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Maayani, Ami

Israeli composer Ami Maayani (1936-) has written a variety of stage, instrumental, and vocal works, including a large body of harp pieces.

MacCunn, Hamish

Scottish composer Hamish MacCunn (1868-1916) was also a conductor and a teacher at the Royal Academy of Music and the Guildhall School of Music. His most remembered work is likely the overture Land of the Mountain and the Flood.

MacDowell, Edward Alexander

Edward Alexander MacDowell (1860-1908) was an American composer, virtuoso pianist, and intellectual. Proud of his Scots Protestant heritage, he changed his family name from McDowell back to that of his great-grandfather. It appears that the rest of his family, including his parents, did the same. His wife kept his memory alive in an artists' colony through which passed Edward Arlington Robinson, Thornton Wilder, Mrs. H. H. A. Beach, Aaron Copland, Virgil Thomson, Leonard Bernstein, Doris Grumbach, Louise Talma, Roy Harris, and others.

MacMillan, Ernest Alexander Campbell, Sir

Canadian composer, conductor, and organist Ernest Alexander Campbell MacMillan (1893-1973) helped define Canadian music for much of the 20th Century.

MacMillan, James

Scottish composer James MacMillan (1959-) includes energy, emotion, religion, and his native land's folk music in his works.

Mace, Thomas

English composer Thomas Mace (1612?-1706?) wrote a defense of English music over the French style favored by Charles II in th 1676 tome Musick's Monument.

Maceda, José

Filipino composer José Maceda (1917-2004) was also an accomplished pianist and a noted ethnomusicologist.

Macfarren, George Alexander, Sir

English composer George Alexander Macfarren (1813-1887) wrote operas, songs, hymns, and instrumental music and was also an author and editor. He was knighted in 1883, twenty-three years after going blind.

Macfarren, Walter Cecil

English composer Walter Cecil Macfarren (1826-1905) wrote works for piano and voice, taught piano, and was a music critic.

Machaut, Guillaume de

Medieval French composer Guillaume de Machaut (1300-1377) was probably educated in Reims, and served various members of the French high nobility. He is known for his motets and songs, and was an important figure of the French Ars Nova.

Mackenzie, Alexander Campbell, Sir

Scottish composer and conductor Alexander Campbell Mackenzie (1847-1935) was also an accomplished violinist. His oratorio The Rose of Sharon contributed to his lasting fame.

Maconchy, Elizabeth, Dame

Anglo-Irish composer Elizabeth Maconchy may be one of the most underrated string composers the British Isles have ever produced. Coming from a non-musical family, she demonstrated compositional skills early in life. A adult bout with tuberculosis and the enforced isolation provided opportunity for her to develop an individual voice. Aside from strings, she wrote operas, vocal works, and various instrumental and orchestral pieces.

Maconchy's daughter Nicola LeFanu followed in her mother's compositional footsteps.

Macque, Giovanni de

(1559-1614) Flemish composer who took residence in Italy. As a musician he played the organ and was known for his teaching. His compositions included madrigals, motets, chansons, ricercares, canzones, and a number of keyboard settings.

Maderna, Bruno

Italian composer Bruno Maderna (1920-1973) was a prodigy as violinist and conductor before studying composition. He championed new music even as his own style grew more modern.

Maderna, Osmar Héctor

Argentinian composer Osmar Héctor Maderna (1918-1951) specialized in his nation's dance music and was called "The Chopin of the Tango."

Madetoja, Leevi Antti

Finnish composer Leevi Antti Madetoja (1887-1947) carried nationalist romanticism into the 20th Century while also synthesizing much of the newer French music into his works. His teachers included Sibelius and D'Indy. He taught, held administrative positions, wrote and provided music criticism for newspapers, and conducted as well as writing music in a number of genres, including opera, choral, and symphonic.

Maegaard, Jan Carl Christian

Danish composer Jan Carl Christian Maegaard (1926-) was strongly influenced by Schoenberg, who he also studied extensively as a music theorist. The majority of his works are vocal.

Maessens, Pieter

Franco-Flemish composer Pieter Maessens (c. 1505-1563) was first a soldier and then a priest before embarking on his musical career.

Magle, Frederik

Danish composer, organist, and pianist Frederik Magle (1977-) began composing when only five years old. He has written a variety of secular and sacred pieces for instrument and voice, from the Symphonic LEGO Fantasy to the Christmas cantata A Newborn Child, Before Eternity, God, as well as one opera, Der Die Das.

