Goetschius, Percy

1853-

American teacher, writer and composer; born at Paterson, New Jersey; was a pupil at the Stuttgart Conservatory of Music in Germany from 1873 to 1876, of Lebert and Pruckner in piano, and of Faiszt and Doppler in harmony, counterpoint and instrumentation. From 1876 on he taught the English theory classes in the Conservatory; in 18 8 was appointed professor of the same branches, and in 1885 of musical history. In 1890 he returned to America, and for two years taught in the Syracuse University, New York, as professor of harmony, history and piano, and in 1892 received the honorary degree of Doctor of Music from the University. His next work was in the New England Conservatory, Boston, as lecturer on musical history and teacher of composition, where he remained until 1896. Since then he has been a private teacher of harmony and composition in Boston. He is a skilled contrapuntist, and has published the following compositions: Two concert fugues, a minuet, seven characterpieces in waltz rhythm, and a set of concise finger-exercises, all for piano; a wedding march for piano and organ; and an anthem, The Lord is My Shepherd. He is far better known, however, as an able writer on musical educational subjects. Beside a valuable work on harmony he has published The Theory and Practice of Tone-Relations; Models of the Principal Musical Forms; The Homophonic Forms of Musical Compositions, said to be the best work extant on the analysis of group-forms and song-forms; Exercises in Melody Writing; Applied Counterpoint; and Lessons m Music Form. He has also contributed important essays to American musical periodicals, and the Cotta Editi9n, published at Stuttgart, 1889, contained his critical Revision of Mendelssohn's Complete Piano Works.