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Alan Rawsthorne
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Alan Rawsthorne

British composer
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Born:
May 2, 1905, Haslingden, Lancashire, Eng.
Died:
July 24, 1971, Cambridge, Cambridgeshire
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Alan Rawsthorne (born May 2, 1905, Haslingden, Lancashire, Eng.—died July 24, 1971, Cambridge, Cambridgeshire) was an English composer best known for his finely structured orchestral and chamber music written in a restrained, unostentatious style.

Rawsthorne studied at the Royal Manchester College of Music (1926–30) and in Berlin (1930–31) with Egon Petri. His early music with its pervasive linear counterpoint shows the influence of Paul Hindemith, and his style retained a consistent contrapuntal basis combined with incisive rhythms, melodic fluidity, and a strong feeling for tonal centres. Rawsthorne’s works include three symphonies, eight concerti, and the vocal Medieval Diptych (1962) and Carmen vitale (1963).

This article was most recently revised and updated by Encyclopaedia Britannica.