Magnard, Lucien Denis Gabriel Albéric

French composer Lucien Denis Gabriel Albéric Magnard (1865-1914) wrote mainly orchestral, operatic, and chamber works.

Mahler, Alma Schindler

Austrian composer Alma Schindler (1879-1964) composed Lieder and instrumental works as well as beginning an opera before marrying Gustav Mahler in 1902. He resisted her continuing in this area, insisting that he be the composer and she be his support. After his death, she had an affair with the painter Oskar Kokoschka and married twice, first to the architect Walter Gropius and then to the writer Franz Werfel.

Mahler, Gustav

Austrian composer and conductor Gustav Mahler was born into a poor Jewish family in the town of Kali?te in Bohemia. Mahler?s considerable musical talents, which he employed both as composer and conductor, were surpassed only by his ambition.

From conductor of the court opera he rose to become its artistic director. He was also director of the Vienna Philharmonic 1898-1901, conductor of the Metropolitan Opera in New York from 1907, and starting in 1909 musical director of the New York Philharmonic Society as well.

As a conductor, Mahler was faithful to the score; as a composer, he moved from lied to symphony, developing his own style, employing soloists and chorus, and breaking from what was conventional in instrumental.

Mahler who died in 1911 in Vienna.

Maier, Michael

(1558-1622?) writer, diplomat, physician, poet, classical scholar, alchemist and Rosicrucian apologist, was born at Rendsburg, educated at the University of Rostock, and later received his doctorate of medicine at Basel.

Maklakiewicz, Jan Adam

Polish composer Jan Adam Maklakiewicz (1889-1954) followed the newer, experimental styles during his early career but later reverted to a simpler style and spent much of his later years writing Masses and other church music.

Malawski, Artur

Polish composer Artur Malawski (1904-1957) studied under Sikorski and was influenced by Szymanowski.

Malec, Ivo

Slovak composer and conductor Ivo Malec (1925-) was among the first Yugoslavs to gain international renown for his compositions.

Malipiero, Gian Francesco

Italian composer Gian Francesco Malipiero (1882-1973) produced a considerable body of original works, including symphonic, vocal, piano, and operatic. He was also a conductor and accomplished violinist and a musicologist who produced editions of Monteverdi and Vivaldi.

Malling, Otto Valdemar

Danish composer Otto Valdemar Malling (1848-1915) wrote many organ works along with orchestral and other pieces. He was also a teacher and an organist in several Copenhagen churches.

Malvezzi, Cristofano

Italian composer Cristofano Malvezzi (1547-1599) worked for the Medici family, was canon and organist of several Florentine churches, and wrote madrigals and instrumental music.

Mamangakis, Nicos

Greek composer Nicos Mamangakis (1929-) studied under Orff and Genzmer. Among his works are a number of film scores.

Manchicourt, Pierre de

Franco-Flemish composer Pierre de Manchicourt (c. 1510-1564) rose from choirboy to choir director and, finally, master of Philip II's Flemish chapel in Madrid. His primary works are motets, Masses, and chansons.

Mancinelli, Luigi

Italian conductor and composer Luigi Mancinelli (1848-1921) championed classic German operas and demanded fidelity to the score. His own works were a mixed lot, never truly exceeding the early promise of Cleopatra and the opera Isora di Provenza.

Mancini, Francesco

(1672-1737) Italian organist and composer. Mancini is typically Neapolitan. His concertos are imbued with the kind of pungent harmonic shifts which made early eighteenth-century Neapolitan opera sound so dramatic.

Mancini, Henry

Enrico Nicola "Henry" Mancini (1924-1994) - American composer of film scores. Films include 'The Glen Miller Story', 'The Benny Goodman Story', 'Breakfast at Tiffany's' (with the unforgettable 'Moon River'), and 'Days of Wine and Roses'.

Manfredini, Francesco Onofrio

(1684-1762) Italian violinist and composer. He became the head of music at St. Philip's Cathedral in Pistoia in 1727, where he remained until his death in 1762. As a composer he left very little, with just 43 published works and a handful of manuscripts.

Manfredini, Vincenzo

Italian composer Vincenzo Manfredini (1737-1799), son of Francesco, spent much of his time in Russia in the Tsar's court. His works cover a variety of genres.

Manziarly, Marcelle de

French-born of Russian and American parentage, Marcelle de Manziarly (1899-1989) was a composer and a renowned pianist.

Manzoni, Giacomo

Italian composer Giacomo Manzoni (1932-) includes opera and electronic music among his chosen genres.

