Arthur Adolph Loesser (August 26, 1894 – January 5, 1969) was an American classical pianist,

musicologist Musicology (from Greek μουσική ''mousikē'' 'music' and -λογια ''-logia'', 'domain of study') is the scholarly analysis and research-based study of music. Musicology departments traditionally belong to the humanities, although some mu ...

, and writer.

Early life

Born into a musical family in New York City, Loesser received early piano training from his German-born father until he began lessons with

Zygmunt Stojowski Zygmunt Denis Antoni Jordan de Stojowski (May 4, 1870November 5, 1946) was a Polish pianist and composer. Life He was born on May 4, 1870 near the city of Kielce. Stojowski began his musical training with his mother, and with Polish compo ...

at the Institute of Musical Art, now called the Juilliard School. Arthur Loesser bio at Allmusic/ref>

Career

Loesser was the author of the books ''Humor in American Song'' and ''Men, Women, and Pianos: A Social History''. He also wrote

program notes A concert program is a selection and ordering, or programming, of pieces to be performed at an occasion, or concert. Programs may be influenced by the available ensemble of instruments, by performer ability or skill, by theme ( historical, progra ...

for the

Cleveland Orchestra The Cleveland Orchestra, based in Cleveland, is one of the five American orchestras informally referred to as the " Big Five". Founded in 1918 by the pianist and impresario Adella Prentiss Hughes, the orchestra plays most of its concerts at Sev ...

and

liner notes Liner notes (also sleeve notes or album notes) are the writings found on the sleeves of LP record albums and in booklets that come inserted into the compact disc jewel case or the equivalent packaging for cassettes. Origin Liner notes are desce ...

for recordings by

Vladimir Horowitz Vladimir Samoylovich Horowitz; yi, וולאַדימיר סאַמוילאָוויטש האָראָוויץ, group=n (November 5, 1989)Schonberg, 1992 was a Russian-born American classical pianist. Considered one of the greatest pianists of all ...

and other musicians. Loesser served on the faculty of the

Cleveland Institute of Music The Cleveland Institute of Music (CIM) is a private music conservatory in Cleveland, Ohio. Founded in 1920 by Ernest Bloch, it enrolls 325 students in the conservatory and approximately 1,500 students in the preparatory and continuing educatio ...

beginning in 1926. From 1953 until his death in 1969, he was head of the piano department.Arthur Loesser at the Cleveland Arts Prize Website
/ref> His pupils included

Sergio Calligaris Sergio Calligaris (born January 22, 1941) is a pianist, composer and piano teacher. After living and tutoring in the United States, where he gained his doctorate in music, Calligaris established his residence in Italy in 1974. The pianist Callig ...

Anton Kuerti Anton Emil Kuerti, OC (born July 21, 1938) is an Austrian-born Canadian pianist, music teacher, composer, and conductor. He has developed international recognition as a solo pianist.Jane Corner Young Jane Corner Young (March 25, 1915 – March 9, 2001) was an American composer, music therapist, and pianist. She was born in Athens, Ohio, and graduated with a Bachelor of Music degree from Ohio University in 1936. She completed a master of music ...

. As a pianist, Loesser gave numerous concerts and recitals, his first during 1913 in

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...

.Arthur Loesser at Bach Cantatas
/ref> He often coupled his recitals with lectures which were known for their wit. He was active during the 1920s and 1930s as one half of a piano duo with the famous conductor

Wilfrid Pelletier Joseph Louis Wilfrid Pelletier (sometimes spelled Wilfred), (20 June 1896 – 9 April 1982) was a Canadian conductor, pianist, composer, and arts administrator. He was instrumental in establishing the Montreal Symphony Orchestra, serving ...

. The two made a number of recordings together that were made under the direction of

Arthur Bodanzky Artur Bodanzky (also written as Artur Bodzansky) (16 December 1877 – 23 November 1939) was an Austrian-American conductor particularly associated with the operas of Wagner. He conducted Enrico Caruso's last performance at the Metropolitan Oper ...

. He also made several solo recordings, some of which have been issued on compact disc. Arthur Loesser wrote Men, Women & Pianos: A Social History which was published by Simon & Schuster in 1954.

Army service

During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, from 1943, Loesser served in the

US Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...

where he worked in the Japanese intelligence department. It was during this period that he mastered the Japanese language and after the war ended he gave recitals with lectures in Tokyo. Loesser eventually retired from the army with the rank of major.

Personal life

Arthur Loesser was the half-brother of

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

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 Defi ...

Frank Loesser Frank Henry Loesser (; June 29, 1910 – July 28, 1969) was an American songwriter who wrote the music and lyrics for the Broadway musicals ''Guys and Dolls'' and ''How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying'', among others. He won a Tony ...

. He jokingly described Frank as "the evil of two Loessers". Loesser was married to Jean Basset; the couple had one daughter, the fashion historian

Anne Hollander Anne Helen Loesser Hollander (October 16, 1930 – July 6, 2014) was an American historian whose original work provided new insights into the history of fashion and costume and their relation to the history of art."Anne Hollander", ''The Times'', ...

."Anne Hollander", ''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper ''The Sunday Times'' (fou ...

'', 5 August 2014, p. 52. Loesser died from a

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when blood flow decreases or stops to the coronary artery of the heart, causing damage to the heart muscle. The most common symptom is chest pain or discomfort which may tr ...

at the wheel of his car, outside the

on January 4, 1969, aged 74.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Loesser, Arthur 1894 births 1969 deaths 20th-century classical pianists American classical pianists Male classical pianists American male pianists American people of German-Jewish descent Jewish classical pianists Pupils of Percy Goetschius 20th-century American pianists Cleveland Institute of Music faculty Classical musicians from New York (state) 20th-century American male musicians