Joseph Schillinger (1 September 1895 – 23 March 1943) was a composer, music theorist, and composition teacher. He was born in Kharkiv, Ukraine (at that time, part of Russian Empire). He graduated from the Classical College in 1914 and the St. Petersburg Imperial Conservatory of Music.

Schillinger came to the United States of America in 1928 and received his citizenship in 1936. He remained in America until his death from cancer in 1943 at age 47.

He was a teacher of music at Columbia Teachers College and also gave private lessons in music composition from his home, during which time he developed the Schillinger System of Musical Composition. This was published posthumously in a 2 volume set compiled by Lyle Dowling and Arnold Shaw. This work is still deemed incomplete by his original students. In 1932, he joined with composer-theorist Henry Cowell to publicly introduce the Rhythmicon, the first electronic drum machine, which Cowell and Léon Theremin had collaborated in inventing.

One of Schillinger's students, Lawrence Berk, founded the Schillinger House of Music, later to be named the Berklee College of Music at Boston, Massachusetts. Schillinger's students also included George Gershwin, Glenn Miller, Robert Emmett Dolan, Carmine Coppola, Vic Mizzy, Leith Stevens, Nathan Van Cleave, and Charles Previn. There has been debate surrounding how many teachers were certified by Schillinger himself. The numbers cited range from seven to twelve certified teachers. Yet, to date, only seven certified teachers of the Schillinger System have been substantiated. Two certified teachers were Dr. Asher Zlotnik of Baltimore, Maryland, a student and personal friend of Lyle Dowling. (http://www.lib.umd.edu/PAL/SCPA/MENC/zlotnik.html) and Dr.Edwin Gerschefski (http://books.google.com/books?id=91q0zaJKFREC&pg=PA216&lpg=PA216&dq=%22edwin+gerschefski%22&source=bl&ots=y1BaqTh51n&sig=qFsYNtySg0JF8ywabF71MDc6RxY&hl=en&ei=JFkWSsuHF4iZkQWN6emBDQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=9).

[edit] Notes

Though Dick Grove was taught the Schillinger System, he did not find it useful and did not include it in his many teaching endeavors.

Some of Gershwin's notebooks from his studies with Joseph Schillinger can be found at the Library of Congress.

[edit] See also

• Schillinger System of musical composition

[edit] External links

• Biography and image of Schillinger
• The Schillinger Society
• The Practical Schillinger Online School
• MySpace page for Schillinger Society
• Joseph Schillinger Papers the composer's personal papers, in the Music Division of the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts
• Schillinger School of Music
• The Joseph Schillinger Papers from The Museum of Modern Art

Information on certified teachers

• [1]

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