Marais, Marin

Spending most of his life in service to French King Louis XIV, Marin Marais (1656-1728) was one of the premier bass viola da gamba players of the Baroque Period and a respected composer. Of his compositions, the viol pieces stand out, since he composed more than 550 of them. His Pieces en trio are credited as the introduction of the trio sonata to France.

Marcello, Alessandro

(1684-1750) Venetian composer. Marcello did not publish many works but his "Oboe Concerto in D-mol" was his best known composition probably because it was transcribed by J.S. Bach for the keyboard.

Marcello, Benedetto

(1686-1739)

Marchetto da Padova

Italian composer and theorist Marchetto da Padova (b. 1274?; fl. 1305-26) is best known for his treatises Lucidarium and Pomerium.

Marenzio, Luca

Italian composer Luca Marenzio (1553-1599) wrote a large number of madrigals plus many motets and villanellas.

Mariani, Angelo Maurizio Gaspare

Italian composer Angelo Maurizio Gaspare Mariani (1821-1873) received greater fame as a conductor and musical director who introduced and promoted some of the 19th Century's greatest operas and composers.

Marini, Biagio

Italian composer Biagio Marini (c. 1587-1663) was a violinist and contributed to the development of the instrument and the sonata form.

Marino, Carlo Antonio

Italian Carlo Antonio Marino (c. 1670-c. 1717) was an accomplished violinist and cellist. Much of his extant music features these two instruments.

Marinuzzi, Gino, Jr.

Son of the noted composer, Gino Marinuzzi, Jr. (1920-) wrote orchestral and film music, including the score to Terrore nello spazio.

Marinuzzi, Gino, Sr.

Gino Marinuzzi, Sr. (1882-1945) wrote operas and other works. However, his greatest claim to fame is conducting the operas of others, most notably Wagner and Strauss.

Mariétan, Pierre

Swiss composer Pierre Mariétan (1935-) went from a Boulez-inspired style to guided improvisation.

Markevitch, Igor

Italian composer and conductor Igor Marketvich (1912-1983) was born in Russia but his family fled in 1914. His early life was given over to composition but in his later years he almost exclusively made his name as a conductor.

Maros, Miklós

Hungarian born composer Miklós Maros (1943-) was born in a musical family. His mother was a musician, his father noted composer Rudolf Maros. His sister Eva also became a musician and composer.

Maros, Rudolf

Hungarian composer Rudolf Maros (1917-1982) moved from folk influences toward 12-note serialism.

Marpurg, Friedrich Wilhelm

German composer, music writer, and theorist Friedrich Wilhelm Marpurg (1718-1795) is better known for his writings about Bach's fugues than for his own works.

Marsalis, Wynton

He was born in New Orleans, Louisiana in 1961. After attending Juilliard he pursued performing careers (trumpet)in both jazz and classical music. He is the first director of Jazz at Lincoln Center. Among his many awards is the 1997 Pulitzer Prize for Blood on the Fields.

Marschner, Heinrich August

German composer Heinrich August Marschner (1795-1861) originally intended a legal career but meeting Beethoven inspired him to follow a musical path. His operas became his greatest claim to fame, from Der Vampyr onward and Hans Heiling was, perhaps, the highlight of his career. He also wrote in a number of other genres, leaving behind some 400 songs, 120 choruses for male voices, and a host of other works.

Marsh, John

English composer John Marsh (1752-1828) also wrote about music. One of his principal publications was A Comparison between the Ancient and Modern Styles of Music, which examined the Baroque and Classical periods.

Marshall, Ingram

American composer Ingram Marshall has used everything from modern electronics to the ancient Indonesian gamelon in his works. Born in California, he studied under Vladimir Ussachevsky and Morton Subotnick.

Marshall-Hall, George William Louis

Anglo-Australian composer, conductor, and professor George William Louis Marshall-Hall (1862-1915) shocked Melbourne upon his arrival in 1891 with his bohemian, atheistic, and socialist ways. He established what became the Melba Conservatorium of Music.

Martin, Frank

Swiss composer Frank Martin (1890-1974), born into a French Huguenot family and the son of a Calvinist minister, was inspired toward a musical vocation when he heard Bach's St. Matthew Passion. His works span a variety of genres, styles, and influences.

Martinez, Odaline de la

Cuban-born Anglo-American conductor and composer Odaline de la Martinez wrote books, composed the opera Sister Aimee, founded the ensemble Lontano and the record company Lorelt, and led the European Women's Orchestra and the London Chamber Symphony.

