Kurt von Fischer (25 April 1913 – 27 November 2003) was a Swiss

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 classical pianist.

Life

Fischer wurde was born on 25 April 1913 in Bern as the son of the mycologist Eduard Fischer. Fischer studied piano at the

University of the Arts Bern __NOTOC__ The University of the Arts Bern (german: Hochschule der Künste Bern) is an art school with locations in Bern and Biel/Bienne. It was created in 2003 from the merger of the University of Music and Theatre and the School of Design, Art an ...

, which he completed in 1935 with a diploma under

Franz Josef Hirt Franz Josef Hirt (7 February 1899 – 20 May 1985) was a Swiss classical pianist. Born in Lucerne, Hirt studied with Hans Huber, Ernst Levy, Egon Petri and Alfred Cortot. From 1930 he led a concert education class at the . For his commitment t ...

. Later he was trained by

Czesław Marek Czesław Marek (1891–1985) was a Polish composer, pianist, and piano teacher who settled in Switzerland during World War I. Life Born in the town of Przemyśl in Eastern Galicia, near Lwów (now Lviv in Ukraine), Marek studied in that ci ...

. In addition, he studied

musicology 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 ...

at the

University of Bern The University of Bern (german: Universität Bern, french: Université de Berne, la, Universitas Bernensis) is a university in the Switzerland, Swiss capital of Bern and was founded in 1834. It is regulated and financed by the Canton of Bern. It ...

and received his

doctorate A doctorate (from Latin ''docere'', "to teach"), doctor's degree (from Latin ''doctor'', "teacher"), or doctoral degree is an academic degree awarded by universities and some other educational institutions, derived from the ancient formalism ''l ...

in 1938. From 1939 to 1957 he worked as a teacher at the Bern Conservatory. From 1948 to 1957 he was appointed

Privatdozent ''Privatdozent'' (for men) or ''Privatdozentin'' (for women), abbreviated PD, P.D. or Priv.-Doz., is an academic title conferred at some European universities, especially in German-speaking countries, to someone who holds certain formal qualific ...

at the University of Bern. From 1957 to 1979 he taught musicology as ''Ordinarius'' at the

University of Zurich The University of Zürich (UZH, german: Universität Zürich) is a public research university located in the city of Zürich, Switzerland. It is the largest university in Switzerland, with its 28,000 enrolled students. It was founded in 1833 f ...

, from 1974 to 1976 as

Dean Dean may refer to: People * Dean (given name) * Dean (surname), a surname of Anglo-Saxon English origin * Dean (South Korean singer), a stage name for singer Kwon Hyuk * Dean Delannoit, a Belgian singer most known by the mononym Dean Titles * ...

. He has also held visiting professorships in Europe, the US and Australia. In addition, he was an honorary member of numerous scientific societies and president of the

International Musicological Society The International Musicological Society (IMS) is a membership-based organisation for musicology at the international level, with headquarters in Basel, Switzerland. It seeks the advancement of musicological research through international coopera ...

from 1967 to 1972. In 1974 he was awarded the Music Prize of the Canton of Berne. In 1980 he was awarded the

Hans Georg Nägeli Hans Georg Nägeli (26 May 1773 – 26 December 1836) was a composer and music publisher. Nägeli was born in Wetzikon, Switzerland. He studied under his father as a child, and then opened a private music shop and publishing firm in the 1790s. In ...

Medal of the City of Zurich. He has corresponded with many famous personalities of the 20th century, including

Inge Borkh Inge Borkh (born Ingeborg Simon, 26 May 1921 – 26 August 2018) was a German operatic dramatic soprano. She was first based in Switzerland, where she received international attention when she appeared in the first performance in German of Meno ...

Alfred Cortot Alfred Denis Cortot (; 26 September 187715 June 1962) was a French pianist, conductor, and teacher who was one of the most renowned classical musicians of the 20th century. A pianist of massive repertory, he was especially valued for his poeti ...

György Ligeti György Sándor Ligeti (; ; 28 May 1923 – 12 June 2006) was a Hungarian-Austrian composer of contemporary classical music. He has been described as "one of the most important avant-garde composers in the latter half of the twentieth century" ...

