Ernst Levy Explained

Ernst Levy (18 November 1895 – 19 April 1981) was a Swiss musicologist, composer, pianist and conductor.

Life

Born in Basel, Switzerland, Levy studied with Hans Huber, Egon Petri and Raoul Pugno.^[1]

David Dubal describes him as an "unusual and powerful pianist" who made "grandly conceived" recordings of the late Beethoven sonatas and captured "the very essence of the Faustian Liszt".^[1] His work as a musicologist and teacher brought him to the United States, where he taught at colleges including the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, the University of Chicago and the New England Conservatory; he also became a United States citizen.^[2] His students included composer Hazel Ghazarian Skaggs.^[3] In 1966, he retired from academia and returned to his native Switzerland where he spent the remainder of his life. He died in Morges.

Levy's book A Theory of Harmony was published in 1985 and, among other modern compositional concepts, describes the composer's concept of harmonic "undertones".

Levy's son was composer and cellist Frank Ezra Levy (1930–2017).^[4]

Selected compositions

Orchestral

• Symphony No. 2 in D major (1922)
• Symphony No. 3 (1922)
• Symphony No. 7 (1937)
• Symphony No. 8 (1937)
• Symphony No. 10 "France" (1944)
• Symphony No. 11 (1949)
• Symphony No. 12 (1951)
• Symphony No. 13 (1955)
• Third Suite for orchestra (1957)
• Fourth Suite for orchestra (1959)
• Symphony No. 14 (1962)
• Symphony No. 15 (1968)

Concertante

• Concerto for cello and orchestra (1947)

Chamber music

• String Quartet No. 1 (1919)
• Sonata No. 1 for violin and piano (1932)
• Divertimento for clarinet (or oboe) and piano (1952)
• Theme and Transformations for clarinet and piano (1952)
• String Trio No. 1 (1953)
• Sonata for cello and piano (1953)
• Sonata for horn and Piano (1953)
• Fifteen Little Pieces for cello solo (1955)
• Piano Quartet (1956)
• Suite for viola or cello solo (1956)
• Suite for violin solo (1960)
• String Trio No. 2 (1960)
• Sonata No. 2 for violin and piano (1961)
• Sonata No. 3 for violin and piano (1963)
• Sonatina No. 1 for violin and piano (1962)
• Sonatina No. 2 for violin and piano (1962)
• Suite for 2 violas (1963)
• Trio for clarinet, cello and piano (1963)
• Sonata for three violin parts (1965)
• String Trio No. 3 (1966)
• Trio for clarinet, viola and piano (1968)
• Trio No. 2 for clarinet, violin and piano (1970)
• Suite No. 2 for viola solo (1971)
• Soliloquy for clarinet solo (1971)
• Concerto sur "Auprès de ma blonde" for trumpet and piano (1975)
• Threnodie for viola, cello and organ (1975)
• Sonata for 2 violins and piano (1977)
• Intermezzo idilliaco for clarinet and piano (1978)
• String Trio No. 4 (1978)
• String Quartet No. 4 (1978)
• String Quartet No. 5 (1978)
• Sonata for viola and piano (1979)
• Trio for violin, cello and piano (1979)
• Sonata Accompagnata for bassoon and piano or orchestra (1980)

Keyboard

• Fantaisie symphonique for harpsichord (1939)
• Ricercar for harpsichord (1960)
• Meditation on a Hebrew Raga for organ (1961)
• Study on the Whole-Tone Scales for piano (1971)
• Piano Sonata No. 1 (1973)
• Piano Sonata No. 2 (1974)
• Piano Sonata No. 3 (1975)
• Piano Sonata No. 4 (1976)
• Piano Sonata No. 5 (1977)
• Piano Sonata No. 6 (1979)
• Piano Sonata No. 7 (1981)
• Hommage romantique for piano (1977)
• Fantaisie dialoguée for organ and piano (1980)

Vocal

• Gaudeamus, Cantata for mixed chorus, wind orchestra and timpani (1964)
• Li T'ai Po's Answer for tenor, string orchestra and flute (1979)
• Eins und Alles for baritone and string orchestra (1980); words by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
• Book: Levy , Ernst . Four folk songs from Switzerland: for 4 mixed voices, SATB. New York. Music Press. 1946. 78196587.
• Book: Levy , Ernst . Divertimento for clarinet (or oboe) and piano. 1952. New York. Seesaw Music Corp.. 869234.
• Book: Levy , Ernst . Sonata, for violoncello & piano. 1953. New York. Seesaw Music Corp.. 222539336.
• Book: Levy , Ernst . 7 piano pieces. New York. Boosey & Hawkes. 1954. 83544484.
• Book: Levy , Ernst . Hear, ye children: Proverbs 4:1,7,8 (part-songs). Paul Boepple . Bennington, VT. Bennington College. 1957. 77291468.
• Book: Levy , Ernst . Trio, for clarinet, viola, and piano. 1968. New York. Seesaw Music Corp.. 221789930.
• Book: Levy , Ernst . Sonata for horn and piano. 1969. New York. Seesaw Music Corp.. 869439.

Academic works

• Book: Levy , Ernst . On the proportions of the south tower of Chartres Cathedral. Cambridge, MA. Dept. of Humanities, Massachusetts Institute of Technology. 1956. 11508947.
• Book: Levy , Ernst . Tone, a Study in Musical Acoustics. Siegmund Levarie . Kent State University Press. 1968. Kent, OH. 60510.
• Book: Levy , Ernst . Musical Morphology: A Discourse and a Dictionary. registration. Siegmund Levarie . Kent State University Press. illustrated. 0-87338-286-2. Kent, OH. 1983.
• Book: Levy , Ernst . A Theory of Harmony. Siegmund Levarie . Albany, NY. State University of New York Press. 1985. 0-87395-993-0.

External links

• Ernst Levy's official website (created under support of his son, Frank Ezra Levy)
• Guide to the Ernst Levy Papers 1919-2004 at the University of Chicago Special Collections Research Center
• Sound recordings of works of the composer from the archives of Swiss Radio SRG SSR on Neo.Mx3

Notes and References

1. Book: Dubal , David . The Art of the Piano: Its Performers, Literature, and Recordings. 3rd rev. and expanded. 1-57467-088-3. Pompton Plains, NJ. Amadeus Press. 2004. 215. registration. . Entry: "Ernst Levy".
2. Levy (1985), end matter
3. Book: Cohen, Aaron I. . International Encyclopedia of Women Composers . 1987 . Books & Music (USA) . 978-0-9617485-2-4 . en.
4. News: Frank Ezra Levy . . Joliet, Illinois . L5 . 2017-04-25 . 2024-06-22 . Newspapers.com.