Martini, Giovanni Battista, Padre

Italian monk, priest, and composer Giovanni Battista Martini (1706-1784) also taught and wrote on music. Noted students included Mozart, J. C. Bach, and Jommelli.

Martini, Johann Paul Aegidius

German composer Johann Paul Aegidius Martini (1741-1816) composed in a variety of genres, notably opera and other vocal music and is best known for the song Piacer d'amor. In Paris he directed Théâtre de Monsieur and taught at the Conservatoire. He also held royal and private appointments.

Martini, Johannes

Flemish composer Johannes Martini (c. 1440-1487/8) spent his entire later career in Ferrara serving Duke Ercole I.

Martino, Donald James

American composer Donald Martino was born in Plainfield, New Jersey in 1931. He began music lessons at nine, learning to play the clarinet, saxophone, and oboe, and started composing at 15.

Martinon, Jean

French conductor and composer Jean Martinon (1910-1976) served time as a prisoner of the Germans during World War II. Perhaps his most notable achievement was as principal conductor of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra.

Martinů, Bohuslav Jan

Twentieth Century Czech composer Bohuslav Martinů (1890-1959) went through a series of personal and musical changes during his life.

Martirano, Salvatore Giovanni

American composer, inventor, and teacher Salvatore Giovanni Martirano (1927-1995) developed what Science Digest called "the world's first composing machine," the Sal Mar Construction.

Martucci, Giuseppe

Italian composer Giuseppe Martucci (1856-1909) was a pianist praised by Liszt and Anton Rubenstein, a teacher, and a leader in the late Romantic renaissance of Italian instrumental music.

Martín y Soler, Atanasio Martín Ignacio Vicente Tadeo Francisco Pellegrín

Spanish composer Atanasio Martín Ignacio Vicente Tadeo Francisco Pellegrín Martín y Soler (1754-1806) was active in Spain, Italy, and Russia. Among his works are some of the most outstanding opere buffe of the period, ballets, and zarzuelas.

Marx, Adolf Bernhard

German music theorist, writer, and composer Adolf Bernhard Marx (1795-1866) wrote the technical work Die Lehre von der musikalischen Komposition. His oratorio Moses was his best received composition.

Marx, Joseph

Austrian Romantic composer Joseph Marx (1882-1964) lived most of his life after the Romantic Period ended, yet his form of Impressionism is intimately tied to that bygone era.

Marx, Karl

Not to be confused with the political and economic theorist, German composer Karl Marx studied with Orff and wrote a large body of choral music.

Masaoka, Miya

Washington, D.C.-born Miya Masaoka (1958-) integrates jazz, Western classical music, electronic music, traditional Japanese music, and free improvisation in her works.

Mascagni, Pietro

Italian Pietro Mascagni (1863-1945) is chiefly remembered as composer for the one-act opera Cavalleria Rusticana (Rustic Cavalry. As a conductor, he worked at La Scala. He became increasingly associated with the régime of Mussolini.

Maschera, Florentio

Composer, organist, violist, and violinist Florentio Maschera (c. 1540-c. 1584) wrote some of the earliest works for instrumental ensembles.

Mason, Daniel Gregory

American composer Daniel Gregory Mason (1873-1953), grandson of Lowell Mason, produced three symphonies, chamber works, and songs.

Massenet, Jules Emile Frédéric

(1854-1912) Principally an opera composer he also wrote ballets and oratorios. He was a professor at the Paris Conservatoire and very influential on other French composers of the late 19th century.

Massé, Victor

French composer Victor Massé (1822-1884) wrote over 20 operas, with the opéra comique offering Les noces de Jeannette and certain romances and operettas bringing him the most lasting fame.

Mata, Eduardo

Mexican composer and conductor Eduardo Mata (1942-1995) was also renowned as a conductor and is credited with elevating the Dallas (Texas) Symphony Orchestra to world-class status.

Mather, James Bruce

Canadian composer and concert pianist Bruce Mather (1939-) composed in a variety of styles for numerous genres.

Matheus de Sancto Johanne

Medieval French composer Matheus de Sancto Johanne, also known as Mayshuet, flourished in the last quarter of the 14th Century.

Mathews, Max Vernon

American composer and computer scientist Max Vernon Mathews worked with Bell Labs in the area of computer sound synthesis, Stanford University, and IRCAM in Paris.

Mathias, William James

Welsh composer William James Mathias (1934-1992) is noted for his tonal music and choral works.

Matsudaira, Yoritsune

Japanese composer Yoritsune Matsudaira (1907-) changed styles throughout his long career but focused on instrumental music.

