Randolph Henning Hokanson
(June 22, 1915 – October 18, 2018) was an American pianist and
professor emeritus
''Emeritus/Emerita'' () is an honorary title granted to someone who retirement, retires from a position of distinction, most commonly an academic faculty position, but is allowed to continue using the previous title, as in "professor emeritus".
...
at the
University of Washington
The University of Washington (UW and informally U-Dub or U Dub) is a public research university in Seattle, Washington, United States. Founded in 1861, the University of Washington is one of the oldest universities on the West Coast of the Uni ...
in Seattle. He was noted for his recordings of
Bach
Johann Sebastian Bach (German: joːhan zeˈbasti̯an baχ ( – 28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque period. He is known for his prolific output across a variety of instruments and forms, including the or ...
,
Schubert
Franz Peter Schubert (; ; 31 January 179719 November 1828) was an Austrian composer of the late Classical period (music), Classical and early Romantic music, Romantic eras. Despite his short life, Schubert left behind a List of compositions ...
,
Beethoven
Ludwig van Beethoven (baptised 17 December 177026 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. He is one of the most revered figures in the history of Western music; his works rank among the most performed of the classical music repertoire ...
,
Chopin,
Liszt
Franz Liszt (22 October 1811 – 31 July 1886) was a Hungarian composer, virtuoso pianist, conductor and teacher of the Romantic period. With a diverse body of work spanning more than six decades, he is considered to be one of the most pro ...
and
Mendelssohn
Jakob Ludwig Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy (3 February 18094 November 1847), widely known as Felix Mendelssohn, was a German composer, pianist, organist and conductor of the early Romantic period. Mendelssohn's compositions include symphonie ...
, and gave over 100 performances, including the complete cycle of
Beethoven sonatas.
Hokanson was born in the state of
Washington in June 1915 as the fifth of eleven children of a family of Swedish immigrants in
Bellingham.
He began playing the piano at the age of eight, and by the age of fifteen, he had begun giving recitals regularly in
Seattle
Seattle ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the 18th-most populous city in the United States. The city is the cou ...
and
Victoria, British Columbia
Victoria is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of British Columbia, on the southern tip of Vancouver Island off Canada's Pacific Ocean, Pacific coast. The city has a population of 91,867, and the Gre ...
.
After high school, he studied in London on a scholarship with
Harold Samuel,
Myra Hess and
Carl Friedberg and later performed as soloist under
Thomas Beecham
Sir Thomas Beecham, 2nd Baronet, (29 April 18798 March 1961) was an English conductor and impresario best known for his association with the London Philharmonic Orchestra, London Philharmonic and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Royal Philh ...
,
Pierre Monteux
Pierre Benjamin Monteux (; 4 April 18751 July 1964) was a French (later American) conductor. After violin and viola studies, and a decade as an orchestral player and occasional conductor, he began to receive regular conducting engagements in 1 ...
,
Arthur Fiedler
Arthur Fiedler (December 17, 1894 – July 10, 1979) was an American Conductor (music), conductor known for his association with both the Boston Symphony Orchestra, Boston Symphony and Boston Pops Orchestra, Boston Pops orchestras. With a combi ...
,
Walter Susskind,
Milton Katims, and others. He toured the United States and Canada for eight years.
He was part of the University of Washington music faculty from 1949 to 1984.
He was still performing at the age of 90.
In 2011, he released a memoir, ''With Head to the Music Bent: A Musician's Story''. He was married to composer Dorothy Cadzow (August 9, 1916 – June 26, 2001) from 1951 until her death. Hokanson gave a concert of pieces by Bach, Mozart and Chopin in Bayview Manor Albertson Hall, Seattle, on June 21, 2015, the day before his 100th birthday.
Randolph Hokanson Turns 100: Bach, Mozart, Chopin
The Live Music Project: Seattle. He died on 18 October 2018 at the age of 103.
See also
* List of centenarians (musicians, composers and music patrons)
The following is a list of centenarians – specifically, people who became famous as musicians/singers, composers and music patrons – known for reasons other than their longevity
Longevity may refer to especially long-lived members of a pop ...
References
External links
*
100-year-old pianist is so good he makes people cry"
video from ''USA Today
''USA Today'' (often stylized in all caps) is an American daily middle-market newspaper and news broadcasting company. Founded by Al Neuharth in 1980 and launched on September 14, 1982, the newspaper operates from Gannett's corporate headq ...
''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hokanson, Randolph
1915 births
2018 deaths
20th-century American pianists
20th-century American male musicians
American men centenarians
American classical pianists
American male classical pianists
University of Washington faculty
Musicians from Washington (state)
Writers from Washington (state)
American people of Swedish descent
People from Bellingham, Washington