Arvo Pärt Arvo Pärt (; born 11 September 1935) is an Estonian composer of contemporary classical music. Since the late 1970s, Pärt has worked in a minimalist style that employs tintinnabuli, a compositional technique he invented. Pärt's music is in pa ...

Sándor Veress Sándor Veress (, – ) was a Swiss composer of Hungarian origin. He was born in Kolozsvár/Klausenburg, Transylvania, Kingdom of Hungary, Austro-Hungarian Empire, nowadays called Cluj-Napoca, Romania, and died in Bern. The first half of hi ...

Wladimir Vogel Wladimir Rudolfowitsch Vogel (17 February/29 February 1896 – 19 June 1984) was a Swiss composer of German and Russian descent. Life Born in Moscow, Vogel first studied composition in Moscow with Alexander Scriabin, then between 1918 and 192 ...

and

Jean Ziegler Jean Ziegler (; born Hans Ziegler, 19 April 1934) is a Swiss former professor of sociology at the University of Geneva and the Sorbonne, Paris, and former vice-president of the Advisory Committee to the United Nations Human Rights Council. He ...

. Fischer, who married the pianist Esther Aerni in 1940, died on 27 November 2003 at the age of 90 in Bern. Fischer's main areas of research were the Ars nova of the 14th century, the history of the Passions composition as well as variation and the work of

Ludwig van Beethoven Ludwig van Beethoven (baptised 17 December 177026 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. Beethoven remains one of the most admired composers in the history of Western music; his works rank amongst the most performed of the classical ...

. The internationally renowned teacher and researcher Fischer was named

Honorary Citizen Honorary citizenship is a status bestowed by a city or other government on a foreign or native individual whom it considers to be especially admirable or otherwise worthy of the distinction. The honour usually is symbolic and does not confer an ...

Certaldo Certaldo is a town and ''comune'' of Tuscany, Italy, in the Metropolitan City of Florence, in the middle of Valdelsa. It is about southwest of the Florence Duomo. It is 50 minutes by rail and 35 minutes by car southwest of Florence, and it is 40 m ...

for his services to trecento research.

Publications

* ''.'' Monaco 1974–1991. * ''Sämtliche Werke, Paul Hindemith.'' Mainz 1975. * ''

Archiv für Musikwissenschaft The ''Archiv für Musikwissenschaft'' is a quarterly German-English-speaking trade magazine devoted to music history and historical musicology, which publishes articles by well-known academics and young scholars. It was founded in 1918 as the su ...

.'' Mitherausgeber Stuttgart 1952. * ''Griegs Harmonik und die nordländische Folklore.'' Bern 1938. * ''Die Beziehung von Form und Motiv in Beethovens Instrumentalwerken.'' Strasbourg 1948. * ''Studien zur italienischen Musik des Trecento und frühen Quattrocento.'' Bern 1956. * ''Die Variation.'' Cologne 1956. * ''Handschriften mit mehrstimmiger Musik des 14., 15. und 16. Jahrhunderts. Répertoire international des sources musicales. B.'' 4, 3–4. Munich 1972. * ''Essays in Musicology.'' New York 1989. * ''Wege zu Bach.'' Jahresgabe 1991 der Internationalen Bach-Gesellschaft Schaffhausen. Wiesbaden 1992. * ''Die Passion: Musik zwischen Kunst und Kirche.''''Die Passion: Musik zwischen Kunst und Kirche''
on GoogleBooks Kassel 1997.

External links

* * Dorothea Baumann
Kurt von Fischer
on ''

Historical Dictionary of Switzerland The ''Historical Dictionary of Switzerland'' is an encyclopedia on the history of Switzerland that aims to take into account the results of modern historical research in a manner accessible to a broader audience. The encyclopedia is publishe ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fischer, Kurt von Swiss writers Swiss musicologists 20th-century musicologists Swiss classical pianists Corresponding Fellows of the British Academy Members of the Slovenian Academy of Sciences and Arts Academic staff of the University of Bern Academic staff of the University of Zurich 1913 births 2003 deaths People from Bern

Life

Publications

Further reading

External links

References