Matteis, Nicola the Elder

Anglo-Italian violinist and composer Nicola Matteis was in England by the 1670s and likely died after 1714. Much of his output came in the form of integral suites and his style was beyond that of most artists of the period.

Matteis, Nicola the Younger

English-born composer and violinist Nicola Matteis the Younger (late 1670s-1760) spent much of his career in the Viennese imperial court.

Matteo da Perugia

Italian composer Matteo da Perugia (??-1418) spent much of his career serving the Archbishop of Milan. He contributed greatly to the introduction of French culture and musical ideas into northern Italy.

Mattheson, Johann

German composer Johann Mattheson (1681-1764), a child prodigy who sang in the Hamburg Opera was also a virtuoso organist, personal friend of Handel, and theorist. He wrote secular and sacred works for instrument and voice.

Matthews, Colin

English composer Colin Matthews (1946-) worked with Deryck Cooke and Benjamin Britten.

Matthews, David

English composer David Matthews (1943-) counted Britten, Tippett, and Schoenberg among his influences.

Mauduit, Jacques

French composer Jacques Mauduit (1557-1627), a member of the aristocracy, wrote in the musique mesurée style.

Mauersberger, Rudolf

German conductor and composer Rudolf Mauersberger (1889-1971) is most noted for his leadership of the Dresdner Kreuzchor. He was considered a skilled interpreter of Bach but also promoted new music. His own works include motets, choruses and choral cycles, the Dresdner Requiem, and St. Luke’s Passion.

Maw, John Nicholas

Anglo-American composer John Nicholas Maw (1935-) studied with Berkeley and Boulanger. Works include comic operas, orchestral pieces, and chamber music.

Maxwell Davies, Peter

English composer Sir Peter Maxwell Davies (1934-) has worked in a number of styles but seems most influenced by Renaissance and Medieval music. Maxwell Davies has the ability to both pioneer and seemingly reject tradition while also synthesizing recent compositional trends. He has written a wide variety of works, including symphonic, operatic, and choral. A number of his pieces promote political and environmental activist, including Yellow Cake Review, about uranium mining, and Black Pentecost, concerning industrial pollution.

May, Frederick

Irish composer Frederick May (1911-1985) studied under such luminaries as Vaughn Williams and Wellesz. Noted works include Scherzo for Orchestra, Songs from Prison, and String Quartet in C Minor.

Maynard, John

English composer and lutenist John Maynard (1576/7-1614/33). His The XIII Wonders of the World combined serious works with a series of satires on stock characters of the period.

Mayone, Ascanio

Italian composer Ascanio Mayone (c. 1565-1627) spent much of his life in his native Naples. Also an accomplished organist and harpist, Mayone's works featured much of a Baroque style rather than that of the late Renaissance.

Mayr, Johann Simon

German composer Johann Simon Mayr (1763-1845) studied under Bertoni and spent most of his career in Italy composing operas, religious music, and other works, teaching, and organizing performances of the works of Haydn, Mozart, and Beethoven.

Mayuzumi, Toshirô

Japanese composer Toshirô Mayuzumi (1929-1997) studied under Ikenouchi, Ifukube, and Aubin. He introduced avant-garde music to Japan, worked with electronic and tape music, and from the late 1950s onward involved more traditional Japanese and Buddhist traditions in his works.

Mazzinghi, Joseph

English composer Joseph Mazzinghi (1765-1844) studied under J. C. Bach, was music director and harpsichordist of the King's Theatre, and taught piano (among his students was the Princess of Wales). He wrote stage works, instrumental works for amateurs, and variations and arrangements for piano, harp and flute. He also wrote many songs. Of these, Ye Shepherds Tell Me may have enjoyed greatest and longest-lasting favor.

Mazzocchi, Domenico

Italian composer Domenico Mazzocchi (1592-1665) counted Cardinal Ippolito Aldobrandini and Pope Urban VIII among his patrons. Works include motets, dialogues, sonnets (including Lagrime amare allanima) and a book of madrigals.

Mazzocchi, Virgilio

Italian composer Mazzocchi, Virgilio Mazzocchi (1597-1646) studied under his brother Domenico before entering a series of positions as maestro di cappella and writing a number of sacred and secular vocal works and operas.

Mazzucato, Alberto

Italian composer Alberto Mazzucato (1813-1887) also taught, wrote on musical topics, and was maestro direttore e concertatore at La Scala.

McCabe, John

English composer John McCabe was born in Huyton, Liverpool, in 1939. He and trained as a musician at Manchester University and the Royal Manchester College of Music. He is also an accomplished pianist with several recordings to his credit.

