
Tom Manoff
Composer and author Tom Manoff has been the classical music critic for NPR's All Things Considered since 1985.
In addition to his work at NPR, Manoff has written for the New York Times and other newspapers. Manoff's compositions include music for the Oscar-winning documentary Down and Out in the USA and Honor is so Sublime Perfection, performed at Tanglewood.
Currently, Manoff is working on an opera "The Trials of Katherina Kepler" and Chase the White Horse, a political memoir about his family.
His first book The Music Kit (WW Norton and Company, 1976-2001) has long been among the top-selling college textbooks for fundamentals of music. His second text, Music: A Living Language (Norton, 1982), was praised for its groundbreaking approach placing standard music history in a broader historical, cultural and musical context. The publication was the first college text from a major publisher to explore all musical styles as equal art forms.
At age five, Manoff started playing the piano. By the time he reached 10, Manoff began studying piano, theory and analysis with pianist and conductor David Labovitz.
Manoff studied at the Manhattan School of Music. His teachers included Ludmila Ulehla for theory and composition, Bronson Ragan in keyboard improvisation and figured bass, Hugh Ross in choral conducting, Anton Coppola in orchestral conducting, and Nicholas Flagello for orchestration.
In 1967, while still a student, Manoff joined the faculty of the Manhattan School's Preparatory Division. He taught theory, ear training, and composition for 11 years. A year after his faculty appointment, Manoff was appointed head of theory, composition, and teacher training at the Third Street Music School Settlement. In this role he developed intensive programs for young minority students with professional musical potential.
Manoff was a Congress of Racial Equality (CORE) worker during the Civil Rights movement in Mississippi in 1964 and 1965.
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The pianist's massive technique makes short order of Rachmaninov's most difficult concerto.
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Behind the well-known Christmas song that bears his name is the story of what made King Wenceslas so good.
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No historical fakery: Here's the real music of the Elizabethan era.
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Classical music critic Tom Manoff isn't usually a fan of French Baroque music. But he's found a boxed set of motets that he likes from a composer who met a bizarre end.
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The dynamic conductor makes magic with Tchaikovsky's symphonic version of Shakespeare's enigmatic play The Tempest. Set on a far-off island, the motion of the sea rises and falls within patterns in the strings.
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Pianist Shai Wosner has been performing to critical acclaim for years, but has just made his debut recording. Music critic Tom Manoff has been looking forward to the CD, having recently heard Wosner in recital.
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Why not listen to some holiday music few have heard in a while? Try an offering from the father of American choral music, or even folk music dating to the Middle Ages.
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From jazzy a cappella to accordion, artists are reinventing Bach's music in creative new ways. Critic Tom Manoff spotlights some of his favorites.
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On his new CD, Luminosity, the English composer James Whitbourn doesn't stitch his disparate styles together in some artificial attempt at multiculturalism. Critic Tom Manoff says the music flows naturally and sounds authentic and honest.
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The Dante Quartet's performances of the Debussy and Ravel string quartets are etched more than most, as if they'd used fine brush strokes to carve musical shapes, rather than broad strokes that would create more wash of the musical colors.