George Strong (composer)
George Templeton Strong ( born May 26, 1856 in New York City; † June 27, 1948 in Geneva) was an American composer who spent much of his life in Europe.
Life
George Templeton Strong was the son of the lawyer George Templeton Strong; this was also an amateur organist and president of the New York Philharmonic Society (and its 1952 published diaries documenting among other things also the New York musical life of his time ). Although the parents encouraged his musical education, but rejected the desire to become a professional musician from. Nevertheless, he studied from 1879 at the Leipzig Conservatory, among others at Salomon Jadassohn and Richard Hofmann, and worked as a violist with the Gewandhaus Orchestra of Leipzig. Strong's mother (Ellen Caroline Ruggles, 1825-1891 ) was godson of the Princess Carolyne zu Sayn -Wittgenstein, the longtime companion of Franz Liszt. About this connection, contact with Liszt, the Strong in Weimar frequently visited him and his symphonic poem Undine op dedicated 14 showed. Liszt wrote in the score: " Franz Liszt Takes note with appreciation of the dedication of this excellent work ."
1886 Strong moved to Wiesbaden. At the invitation of his friend, fellow composer Edward MacDowell, who had also studied in Germany, he became in 1891 a professor of counterpoint and composition at the New England Conservatory of Music. However, two years later, he returned to Europe, where he settled on Lake Geneva and lived there until his death in 1948 at the age of 92 years. In addition to composition, he increasingly devoted himself to painting. Together with conductor Ernest Ansermet, with which he concluded there friendship ( and also works premiered by him ), but he also took part at the Geneva musical life and gave young musicians free lessons.
Work
In Strong's catalog raisonné issue also includes three symphonies ( 1893, premiered No. 2 in G minor, Op 50 is titled Sintram or The struggle of a man against the forces of evil ) as well as symphonic poems (like The Night and Le Roi Arthur ) piano works, chamber music and vocal compositions. His increasing years in the Swiss tendency to watercolor painting was also expressed in titles such as the song cycle Three Watercolors for Voice and Orchestra (1931 ) and the Wind Quintet Cinq Aquarelle ( 1933).
Strong belonged to the circle around Liszt and Wagner, without however opponents of the followers of Schumann and Brahms. His music remained as part of the late Romantic and shows, among other things Reminiscent of that of the also to Liszt circle counting Joachim Raff Although he welcomed the works of Mahler, Strauss and Ravel, but more modern movements of the 20th century, such as Stravinsky, he refused.