STEVENS, John (Edgar) 1921-2002

PERSONAL: Born October 8, 1921, in London, England; died February 14, 2002; son of William C. J. (a civil servant and violinist) and Fanny (a teacher) Stevens; married Charlotte E. M. Somner, 1946; children: two sons and two daughters. Education: Attended Christ's Hospital School and Magdalene College, Cambridge.

CAREER: Professor, musician, musicologist. Cambridge University, Magdalene College, Cambridge, England, reader in English and music history, 1974-78, professor of Medieval and Renaissance English literature and chair, 1978-1988, professor emeritus, 1988-2002. Military service: Served in the British Royal Navy during World War II; attained the rank of lieutenant.

AWARDS, HONORS: Recipient of a one-year, full fellowship for study at Magdalene College; elected to the British Academy, 1975; named Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE), 1980, for services to music history; honorary doctorate, University of Exeter, 1989; Derek Allen Prize for Musicology, 1989.

WRITINGS:

Medieval Carols, Stainer & Bell (London, England) 1952.

Music and Poetry in the Early Tudor Court, Methuen (London, England), 1961, revised and reprinted ("Cambridge Studies in Music" series), Cambridge University Press (New York, NY), 1979.

Music at the Court of Henry VIII, Stainer & Bell (London, England) 1962.

(With others) Shakespeare in Music (essays; "Papermac 177" series), St. Martin's Press (New York, NY), 1967.

(Translator, with Richard Axton) Medieval FrenchPlays, Barnes & Noble (New York, NY), 1971.

Medieval Romance: Themes and Approaches ("English Literature" series), Hutchinson (London, England), 1973, reprinted, Norton (New York, NY), 1974.

Early Tudor Songs and Carols, 1975.

Words and Music in the Middle Ages: Song, Narrative,Dance, and Drama, 1050-1350 ("Cambridge Studies in Music" series), Cambridge University Press (New York, NY), 1986.

SIDELIGHTS: John Stevens, an eminent scholar of medieval literature and music, was born in London, the son of a violinist father and a mother who was one of the first women to graduate with a degree in mathematics from London University. Stevens, who initially was a conscientious objector serving in the ambulance corps during World War II, did later join the Royal Navy and served with the minesweepers. When he returned to England following the war, he received fellowships to study at Magdalene College, Cambridge. Two years after his entry, C. S. Lewis came to Magdalene as chair of Medieval and Renaissance literature, and Stevens's own career accelerated, as he was appointed first as a lecturer, then a tutor.

Stevens's doctoral work was expanded and published as his most well-known volume, Music and Poetry in the Early Tudor Court, followed by Music at the Court of Henry VIII. His courses on lyrics, romance, medieval drama, and George Herbert were well-attended. In a Guardian Unlimited obituary online, Richard Axton wrote that Stevens "spoke quietly, always thoughtfully; sometimes held up by an early stammer, he burst into song to illustrate a point and get things moving." Axton said that the students, who called Stevens by his first name, "were drawn by the combination of shy friendliness with intellectual toughness, technical authority and absolute clarity." Axton noted also that students received their essays back from Stevens "richly annotated with questions and promptings, tersely phrased and beautifully penned. Once, at a party, a tax inspector confessed that the beauty of Stevens's return had led him to take calligraphy lessons."

During the 1960s, Stevens's interests turned to the Middle Ages and French drama. He published Medieval French Plays, a volume of translations, and his most literary work, Medieval Romance. He became the professor of Medieval and Renaissance English—after the death of J. A. W. Bennett—a chair he held until his retirement. Axton noted that until his death, Stevens rose early to play his music and to accompany young singers.

A major achievement of Stevens's career was his Words and Music in the Middle Ages: Song, Narrative, Dance, and Drama, 1050-1350, a volume preparatory to his final work. In this book, Stevens studies the relationship of melodies and words, number symbolism, meter, and melodic types. Choice reviewer A. G. Spiro wrote that "one applauds and marvels at his courage to pursue this momentous, scholarly inquiry."

Review of English Studies contributor Thomas G. Duncan, meanwhile, wrote that "the key to the argument in this book is the medieval concept of 'number' as the basis of musica, of which both music and poetry are manifestations. Artistry in number and proportion constituted the harmony of poem and melody alike and the basis of the relationship between words and music—in simplest terms, number in syllables, lines and strophic structure, number in notes, phrases and melodic structure. The relationship of words and music in medieval monophony is, therefore, essentially formal, only rarely expressive."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

BOOKS

Preston, Michael James, A Complete Concordance to the Songs of the Early Tudor Court (based on Music and Poetry in the Early Tudor Court; Volume 7 of the "Compendia, Computer-Generated Aids to Literary and Linguistic Research" series), W. S. Maney (Leeds, England), 1972.

PERIODICALS

Choice, September, 1987, A. G. Spiro, review of Words and Music in the Middle Ages: Song, Narrative, Dance, and Drama, 1050-1350, p. 142.

Review of English Studies, November, 1988, Thomas G. Duncan, review of Words and Music in the Middle Ages, pp. 531-533.

OBITUARIES:

ONLINE

Guardian Unlimited,http://books.guardian.co.uk/ (February 20, 2002), Richard Axton, "John Stevens: Eminent Scholar of Medieval Literature and Music."

Times (London, England), http://www.thetimes.co.uk/ (February 22, 2002), "Professor John Stevens."*