Willy Burkhard
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
- Composer
- Academic teacher
- Berne Conservatory
- Zürich Conservatory
Willy Burkhard | |
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| Born | 17 April 1900 Evilard, Canton of Bern, Switzerland |
| Died | 18 June 1955 (aged 55) Zürich, Switzerland |
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Willy Burkhard (17 April 1900 – 18 June 1955) was a Swiss composer and academic teacher, influential in both capacities. He taught music theory at the Berne Conservatory and the Zürich Conservatory. His works include an opera, oratorios, cantatas, and many instrumental genres from piano pieces to symphonies.[1]
Burkhard was born in Evilard, Canton of Bern.[2] He attended and graduated from a teachers' training college Evangelisches Lehrerseminar Muristalden.[3] He also study with Ernst Graf, organist at the Berner Münster. He moved to Leipzig to study piano with Robert Teichmüller[4] and composition with Sigfrid Karg-Elert.[5] After Leipzig, he moved on to Munich to study with Walter Courvoisier[5] and later to Paris to work with Max d'Ollone.[4]
From 1924, he began teaching composition, theory and the piano in Berne.[2] He was appointed professor at the Berne Conservatory in 1928.[5] He conducted several choirs and small orchestras there.[5] In 1932 he was struck with tuberculosis,[4] and was compelled to live for several years in Montana and Davos.[2] During that time, he turned more towards composition.[5] He settled in Zürich in 1942 and taught composition and music theory at the Zürich Conservatory,[2] where his students included Klaus Huber, Rudolf Kelterborn, Ernst Pfiffner, Armin Schibler and Ernst Widmer.[3] In 1950 he received a prize from the Schweizerischer Tonkünstlerverein (Swiss Association of Musicians). He died in Zürich in 1955 at the age of 55.[2][5]
