Morris, R(eginald) O(wen)
Morris, R(eginald) O(wen)
Morris, R(eginald) O(wen), English composer and pedagogue; b. York, March 3,1886; d. London, Dec. 14, 1948. He studied with Charles Wood at the Royal Coll. of Music in London, where he later taught (1920–26). After teaching at the Curtis Inst. of Music in Philadelphia (1926–28), he again taught at the Royal Coll. of Music (1928–48). He became best known as a teacher, serving as a discerning mentor to many notable students. He was the brother-in-law of Ralph Vaughan Williams.
Works
orch.: Violin Concerto (1930); Concerto piccolo for 2 Violins and String Orch. (1930); Sym. (1935). CHAMBER: Fantasy for String Quartet (1922); other chamber works. VOCAL: Songs; folk-song arrangements.
Writings
(all publ. in London unless otherwise given): Contrapuntal Technique in the 16th Century(Oxford, 1922); Foundations of Practical Harmony and Counterpoint(1925); with H. Ferguson, Preparatory Exercises in Score Reading(1931); Figured Harmony at the Keyboard (1931); The Structure of Music (1935); Introduction to Counterpoint (1944); Oxford Harmony (1946).
—Nicolas Slonimsky/Laura Kuhn/Dennis Mclntire