and art, including the Center of the Creative and Performing Arts (with

Lukas Foss Lukas Foss (August 15, 1922 – February 1, 2009) was a German-American composer, pianist, and conductor. Career Born Lukas Fuchs in Berlin, Germany in 1922, Foss was soon recognized as a child prodigy. He began piano and theory lessons with J ...

), and helped build a significant music faculty including the

Budapest String Quartet The Budapest String Quartet was a string quartet in existence from 1917 to 1967. It originally consisted of three Hungarians and a Dutchman; at the end, the quartet consisted of four Russians. A number of recordings were made for His Master's ...

, musicologists Jeremy Noble and

James McKinnon James William McKinnon (April 7, 1932 – February 23, 1999) was an American musicologist most known for his work in the fields of Western plainchant, medieval and renaissance music, Latin liturgy and musical iconography. Life and career He stud ...

, and music librarians James B. Coover and Carol June Bradley. He also served as director of major national arts initiatives, including the American Council for the Arts in Education (1972–74), and Project Arts/Worth (1971–74). Sapp served as Provost of Florida State University (1975–78), and as Dean of the University of Cincinnati College Conservatory of Music (CCM) from 1978 to 1980. From 1980 through the mid-1990s Sapp remained on the faculty of CCM as "Professor of Music," teaching a wide range of courses from music analysis to the history of music theory, and various seminars on special topics. He also taught composition and musicianship in private sessions. The first president of the board of directors of the Cincinnati Chamber Orchestra, Sapp retired from his position as professor of composition at the University of Cincinnati in 1993.

Death

Sapp died from heart failure at his home in Cincinnati, Ohio on Monday, January 4, 1999 at the age of 76."Composer, professor Allen Sapp dies, 76," ''The Ithaca Journal'', January 8, 1999.

Bibliography

* Curtin, David. ''The Piano Music of Allen Dwight Sapp.'' D.M.A. diss, Univ. of Cincinnati, 1999. * Green, Alan. ''Allen Sapp: A Bio-Bibliography'' (Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1996). * Green, Alan, ed. ''Allen Sapp: Piano Sonatas I-IV'' (Middleton, WI: A-R Editions, 2021). * Green, Alan, ed. ''Allen Sapp: Violin Sonatas I-IV and Viola Sonata'' (Middleton, WI: A-R Editions, 2024). * Hogan, Charles. "The Piano Sonatas of Allen Sapp: A Study of Style and Language." D.M.A. diss, Univ. of Cincinnati, 2010. * Pollack, Howard. "Favored Sons: Robert Middleton and Allen Sapp." In ''Harvard Composers: Walter Piston and His Students from Elliott Carter to Frederic Rzewski'' (Metuchen, NJ: Scarecrow Press, 1992), 208–30.

Discography

* Bloom, Sara Lambert. ''Premiere Chamber Works'' (Centaur, 1995). * Gelland, Martin, and Lennart Wallin. ''Lyrische Aspekte Unseres Jahrhunderts'' (Vienna Modern Masters, 1995). * Lockhart, Keith (Cincinnati Chamber Orchestra). ''Allen Sapp'' (CRI, 1997). * Vassiliadis, Lambis. ''Allen Sapp: Piano Sonatas'' os. 2-4(Koch Discover International, 1996).

References

External links

Allen Sapp (blog at The Ohio State University)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sapp, Allen 1922 births 1999 deaths Musicians from Philadelphia Harvard University alumni 20th-century American male composers Harvard University faculty Harvard Extension School faculty Wellesley College faculty University at Buffalo faculty Florida State University faculty 20th-century American composers Pupils of Aaron Copland Pupils of Walter Piston Pupils of Irving Fine