Israel Citkowitz (6 February 1909 – 4 May 1974)[1] was a Polish-born American pianist, composer, teacher, and critic.[2]
Israel Citkowitz | |
|---|---|
| Born | Israel Citkowitz 6 February 1909 |
| Died | 4 May 1974 (aged 65) Westminster, London, England |
| Nationality | American |
| Occupation(s) | Pianist, composer, teacher, critic |
| Years active | 1927–1974 |
| Spouses | |
| Children | 4, including Eugenia |
Early life
editIsrael Citkowitz was born on 6 February 1909 in Skierniewice, Poland,[3] the first of two children to Ida Frankon and Abraham Citkowitz.[4] He was brought to the United States when he was three.[5] Citkowitz had a sister called Rebecca.[5]
As a teenager, Citkowitz studied composition with Aaron Copland and Roger Sessions. He traveled to Paris to study counterpoint with Nadia Boulanger.[1]
Career
editFrom 1927 to 1929, Citkowitz was a member of Shakespeare and Company.[6]
During the 1930s, Citkowitz published music criticism in Modern Music and Musical Mercury. Among his pieces was the first English-language introduction to Schenker's ideas, The Role of Heinrich Schenker.[2]
In 1939, Citkowitz was appointed teacher of counterpoint and composition, which included Song Cycle to Words of Joyce, String Quartet and the choral music, The Lamb, at the Dalcroze School of Music in New York City.[2][1] Among his students were the English composer Leo Smith, and later, the American conductor Richard Kapp.[2]
Citkowitz wrote poetry including Autumn and The Prodigals of Summer.[7]
Discography
editSource:[8]
- But Yesterday Is Not Today (1977). New World Records — NW 243
- Modern America Art Songs (Unknown). New Editions (2) — NE 2
Personal life
editOn 15 September 1935, Citkowitz married Helen Margaret Simon in Manhattan, New York. They had two children. The couple divorced in 1948.[1] On 25 June 2013, Citkowitz's daughter with Simon, Dr. Elena Citkowitz, died from cancer, aged 73.[9]
After his 1948 divorce, Citkowitz lived in his Carnegie Hall studio.[10]
On 15 August 1959, Citkowitz married the English writer and heir to the Guinness beer fortune, Lady Caroline Blackwood, 22 years his junior. They had three daughters: Natalya, Eugenia, and Ivana, born after they separated.[1] The couple divorced in 1972. A deathbed admission by Blackwood revealed that their daughter Ivana Lowell, was not Citkowitz's child, but was fathered by her lover, screenwriter Ivan Moffat.[11][12] On 22 June 1978, Natalya, Citkowitz's eldest daughter with Blackwood, died at age 17 from postural asphyxia due to a drug overdose.[13]
Death
editCitkowitz died on 4 May 1974 at his apartment in Westminster, London, where he had been living for the last five years. He was 65.[1]
References
edit- ^ a b c d e f "Israel Citkowitz, 65, Dies; Composer, Piano Teacher". The New York Times. 6 May 1974. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 19 February 2023.
- ^ a b c d Documents Online, Schenker. "Israel Citkowitz". Schenker Documents Online.
- ^ "Israel Citkowitz music, videos, stats, and photos". Last.fm. Retrieved 22 February 2023.
- ^ "Israel Citkowitz 1908–1974 – Ancestry®". www.ancestry.co.uk. Retrieved 22 February 2023.
- ^ a b "Family tree of Israel CITKOWITZ". Geneanet. Retrieved 19 February 2023.
- ^ Shakespeare and Company Project (19 January 2022). "Israel Citkowitz was a member of Shakespeare and Company from 1927 to 1929". Twitter. Retrieved 22 February 2023.
- ^ Foundation, Poetry (22 February 2023). "Autumn by Israel Citkowitz | The Prodigals of Summer by Israel Citkowitz". Poetry Magazine. Retrieved 22 February 2023.
- ^ "Israel Citkowitz". Discogs. Retrieved 22 February 2023.
- ^ "Obituary information for Dr. Elena Citkowitz". www.iovanne.com. Retrieved 20 February 2023.
- ^ "Israel Citkowitz". Geneanet.
- ^ Brubach, Holly. "Their Better Half". The New York Times, 17 August 2010.
- ^ Gaines, Steven. "Ivana Lowell, Sober Guinness Heiress Raised by Poet, Says What Happened". New York magazine, 19 September 2010.
- ^ "Ivana Lowell: So, who was my father? | Family | The Guardian". amp.theguardian.com. 4 December 2010. Retrieved 20 February 2023.
