Jürgen Elsner (born 22 April 1932) is a German music ethnologist and author.

Life

Born in

Finsterwalde Finsterwalde (, , ) is a town in the Elbe-Elster district (German: Landkreis), in Lower Lusatia, Brandenburg, Germany. Overview It is situated on the Schackebach, a tributary of the Kleine Elster, 28 m. W.S.W of Cottbus by rail. Pop. (2005) 18,8 ...

, Elsner studied

music theory Music theory is the study of theoretical frameworks for understanding the practices and possibilities of music. ''The Oxford Companion to Music'' describes three interrelated uses of the term "music theory": The first is the "Elements of music, ...

musicology Musicology is the academic, research-based study of music, as opposed to musical composition or performance. Musicology research combines and intersects with many fields, including psychology, sociology, acoustics, neurology, natural sciences, ...

and

Arabic Arabic (, , or , ) is a Central Semitic languages, Central Semitic language of the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family spoken primarily in the Arab world. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) assigns lang ...

philology Philology () is the study of language in Oral tradition, oral and writing, written historical sources. It is the intersection of textual criticism, literary criticism, history, and linguistics with strong ties to etymology. Philology is also de ...

at the

Hochschule für Musik "Hanns Eisler" ' (, plural: ') is the generic term in German for institutions of higher education, corresponding to ''universities'' and ''colleges'' in English. The term ''Universität'' (plural: ''Universitäten'') is reserved for institutions with the right to ...

and the

Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin The Humboldt University of Berlin (, abbreviated HU Berlin) is a public research university in the central borough of Mitte in Berlin, Germany. The university was established by Frederick William III on the initiative of Wilhelm von Humboldt, ...

. From 1958 to 1964, he was research assistant at the university's Institute for

Musicology Musicology is the academic, research-based study of music, as opposed to musical composition or performance. Musicology research combines and intersects with many fields, including psychology, sociology, acoustics, neurology, natural sciences, ...

. In 1964, he was awarded a doctorate with the dissertation ''Zum vokalsolistischen Vortrag der Eislerschen Kampfmusik''. In 1970, he

habilitated Habilitation is the highest university degree, or the procedure by which it is achieved, in Germany, France, Italy, Poland and some other European and non-English-speaking countries. The candidate fulfills a university's set criteria of excellen ...

with the thesis ''Der Begriff des maqam in Ägypten. Forschung in der DDR in neuerer Zeit''. He then taught music history and music ethnology at the Humboldt University in Berlin and

Leipzig University Leipzig University (), in Leipzig in Saxony, Germany, is one of the world's oldest universities and the second-oldest university (by consecutive years of existence) in Germany. The university was founded on 2 December 1409 by Frederick I, Electo ...

. From 1975 to 1993, he was professor of

ethnomusicology Ethnomusicology is the multidisciplinary study of music in its cultural context. The discipline investigates social, cognitive, biological, comparative, and other dimensions. Ethnomusicologists study music as a reflection of culture and investiga ...

at Humboldt University, and from 1979 to 1990 he was head of the musicology department.''Beiträge zur Musikwissenschaft'' 27/28 (1985), .

Awards

* 1971: Hanns Eisler Prize

Publications

As author

* with Nathan Notowicz: ''Hanns Eisler. Quellennachweise''. Deutscher Verlag für Musik, Leipzig 1966. * ''Zur vokalsolistischen Vortragsweise der Kampfmusik Hanns Eislers''. Deutscher Verlag für Musik, Leipzig 1971. (Beiträge zur musikwissenschaftlichen Forschung in der DDR, vol. 1) * ''Der Begriff des maqām in Ägypten. Forschung in der DDR in neuerer Zeit''. Deutscher Verlag für Musik, Leipzig 1973. (Beiträge zur musikwissenschaftlichen Forschung in der DDR, vol. 5) * with

Paul Collaer Paul Collaer (8 June 1891 – 10 December 1989) was a Belgian musicologist, pianist, and conductor of Flemish background who was born in Boom and died in Brussels. Through concerts and radio broadcastings, he played an important role in the popula ...

: ''Nordafrika''. Deutscher Verlag für Musik, Leipzig 1983.

As editor

* with Givi Ordžonikidze: ''Sozialistische Musikkultur. Traditionen, Probleme, Perspektiven''. 2 volumes, Verlag Neue Musik, Berlin 1977/83. * ''Die Musik der Alten Welt in Ost und West. Aufstieg und Entwicklung''. Akademie-Verlag, Berlin 1968. * ''Wir reden hier nicht von Napoleon, wir reden von Ihnen! Gespräche mit Hanns Eisler und Gerhart Eisler''. Verlag Neue Musik, Berlin 1971. * with Carola Schramm: ''Dichtung und Wahrheit – die Legendenbildung um Ernst Busch''. 2 volumes, Trafo-Verlag, Berlin 2006, /

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Elsner, Jurgen German ethnomusicologists 20th-century German non-fiction writers Academic staff of the Humboldt University of Berlin Academic staff of Leipzig University 1932 births Living people People from Finsterwalde