Charles Leonhard
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Charles Leonhard (December 8, 1915 - January 31, 2002) was an American
music educator Music education is a field of practice in which educators are trained for careers as elementary or secondary music teachers, school or music conservatory ensemble directors. Music education is also a research area in which scholars do origina ...
and academic. He was one of the first to argue for a focus upon aesthetic education within music education. For most of his career, he was a professor at the
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC, U of I, Illinois, or University of Illinois) is a public land-grant research university in the Champaign–Urbana metropolitan area, Illinois, United States. Established in 1867, it is the f ...
.


Life and career

Born in
Anadarko, Oklahoma Anadarko is a city in and the county seat of Caddo County, Oklahoma, United States. The city is 50 miles (80.5 km) southwest of Oklahoma City. The population was 5,745 at the 2020 census. History Anadarko got its name when its post offic ...
, Leonhard was the son of Morris and Dora McRae Leonhard. He was educated at the
University of Oklahoma The University of Oklahoma (OU) is a Public university, public research university in Norman, Oklahoma, United States. Founded in 1890, it had existed in Oklahoma Territory near Indian Territory for 17 years before the two territories became the ...
(
Bachelor of Music A Bachelor of Music (BMus; sometimes conferred as Bachelor of Musical Arts) is an academic degree awarded by a college, university, or conservatory upon completion of a program of study in music. The degree may be awarded for performance, music ed ...
in piano) and
Teachers College, Columbia University Teachers College, Columbia University (TC) is the graduate school of education affiliated with Columbia University, a private research university in New York City. Founded in 1887, Teachers College has been a part of Columbia University since ...
(
Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA or AM) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Those admitted to the degree have ...
and
Doctor of Education Doctor, Doctors, The Doctor or The Doctors may refer to: Titles and occupations * Physician, a medical practitioner * Doctor (title), an academic title for the holder of a doctoral-level degree ** Doctorate ** List of doctoral degrees awarded ...
). Many of Leonhard's teachers were former students of
John Dewey John Dewey (; October 20, 1859 – June 1, 1952) was an American philosopher, psychologist, and Education reform, educational reformer. He was one of the most prominent American scholars in the first half of the twentieth century. The overridi ...
, whose ideas influenced Leonhard throughout his career. During his doctoral program, Leonhard studied aesthetics with
Susanne Langer Susanne Katherina Langer (; Knauth; December 20, 1895 – July 17, 1985) was an American philosopher, writer, and educator known for her theories on the influences of art on the mind. She was one of the earliest American women to achieve an acad ...
. In 1953, as the music education profession was just beginning to rethink its philosophy, Leonhard published his article "Music Education—Aesthetic Education." In this article, Leonhard urged music educators to eschew the instrumental values of music education and to stress the aesthetic value of music. While a graduate student, Leonhard concurrently worked as an instructor and assistant professor of music education at Teachers College. He had previously served in the
United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...
during
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
as a field artillery officer. In 1951 he joined the faculty of the
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC, U of I, Illinois, or University of Illinois) is a public land-grant research university in the Champaign–Urbana metropolitan area, Illinois, United States. Established in 1867, it is the f ...
where he was appointed professor of music and education, and chair of the graduate program in music education. He was the primary advisor on nearly 100 doctoral dissertations, including those of Eunice Boardman and Wayne Bowman. In addition to Bowman, many important philosophers of music education can trace their lineage back to Leonhard. For example, Bennett Reimer was a student at
Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash River, Wabash and Ohio River, Ohio rivers to its ...
who worked with Leonhard and
Harry Broudy Harry Samuel Broudy (July 27, 1905 – June 24, 1998) was a Polish-born American professor of the philosophy of education. Early life and education Broudy was born in Filipów, Grodno Governorate (part of the Russian partition of the Polish– ...
. Reimer later went on to supervise the dissertations of David J. Elliott and Paul Woodford. In 1986 Leonhard retired from his position at the University of Illinois. In 1988 he was appointed the Director of Research at the National Arts Education Research Center; a post he held through 1994. He died in 2002 at the age of 86. He had been married to Patricia Hagman since 1950. The couple had two children together.


