Charles Leonhard (December 8, 1915 - January 31, 2002) was an American
music educator
Music education is a field of practice in which educators are trained for careers as elementary or secondary music teachers, school or music conservatory ensemble directors. Music education is also a research area in which scholars do original ...
and academic. He was one of the first to argue for a focus upon aesthetic education within music education. For most of his career, he was a professor at the
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (U of I, Illinois, University of Illinois, or UIUC) is a public land-grant research university in Illinois in the twin cities of Champaign and Urbana. It is the flagship institution of the Univ ...
.
Life and career
Born in
Anadarko, Oklahoma
Anadarko is a city in Caddo County, Oklahoma, United States. The city is fifty miles southwest of Oklahoma City. The population was 5,745 at the 2020 census. It is the county seat of Caddo County.
History
Anadarko got its name when its post of ...
, Leonhard was the son of Morris and Dora McRae Leonhard. He was educated at the
University of Oklahoma
, mottoeng = "For the benefit of the Citizen and the State"
, type = Public research university
, established =
, academic_affiliations =
, endowment = $2.7billion (2021)
, pr ...
(
Bachelor of Music
Bachelor of Music (BM or BMus) is an academic degree awarded by a college, university, or conservatory upon completion of a program of study in music. In the United States, it is a professional degree, and the majority of work consists of pre ...
in piano) and
Teachers College, Columbia University
Teachers College, Columbia University (TC), is the graduate school of education, health, and psychology of Columbia University, a private research university in New York City. Founded in 1887, it has served as one of the official faculties and ...
(
Master of Arts
A Master of Arts ( la, Magister Artium or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA, M.A., AM, or A.M.) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Th ...
and
Doctor of Education
The Doctor of Education (Ed.D. or D.Ed.; Latin ''Educationis Doctor'' or ''Doctor Educationis'') is (depending on region and university) a research or professional doctoral degree that focuses on the field of education. It prepares the holder for a ...
). Many of Leonhard's teachers were former students of
John Dewey, whose ideas influenced Leonhard throughout his career. During his doctoral program, Leonhard studied aesthetics with
Susanne Langer
Susanne Katherina Langer (; ''née'' Knauth; December 20, 1895 – July 17, 1985) was an American philosopher, writer, and educator known for her theories on the influences of art on the mind. She was one of the earliest American women to achieve ...
. In 1953, as the music education profession was just beginning to rethink its philosophy, Leonhard published his article "Music Education—Aesthetic Education." In this article, Leonhard urged music educators to eschew the instrumental values of music education and to stress the aesthetic value of music.
While a graduate student, Leonhard concurrently worked as an instructor and assistant professor of music education at Teachers College. He had previously served in the
United States Army
The United States Army (USA) is the land warfare, land military branch, service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight Uniformed services of the United States, U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army o ...
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 opposing ...
as a field artillery officer. In 1951 he joined the faculty of the
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (U of I, Illinois, University of Illinois, or UIUC) is a public land-grant research university in Illinois in the twin cities of Champaign and Urbana. It is the flagship institution of the Univ ...
where he was appointed professor of music and education, and chair of the graduate program in music education. He was the primary advisor on nearly 100 doctoral dissertations, including those of
Eunice Boardman and
Wayne Bowman
Wayne may refer to:
People with the given name and surname
* Wayne (given name)
* Wayne (surname)
Geographical
Places with name ''Wayne'' may take their name from a person with that surname; the most famous such person was Gen. "Mad" Antho ...
. In addition to Bowman, many important philosophers of music education can trace their lineage back to Leonhard. For example,
Bennett Reimer was a student at
Illinois
Illinois ( ) is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolitan areas include, Peoria and Rockf ...
who worked with Leonhard and
Harry Broudy
Harry Samuel Broudy (July 27, 1905 – June 24, 1998) was a Polish-born American professor of the philosophy of education.
Early life and education
Broudy was born in Filipów, Grodno Governorate (part of the Russian partition of the Polish– ...
. Reimer later went on to supervise the dissertations of
David J. Elliott and Paul Woodford.
In 1986 Leonhard retired from his position at the University of Illinois. In 1988 he was appointed the Director of Research at the
National Arts Education Research Center; a post he held through 1994. He died in 2002 at the age of 86. He had been married to Patricia Hagman since 1950. The couple had two children together.