McEwan, John Blackwood, Sir

Scottish composer John Blackwood McEwan (1868-1948) wrote orchestral, choral, chamber, and instrumental music. Among his more ambitious projects was a setting of Milton's Hymn on the Morning of Christ's Nativity for chorus and orchestra. McEwan was knighted in 1931.

McGibbon, William

Scottish composer William McGibbon (c. 1690-1756) was also an accomplished violinist.

McPhee, Colin Carhart

American composer and ethnomusicologist Colin Carhart McPhee (1900-1964). Much of his life was involved in the research and performance of Balinese music.

Meale, Richard Graham

Australian composer Richard Graham Meale (1932-) moved through various influences including Messiaen, Boulez, and Japanese art.

Mechem, Kirke

American composer Kirke Mechem (1925-) wrote instrumental and choral music but is most known for his operas.

Medtner, Nikolai Karlovich

(1880-1951) He was born in Moscow and trained as a pianist and composer at the Moscow Conservatory where he also taught for a while. In 1921, having achieved considerable recognition for his compositions in Russia, he left to acquaint the West with his newest music. Except for a brief return in 1927, the composer remained abroad until his death in London, in 1951.

Meester, Louis August Edmond Hendrik de

Belgian composer Louis August Edmond Hendrik de Meester (1904-1987) earned an early living playing everywhere from silent films in his native land to a café in Morocco. He often used jazz elements and embraced and promoted electronic music.

Mellers, Wilfrid Howard

English composer and music writer Wilfrid Howard Mellers (1914-) studied English and music at Cambridge and composition under Edmund Rubbra and Egon Wellesz. The widely varied subjects of his books include Couperin, Bach, Beethoven, and the Beatles.

Melli, Domenico Maria

While neither the birth nor death dates are known for Italian composer Domenico Maria Melli, it is known that he flourished during the early 17th Century and was for a time a lawyer.

Mellnäs, Arne

Swedish composer Arne Mellnäs (1933-2002) studied, taught, and worked in Europe, Japan, and the United States. His works encompass a number of genres, including electroacoustic.

Mendelssohn, Arnold Ludwig

German composer Arnold Ludwig Mendelssohn (1855-1933) was a second cousin once removed of Felix. He taught Hindemith and championed Lutheran church music, especially that of Bach and Schütz.

Mendelssohn-Bartholdy, Jakob Ludwig Felix

Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy (1809-1847) was grandson of Jewish philosopher Moses Mendelssohn. Born in Hamburg, brought up in Berlin, he was a piano prodigy in his youth. Both he and his sister, Fannny, composed from an early age. Fanny was discouraged by her father and brother because she was a woman (only the late Twentieth Century 20 produced the first recordings of most of her compositions); Felix was encouraged, and produced sonatas, songs, cantatas, organ works, and even a symphony by the time he was 16 years old.

When Felix was 17, he and Fanny read Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream together, and he was so enchanted with the work that he wrote a long piece about it; this became the "Overture" to the incidental music for the play, written 17 years later in 1843. Felix first wrote the "Overture" for 2 pianos, for Fanny and himself to play, and it is considered his first real masterpiece. In 1843, when Mendelssohn wrote the rest of the incidental music to be played along with the performance of Shakespeare's play, he orchestrated the "Overture" along with the other pieces.

He married the daughter of a Huguenot pastor and, although he formally and publicly renouncing his Judaism, added the hyphenated Bartholdy to their names to indicate his conversion to Protestantism. This may explain why Mendelssohn eventually wrote Symphony No. 5, "The Reformation", which includes as the main theme in the 3rd movement the famous chorale "Ein feste Burg (A Mighty Fortress)".

Mendelssohn Hensel, Fanny Cäcilie

Fanny Mendelssohn Hensel (1805-1847) was born in Hamburg to parents Abraham Mendelssohn, a banker and litterateur, and Leah Solomon, an amateur musician and artist. The oldest of four children, Fanny's siblings included Felix, the prolific composer and conductor, Rebekka, and Paul. Gifted as both composer and musician, it is said that she could play Bach's Well-Tempered Clavier from memory by age 13. In 1829, she married the German painter Wilhelm Hensel, who was a great supporter of her music. Their son Sebastian later became the family's chief biographer.

Mengelberg, Josef Willem

Dutch composer and conductor Josef Willem Mengelberg (1871-1951) led the Amsterdam Concertgebouw into the forefront of international orchestras but suffered as a result of working under the Nazis during the Second World War.

