- Wilhelm Middelschulte
Wilhelm Middelschulte (b.
April 3 ,1863 , Werve, Kreis Hamm, now part ofKamen ; d.May 4 ,1943 ,Dortmund ) was a Germanorganist andcomposer who resided in America for most of his career.Life
Middelschulte initially studied organ with August Knabe. He later attended the Royal Academic Institute for Church Music, where he studied organ and theory with August Haupt. After briefly holding a position at the Royal Institute and acquiring a post at the Lukaskirche in Berlin, he moved to Chicago in 1891. In 1893, he gave three performances entirely from memory at the Columbian Exposition. From 1896 - 1918 he was organist for what would later become the
Chicago Symphony Orchestra . During the 1920s, he regularly returned to his native Germany to give performances. He is regarded as one of the most significant organists of his time, and was critically acclaimed for his performances ofJohann Sebastian Bach . In 1939, after nearly fifty years in America, Middelschulte returned to Germany, where he died only four years later.References
*Die Musik in Geschichte und Gegenwart: Middelschulte, Wilhelm. Musik in Geschichte und Gegenwart, S. 51023 (vgl. MGG Bd. 16, S. 1276) (c) Bärenreiter-Verlag 1986
*Brink Bush, "Middelschulte, Wilhelm". Grove Music Online, ed. L. Macy. (Accessed 28 December 2007.) [http://www.grovemusic.com]
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