Baltzell, Winton James

1864-

Contemporary American composer, teacher and editor. He was born near Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, attended school in Harrisburg, and continued his education at Lebanon Valley College, Annsville, Pennsylvania. He holds the degree of Bachelor of Music from the University of Pennsylvania. His musical training was received at the New England Conservatory, Boston; under Dr. H. A. Clarke, in Philadelphia; and in London he studied with Dr. T. F. Bridge and William Shakespeare. He taught singing and theory in Reading, Pennsylvania, had charge of the Department of Music at Lebanon Valley College, The Albright Collegiate Institute, Myerstown, Pennsylvania, and the Ohio Wesleyan University. Mr. Baltzell has served as musical critic with the publishing house of Theodore Presser and as editor of The Etude. At present he is editor of The Musician and musical critic with the Oliver Ditson Company. He is the author of a number of songs and other works. In 1906 he published the text-book, A Complete History of Music. Rupert Hughes, in his Contemporary American Composers, speaks in high praise of the published and unpublished music of Baltzell, mentioning, among other pieces, the part-song, Life is a Flower; the song, Desire; the setting to E. C. Stedman's Thou Art Mine; and a series of songs to words by Richard Watson Gilder.