Friskin, James

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Friskin, James

Friskin, James, Scottish-American pianist and composer; b. Glasgow, March 3, 1886; d. N.Y, March 16, 1967. He studied with E. Dannreuther (piano) and Stanford (composition) at the Royal Coll. of Music in London, then taught at the Royal Normal Coll. for the Blind (1909–14). In 1914 he went to the U.S. In 1934 he gave 2 recitals in N.Y. consisting of the complete Wohltemperierte Clavier of Bach. In 1944 he married Rebecca Clarke. Among his works were Phantasie for string quartet, Phantasie for piano trio, Phantasy for piano, 2 violins, viola, and cello (1912), quintet for piano and strings, and violin sonata. He publ. The Principles of Pianoforte Practice (London, 1921; new ed., N.Y, 1937) and (with I. Freundlich) Music for the Piano (N.Y, 1954).

—Nicolas Slonimsky/Laura Kuhn/Dennis McIntire

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