Important Contributions

In 1958, Leonhard's essay on evaluation appeared in '' Basic Concepts in Music Education.'' Along with his student, Robert House, Leonhard published ''Foundations and Principles of Music Education'' in 1959. In 1963, Leonhard and Richard Colwell initiated the ''
Bulletin of the Council for Research in Music Education Bulletin or The Bulletin may refer to: Periodicals (newspapers, magazines, journals) * ''Bulletin'' (online newspaper), a Swedish online newspaper * ''The Bulletin'' (Australian periodical), an Australian magazine (1880–2008) ** Bulletin Deb ...
.'' In 1964, Leonhard was a presenter at the Seminar on
Comprehensive Musicianship In 1965 the Seminar on Comprehensive Musicianship was held at Northwestern University. Its purpose was to develop and implement means of improving the education of music teachers. In 1967 a symposium was held at Airlie House (a conference center) ...
. In the 1970s, Leonhard edited a series of books called ''Contemporary Perspectives in Music Education''. The series aimed to establish “a pattern for music teacher education based on the areas of knowledge and processes involved in music education rather than on the levels and specializations in music education.” According to Leonhard, the “mastery of all of these processes and areas of knowledge is essential for the successful music educator regardless of his area of specialization and the level at which he teaches.” Six titles were published: * ''A Philosophy of Music Education'' by Bennett Reimer * ''Building Instructional Programs in Music Education'' by Robert Sidnell * ''The Psychology of Music Teaching'' by Edwin Gordon * ''Administration of Music Education'' by Robert House * ''The Evaluation of Music Teaching and Learning'' by Richard Colwell * ''Experimental Research in Music'' by Clifford K. Madsen and Charles H. Madsen, Jr. * Contact:+2348138101904


Recognition as a Leader in the Field

In 1994, the Music Educators National Conference ( MENC) placed Leonhard's name alongside those of
William Billings William Billings (October 7, 1746 – September 26, 1800) was an American composer and is regarded as the first American choral composer and leading member of the First New England School. Life William Billings was born in Boston, Province ...
,
Lowell Mason Lowell Mason (January 8, 1792 – August 11, 1872) was an American music director and banker who was a leading figure in 19th-century American church music. Lowell composed over 1,600 hymn tunes, many of which are often sung today. His best-know ...
,
Frances Elliot Clark Frances Elliott Clark (1860–1958) was an early music-appreciation advocate. As a teacher in twentieth century Ottumwa, Iowa, Clark spent ten minutes in each of her chorus rehearsals telling students about composers or helping them recognize the st ...
, Karl Gehrkens, Mabelle Glenn,
James Mursell James Lockhart Mursell (b. Derby, England, June 1, 1893; d. Jackson, New Hampshire, Jackson, New Hampshire, Feb. 1, 1963) wrote extensively about music education and the use of music in a classroom setting. He emphasized the student's role in lear ...
, Lilla Belle Pitts, and
Allen Britton Allen Perdue Britton (May 25, 1914 – February 17, 2003) was an American music educator. Through his many passions in life he contributed to elevating the field of music education to the same stature as the field of musicology. He developed ...
in the MENC Hall of Fame. Mark and Gary acknowledge the importance of Leonhard's contributions to the history of music education in the United States.Mark, M. L., & Gary, C. L. (1999). ''A history of American music education'' (2nd ed.). Reston, VA: MENC—The National Association for Music Education. David J. Elliott puts Leonhard in the company of Peter W. Dykema, Karl Gehrkens,
James Mursell James Lockhart Mursell (b. Derby, England, June 1, 1893; d. Jackson, New Hampshire, Jackson, New Hampshire, Feb. 1, 1963) wrote extensively about music education and the use of music in a classroom setting. He emphasized the student's role in lear ...
, Lilla Belle Pitts,
Harry Broudy Harry Samuel Broudy (July 27, 1905 – June 24, 1998) was a Polish-born American professor of the philosophy of education. Early life and education Broudy was born in Filipów, Grodno Governorate (part of the Russian partition of the Polish– ...
, Abraham Schwadron, Bennett Reimer, and
Keith Swanwick Keith may refer to: People and fictional characters * Keith (given name), includes a list of people and fictional characters * Keith (surname) * Keith (singer), American singer James Keefer (born 1949) * Keith (gamer), American professional Lea ...
as leading thinkers in music education.


Further reading

*Heller, G. N. (1995a). Charles Leonhard and music education as aesthetic education at the University of Illinois. ''Bulletin of the Council for Research in Music Education, 125,'' 32-53. *Heller, G. N. (1995b). ''Charles Leonhard: American music educator''. Metuchen, NJ: The Scarecrow Press.


References


External links


The Charles Leonhard LegacyOfficial Website of the ''Bulletin of the Council for Research in Music Education''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Leonhard, Charles 1915 births 2002 deaths People from Anadarko, Oklahoma American music educators University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign faculty University of Oklahoma alumni Teachers College, Columbia University alumni