Arnold Dolmetsch

Arnold Dolmetsch (born Feb. 24, 1858, Le Mans, Fr.—died Feb. 28, 1940, Haslemere, Surrey, Eng.) was a French-born British musician whose lifework, pursued in the face of prolonged indifference and misunderstanding, established the modern search for authenticity in the performance and instrumentation of early music. His craftsmanship in restoring and reproducing early musical instruments, his insistence on consultation of source material, coupled with his intuitive understanding, gave him remarkable insight into the problems of presenting music of J.S. Bach’s generation and earlier.

Dolmetsch learned piano and organ building from his father and grandfather, and, after study at the Brussels Conservatory and the Royal College of Music in London, he taught violin. He discovered British Museum manuscripts of viol music by early English composers, began investigating how to perform their music in authentic style, and in 1890 gave his first viol concert.

With his wife and Kathleen Salmon he formed a trio for the performance of early music on authentic instruments. His 1902 concert tour of the U.S. prompted the Chickering factory in Boston to extend its facilities to him. There he supervised the building of harpsichords, lutes, and viols (1905–09). From 1911 to 1914 he was at the Gaveau factory in Paris. After World War I he built the first successful modern recorders.

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Like George Bernard Shaw, who reviewed his concerts with enthusiasm, Dolmetsch was a rebel whose reforms aroused a response of mingled alarm and fascination. His work slowly gained acceptance after 1914. He published several editions of early music, and his book, The Interpretation of the Music of the XVII and XVIII Centuries (1915 and 1944), became a basic work in its field. Dolmetsch settled in England in 1914 and in 1916 established a centre for the study of early music in Haslemere. In 1928 the Dolmetsch Foundation was organized to support him and to spread his ideas.