Important Contributions
In 1958, Leonhard's essay on evaluation appeared in ''
Basic Concepts in Music Education ''Basic Concepts in Music Education'' is a landmark work published in 1958 as the Fifty-Seventh Yearbook of the National Society for the Study of Education. In 1954, the Music Educators National Conference ( MENC) had formed its Commission on Basic ...
.'' Along with his student, Robert House, Leonhard published ''Foundations and Principles of Music Education'' in 1959. In 1963, Leonhard and Richard Colwell initiated the ''
Bulletin of the Council for Research in Music Education
The ''Bulletin of the Council for Research in Music Education'' is a quarterly academic journal covering music education. It is published by the University of Illinois Press on behalf of the Council for Research in Music Education.
History
The ...
.'' In 1964, Leonhard was a presenter at the Seminar on
Comprehensive Musicianship. In the 1970s, Leonhard edited a series of books called ''Contemporary Perspectives in Music Education''. The series aimed to establish “a pattern for music teacher education based on the areas of knowledge and processes involved in music education rather than on the levels and specializations in music education.” According to Leonhard, the “mastery of all of these processes and areas of knowledge is essential for the successful music educator regardless of his area of specialization and the level at which he teaches.” Six titles were published:
* ''A Philosophy of Music Education'' by
Bennett Reimer
* ''Building Instructional Programs in Music Education'' by Robert Sidnell
* ''The Psychology of Music Teaching'' by Edwin Gordon
* ''Administration of Music Education'' by Robert House
* ''The Evaluation of Music Teaching and Learning'' by
Richard Colwell
* ''Experimental Research in Music'' by
Clifford K. Madsen and Charles H. Madsen, Jr.
* Contact:+2348138101904
Recognition as a Leader in the Field
In 1994, the Music Educators National Conference (
MENC) placed Leonhard's name alongside those of
William Billings
William Billings (October 7, 1746 – September 26, 1800) is regarded as the first American choral composer and leading member of the First New England School.
Life
William Billings was born in Boston, Massachusetts. At the age of 14, t ...
,
Lowell Mason
Lowell Mason (January 8, 1792 – August 11, 1872) was an American music director and banker who was a leading figure in 19th-century American church music. Lowell composed over 1600 hymn tunes, many of which are often sung today. His best-known ...
,
Frances Elliot Clark, Karl Gehrkens, Mabelle Glenn,
James Mursell
James Mursell (1893–1963) wrote extensively about music education and the use of music
Music is generally defined as the art of arranging sound to create some combination of form, harmony, melody, rhythm or otherwise expressive co ...
, Lilla Belle Pitts, and
Allen Britton in the MENC Hall of Fame. Mark and Gary acknowledge the importance of Leonhard's contributions to the history of music education in the United States.
[Mark, M. L., & Gary, C. L. (1999). ''A history of American music education'' (2nd ed.). Reston, VA: MENC—The National Association for Music Education.] David J. Elliott puts Leonhard in the company of
Peter W. Dykema, Karl Gehrkens,
James Mursell
James Mursell (1893–1963) wrote extensively about music education and the use of music
Music is generally defined as the art of arranging sound to create some combination of form, harmony, melody, rhythm or otherwise expressive co ...
, Lilla Belle Pitts,
Harry Broudy
Harry Samuel Broudy (July 27, 1905 – June 24, 1998) was a Polish-born American professor of the philosophy of education.
Early life and education
Broudy was born in Filipów, Grodno Governorate (part of the Russian partition of the Polish– ...
, Abraham Schwadron,
Bennett Reimer, and
Keith Swanwick as leading thinkers in music education.
Further reading
*Heller, G. N. (1995a). Charles Leonhard and music education as aesthetic education at the University of Illinois. ''Bulletin of the Council for Research in Music Education, 125,'' 32-53.
*Heller, G. N. (1995b). ''Charles Leonhard: American music educator''. Metuchen, NJ: The Scarecrow Press.
References
External links
The Charles Leonhard LegacyOfficial Website of the ''Bulletin of the Council for Research in Music Education''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Leonhard, Charles
1915 births
2002 deaths
People from Anadarko, Oklahoma
American music educators
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign faculty
University of Oklahoma alumni
Teachers College, Columbia University alumni