Clara Lichtenstein

Clara Lichtenstein (October 21, 1863 – May 3, 1946) was a Hungarian-born pianist and educator.

Clara Lichtenstein
BornOctober 21, 1863
Budapest
DiedMay 3, 1946
Swanage, Dorset, England
Occupation(s)Music educator, pianist

Early life

Lichtenstein was born in Budapest in 1863.[1] Her maternal grandfather was the German singer Traugott Gey, and her uncle was the artist Leonhard Gey.[2]

She studied at the Charlotte Square Institution in Edinburgh, where her uncle George Lichtenstein was a director.[3] In 1880, she performed piano duets with Sir Charles Hallé.[4] She continued her studies at the Royal Academy of Music in Vienna; she is said to have also studied with Liszt around this time.[5]

Career

Following her uncle's death, Lichtenstein became principal of the Charlotte Square Institution. In 1898, she became a member of the Royal Society of Musicians. In 1899,[6] she was invited by Lord Strathcona to organize a music department at the Royal Victoria College (later McGill University) in Montreal.[2][7] In 1904,[8] she became vice-director and head of staff of the new McGill Conservatorium of Music.[9] She taught piano, voice, music history and music theory until 1929.[5][10] She also gave public lectures in Montreal.[11]

Her students included Pauline Donalda,[12] Ellen Ballon,[13] Maud Allan,[14] Marguerita Spencer, jazz pianist Max Chamitov,[15] and bass singer Edmund Burke.[5]

Personal life and legacy

Lichtenstein retired to England in 1929, and died in Swanage, Dorset, in 1946, in her eighties.[5][10] Clara Lichtenstein Hall, a small performance hall at McGill University, was named in her honour.[16] In 1979, as part of the conservatory's 80th anniversary events, pianist Janet Schmalfeldt gave a recital in memory of Clara Lichtenstein, featuring works by Bach, Schubert, Schumann, and Liszt.[17]

References
  1. Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching (1943). Annual Report. p. 107.
  2. McLean, Eric (January 12, 1980). "Clara Brought Touch of Class to Montreal". The Gazette. p. 66. Retrieved 2020-06-23 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. Leonard, John William (1914). Woman's Who's who of America: A Biographical Dictionary of Contemporary Women of the United States and Canada. American Commonwealth Company. pp. 490–491.
  4. "Edinburgh". The Musical Standard: 354. December 4, 1880.
  5. Turbide, Nadia (2013). "Lichtenstein, Clara". The Canadian Encyclopedia.
  6. "Think Highly of Her". The Gazette. 1899-10-19. p. 5. Retrieved 2020-06-23 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. Stubley, Eleanor (2008). Compositional Crossroads: Music, Mcgill, Montreal. McGill-Queen's Press - MQUP. p. 335. ISBN 978-0-7735-7504-2.
  8. "Breaks Old Rules". The Gazette. 1904-03-12. p. 9. Retrieved 2020-06-23 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. "McGill Conservatory". Ministère de l'Éducation et de l'Enseignement supérieur. Retrieved 2020-06-23.
  10. "Miss C. Lichtenstein, Franz Liszt Pupil, Dies". The Gazette. 1946-05-04. p. 14. Retrieved 2020-06-23 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. "Art Association of Montreal". The Gazette. 1901-03-05. p. 7. Retrieved 2020-06-23 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. Pauline Lightstone Donalda, soprano, voice teacher and administrator (1882-1970), Library and Archives Canada.
  13. "Ellen Ballon fonds, Dalhousie University". MemoryNS. Retrieved 2020-06-23.
  14. Forster, Merna (2011-09-07). 100 More Canadian Heroines: Famous and Forgotten Faces. Dundurn. p. 32. ISBN 978-1-4597-0085-7.
  15. "From Classical to Jazz". The Gazette. 1957-07-13. p. 25. Retrieved 2020-06-23 – via Newspapers.com.
  16. "Clara Lichtenstein Hall". Music, McGill University. Retrieved 2020-06-23.
  17. "McGill Memo". The Gazette. 1979-12-14. p. 3. Retrieved 2020-06-23 – via Newspapers.com.
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