Mengelberg, Karel

Dutch composer, critic, and conductor Karel Mengelberg ((1902-1984) led orchestras in Germany and elswhere and wrote in numerous genres.

Mengelberg, Kurt Rudolf

Dutch composer and conductor Kurt Rudolf Mengelberg (1892-1959) was nephew of Willem, brother of Karel, and uncle of Misha Mengelberg.

Mengelberg, Misha

Dutch composer Misha Mengelberg (1935-) was born in St. Petersberg, Russian SSR, to a Dutch composer (Karel) and a German harpist. Fears of Stalin led the family to the Netherlands, where Misha continued residency. His influences and works include both jazz and classical elements.

Menotti, Gian Carlo

Born in 1911 in Cadegliano, Italy, Menotti came to the United States in 1928 to study at the Curtis Institute. In 1950 he won the Pulitzer Prize for the opera The Consul and in 1955 won it again for another opera The Saint of Bleeker Street. The only other composers to win the prize twice were Walter Piston and Samuel Barber.

Messiaen, Olivier

(1908-1992), Avignon, France. Influential French composer, teacher of both Karlheinz Stockhausen and Pierre Boulez, many of his compositions were influenced by Roman Catholic theology. His Quatuor pour la fin du temps was written for performance by himself and fellow prisoners of war in a Nazi camp. It continues to be one of his most performed works. Literal transcriptions of bird calls are an important element in his compositions.

Meyerbeer, Giacomo

French-German composer Giacomo Meyerbeer was born in 1791 in Vogelsdorf, Germany as Yaakov Liebmann Beer. His father, Judah Herz Beer was a wealthy sugar refiner in Germany and Italy. His mother, Malka Liebmann Meyer Wulff, also known as Amalia, was the daughter of Liebmann Meyer Wulff, a wealthy Berlin merchant and banker who made a fortune delivering supplies to Prussian troops, and was the director of the Prussian lottery. He would soon Italianize Jacob to Giacomo and combine his parents' names as Meyerbeer. Even these changes would not protect him from some of the anti-Semitism of the mid-1800s. Much of Richard Wagner's "Jews and Music" would be directed at him.

Carl Maria von Weber and Antonio Salieri were among those who encouraged his musical development. Among his many excellent compositions, his operas stand out. Two of the finest are Robert le Diable and Les Huguenots.

Meyerbeer died in 1864.

Mikołaj z Radomia

Polish composer Mikołaj z Radomia (c. 1400-c. 1450) was among Poland's first truly European composers. His surviving attested work is sacred, although evidence points to at least one secular work.

Milhaud, Darius

French composer Darius Milhaud (1892-1974), a member of Les Six, was influenced by American jazz and popular Brazilian music: ragtime, maxixe, samba, and tango. He was a proponent of polytonality and one of the most prolific composers of the century. He wrote more than 400 works, including 14 concertos, 18 string quartets, 8 operas, 10 ballets, 7 cantatas, 14 sonatas, 8 symphonies, and other works.

Minkus, Ludwig

(1826-1917) Worked mostly in Paris and St. Petersburg as a violinist, conductor and ballet composer. He spent his last years in Vienna.

Moeran, Ernest John

English-Irish composer Ernest John "Jack" Moeran (1894-1950) was the son of a Norfolk clergyman of Irish descent. Educated at Uppingham School, he learned violin and played in a string quartet. As he matured, he took a greater interest in his Irish heritage, focusing on County Kerry and the small town of Kenmare.

Molter, Johann Melchior

German Baroque Period composer Johann Melchior Molter (1696-1765) produced an enormous number of works, including some 170 known symphonies. These, being from the form's earlier days, lack the complexity or length of later compositions, but the total is still impressive. Molter also wrote a large body of clarient music and may have been the originator of the clarinet concerto.

Monteverdi, Claudio Giovanni Antonio

Italian Renaissance composer Claudio Monteverdi ((1567-1643) showed the way for other composers leaving Medieval style behind. His madrigals went from four balanced parts to soprano-exalted with basso continuo. In opera, he made his greatest contribution: Montiverdi was the first to specify what instruments were to be used. He began this with his first opera, Orpheus. Before his time, this wasn't necessary, but that changed when he began writing for 40 instruments.

Moondog

Avant-garde composer and conductor born Louis T. Hardin on May 26, 1916. He lost his sight in his teens when a dynamite cap exploded and studied music at the Iowa School for the Blind. In 1943 he moved to New York City where he developed his unique combination of classical and jazz music. He died on September 8, 1999 in Germany.

