Charles Herbert Kitson

Charles Herbert Kitson (13 November 1874 – 13 May 1944) was an English organist, teacher, and music educator, author of several books on harmony and counterpoint. He was born in Leyburn, Yorkshire, and attended school in Ripon. Intending originally to take holy orders, he took his BA (1896) and MA (1904) at Cambridge, where he was organ scholar of Selwyn College.^[1] Between those dates, he also took the BMus (1897) and DMus (1902) degrees at Oxford, as an external student.

After teaching at Haileybury and St Edmund's School, Canterbury, he became organist of St John the Baptist, Leicester. His first important post was as organist at Christ Church Cathedral in Dublin, in 1913 - a post which he held until 1920. During his stay in Dublin, he became professor of music at University College, Dublin, in 1915.

In 1920, he resigned both posts, and returned to England, settling in London, where he joined the staff of the Royal College of Music. The same year, he succeeded Percy Buck as Professor of Music at Trinity College, Dublin - a non-residential post, from which he retired in 1935. Among his notable pupils are Arwel Hughes, Herbert Sanders, Robert Still, Michael Tippett, and S. Drummond Wolff.

He died in London in 1944.

Writings

• The Art of Counterpoint, and its Application as a Decorative Principle (1907)
• The Evolution of Harmony (1914)
• Elementary Harmony (three volumes, 1920–26)
• Additional Exercises to Elementary Harmony (1926)
• Contrapuntal harmony for beginners (1931)

References

1. ^ Kitson, Charles Herbert in Venn, J. & J. A., Alumni Cantabrigienses, Cambridge University Press, 10 vols, 1922–1958.

Sources and external links

• Shaw, Watkins. "Kitson, Charles Herbert". Grove Music Online (subscription access)
• Entry for Kitson at Christ Church Cathedral website
• AIM25 entry for Kitson

Persondata
Name	Kitson, Charles Herbert
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Date of birth	13 November 1874
Place of birth
Date of death	13 May 1944
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