Kolodin, Irving, 1908-1988

Irving Kolodin, music critic, author of several books and teacher at the Juilliard School, was born in 1908 and died in 1987 in New York, after suffering a stroke in the previous year.

In 1926 he began his studies at the Institute of Musical Art, which later became part of the Juilliard School. In 1931 he got his first assignment as music critic at the Brooklyn Daily Eagle. Soon after, in 1932, Kolodin joined the staff at The New York Sun under W. J. Henderson, where he remained until it was merged with the New York World-Telegram in 1950. Kolodin's longest employer was the Saturday Review of Literature: in 1947 he began as the editor of a monthly Recordings section, moving on to music reviews and feature articles, as well as his most popular and long-lasting column, Music to My Ears. Kolodin contributed to many other magazines and newspapers, such as Newsday, and the New York Herald Tribune. He was the author of several books, album covers for RCA Victor, and program notes for the New York Philharmonic. Above all, Kolodin became famous for his authoritative works on the history of the Metropolitan Opera. Although the majority of Kolodin's writings focus on classical music and opera, his articles and books cover a wide variety of subjects, ranging from jazz and popular music to dance. In addition to his career as an author, Kolodin was faculty member at the Juilliard School from 1968 to 1986, where he taught courses on the Music of Mahler and Music Criticism.

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