Moore, Douglas Stuart

(1893-1969), Long Island, New York. He studied with Horatio Parker at Yale and Vincent D'Indy and Nadia Boulanger in Paris. He taught at Columbia University where he was chair of the Music Department from 1940 to 1962. The opera "Giants in the Earth," one of his 12 operas, won him the Pulitzer Prize in 1951.

Moore, Undine Smith

Undine Smith Moore (1904-1988), a graduate of Fisk University, taught music for forty-five years at Virginia State College, Pertersburg, Virginia. Noted compositions include Afro-American Suite for flute, violoncello, and piano, Lord, We Give Thanks to Thee for chorus, and the oratorio, Scenes from the Life of a Martyr, on the life of Martin Luther King, Jr., which garnered a nomination for the Nobel Prize.

Moravec, Paul

Winner of the 2004 Pulitzer Prize in music.

Morley, Thomas

(1557-1602) English composer best known for his madrigals and his development of the art form.

Morricone, Ennio

Ennio Morricone (1928-) was a classmate of Sergio Leone in Italy and forged a partnership with the director at the beginning of the "Spaghetti Western" period. His soundtrack for A Fistful of Dollars influenced almost all westerns from 1964 onward. Morricone wrote music for almost every genre of film. Awards and honors include five Oscar nominations and two Golden Globes among seven nominations.

Mozart, Franz Xaver Wolfgang

Franz Xaver Mozart.

Mozart, Johann Chrysostom Wolfgang Amadeus

Christened Johannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart, Austrian Classical Period composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791) ranks among the greatest composers of all time. A child prodigy who died at a young age, Mozart began playing and composing at an age where many are still learning to speak and interact verbally with others. Not only was he precocious, he was also prolific, with an output rarely matched by composers of any period.

Mozart, Johann Georg Leopold

Leopold Johann Georg Mozart (1719-1787) was violinist in the orchestra of the Archbishop of Salzburg. He became Hofkomponist and, after 1763, vice Kapellmeister. Leopold composed concertos, symphonies, chamber music, songs, works for piano and organ, cantatas, Masses, and other sacred works. He fathered Wolfgang Amadeus and is remembered for his book on violin technique, Versuch einer gründlichen Violinschule, 1756.

Mumma, Gordon

Gordon Mumma (1935-) was born in Framingham, Massachusetts. An accomplished French horn player, he became involved with electronic music in its infancy and was one of the first composers to use his own circuitry designs in composition and performance.

Munro, Ian

Australian composer and pianist Ian Munro is comfortable playing in a variety of styles and periods, both as solo performer and as part of the Australia Ensemble. His own works have been performed around the world.

Musgrave, Thea

Scottish-born Thea Musgrave (1928-) is especially noted as an opera composer, as well as a conductor. She has also spent considerable time teaching, especially in the United States.

Among her operas and related works are Harriet, the Woman Called Moses, Mary, Queen of Scots, and Simón Bolívar. She also wrote several well-received instrumental pieces, including concertos.

Mussorgsky, Modest Petrovich

Modest Petrovich Mussorgsky was born in 1839, in the Karevo, district of Pskov and died in 1881 in St. Petersburg. A member of Moguchaya Kuchka (The Five), Mussorgsky was a competent pianist and a fiercely nationalist composer. In this light, his opera Boris Godunov still stands out. Before his early death (most likely due to his alcoholism which may have been influenced by mental illness), he wrote several other memorable works, some of which received orchestration from other composers, such as Pictures at an Exhibition, which Ravel orchestrated, Night on Bald Mountain, the opera Khovanshchina, and the songs The Nursery and Songs and Dances of Death.

Myaskovsky, Nikolai Yakovlevich

Nikolai Yakovlevich Miaskovsky (1881-1950) studied under Glière, Liadov, and Rimsky-Korsakov. He wrote symphonies, sonatas, and various other instrumental pieces. Two of his noted works are Nevermore, based on Poe's "The Raven" and Alastor, from the poem by Percy Bysshe Shelley.

Méfano, Paul

French composer Paul Méfano (1937-), a student of Messiaen and Milhaud, also became a noted conductor.

Méhul, Étienne-Nicolas

French composer Étienne-Nicolas Méhul (1763-1817) sometimes known as Étienne-Henri, was especially known for his contributions to opéra comique and his general utilization of the orchestra in opera.

Møller, Peter

Danish composer 1947-1999.

• Open Directory Arts: Music: Composition: Composers: Contemporary: M

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