Luther Whiting Mason

Luther Whiting Mason

Infobox Person
name = Luther Whiting Mason


caption =
birth_date = 3 April 1818
birth_place = Turner, Maine, United States
death_date = 14 July 1896
death_place = Buckfield, Maine, United States
other_names =
known_for = musical education
occupation =　musician, educator. Foreign advisor to Meiji Japan
nationality = United States

Luther Whiting Mason (3 April 1818 - 14 July 1896) was an American music educator who was hired by the Meiji period government of Japan as a foreign advisor to introduce Western music into the Japanese educational curriculum.

Biography

Mason was born in Turner, Maine. He worked as a music teacher for many years, in Louisville (1852-55), followed by Cincinnati, Ohio (1856-64), and Boston, Massachusetts (1864-79). In addition to teaching, Mason collected songs, wrote textbooks, and promoted their publication. His teaching method made use of charts and what were called "ladders," to explain scales, staffs, clefs, note values, intervals, and dynamics.

While in Boston, he was scouted by the Japanese Ministry of Education on the recommendation of one his former pupils, Izawa Shuji in 1872.

During his stay in Japan at Tokyo Imperial University from 1880-1882, Mason and Izawa worked together to develop programs for the teaching of music in elementary and middle schools, developing teacher training programs, and creating the first graded series of music textbooks in Japan. He also laid the foundation for a national music conservatory, later called the "Tokyo Ongaku Gakudan", and now part of the Tokyo University of Fine Arts and Music. He also imported pianos and other western orchestral instruments, and made efforts to “improve” Japanese musical taste by encouraging study of harmonics and popular western tunes.

Although Mason expressed a strong desire to remain in Japan, his contract was not renewed, largely due to budgetary reasons.

Mason later made four trips to Europe, visiting Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Norway, Sweden and England, observing teaching methods and collecting hundreds of music books.

Whiting died in Buckfield, Maine on 14 July 1896 at the age of 78.

References

* Howe, Sondra Wieland. "Luther Whiting Mason: International Music Educator". Harmonie Press International (1997). ISBN 0-89990-080-1
* Hall, Bonlyn G. The American Education of Luther Whiting Mason American Music, Vol. 6, No. 1 (Spring, 1988),
* [http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GSmid=46819826&GRid=13108392& Find a Grave]


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем написать реферат

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Music education in the United States — Music of United States of America Timeline General topics Education · History Genres Classical …   Wikipedia

  • Music education — is a field of study associated with the teaching and learning of music. It touches on all domains of learning, including the psychomotor domain (the development of skills), the cognitive domain (the acquisition of knowledge), and, in particular… …   Wikipedia

  • Kontraktausländer — Die o yatoi gaikokujin (jap. お雇い外国人; „Kontraktausländer“) waren ausländische Experten, Ingenieure, Lehrer und Andere, beschäftigt, um an der Modernisierung Japans mitzuwirken. Sie wurden am Ende des Shōgunats und während der Meiji Zeit ins Land… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • O-yatoi gaikokujin — Die o yatoi gaikokujin (jap. お雇い外国人, dt. „Kontraktausländer“) waren ausländische Experten, Ingenieure, Lehrer und Andere, beschäftigt, um an der Modernisierung Japans mitzuwirken. Sie wurden am Ende des Shōgunats und während der Meiji Zeit ins… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • arts, East Asian — Introduction       music and visual and performing arts of China, Korea, and Japan. The literatures of these countries are covered in the articles Chinese literature, Korean literature, and Japanese literature.       Some studies of East Asia… …   Universalium

  • Oyatoi gaikokujin — The oyatoi gaikokujin (Japanese Kyūjitai: ja. 御雇ひ外國人, Shinjitai: ja. お雇い外国人, hired foreigners ) sometimes rendered o yatoi gaikokujin in romaji, were foreign advisors hired by the Japanese government for their specialized knowledge to assist in… …   Wikipedia

  • Timeline of music in the United States (1850 - 1879) — This is a timeline of music in the United States from 1850 to 1879. NOTOC 1850*The Adelphi Theater of Nashville, Tennessee opens, one of the largest stages in the country at the time. [Abel, pg. 249] *The California Gold Rush brings the first… …   Wikipedia

  • Foreign government advisors in Meiji Japan — The Foreign government advisors in Meiji Japan, known in Japanese as oyatoi gaikokujin (Kyūjitai: 御雇ひ外國人, Shinjitai: 御雇い外国人, hired foreigners ), were those foreign advisors hired by the Japanese government for their specialized knowledge to… …   Wikipedia

  • List of Blue Amberol Records — This is a combination of those two lists: 1502 Trio From Faust Agnes Kimball Miller Croxton 1508 Light As a Feather (Bells) Daab 1518 Whispering Hope (w.m. Alice Hawthorne) Helen Clark Harry Anthony 1522 Monkey Musk Melody Nat l Prom Band 1529… …   Wikipedia

  • performing arts — arts or skills that require public performance, as acting, singing, or dancing. [1945 50] * * * ▪ 2009 Introduction Music Classical.       The last vestiges of the Cold War seemed to thaw for a moment on Feb. 26, 2008, when the unfamiliar strains …   Universalium

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
… Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”