Philip George Downs (March 5, 1928 – January 5, 2014)^[2] was a Britishmusicologist andmusic historian who was among the leading and pioneering music historians of theClassical era of music.^[3] His published works on the analysis and significance of the music ofHaydn,Mozart, andBeethoven served as the basis of study for many music scholars.^[4][5][6]

Downs taught atUniversity of Melbourne from 1965 to 1969. He then accepted a professorship atUniversity of Western Ontario in London, Canada, where he remained from 1969 to 2014.^[7]

His principal publications were of central importance to the understanding of the Classical era of music.

In 1970, Downs contributed his extended paper analyzing the first movement of Beethoven'sEroica Symphony, "Beethoven's 'New Way' and the 'Eroica' ", published in a special edition ofThe Musical Quarterly in 1970, the Beethoven bicentennial.^[8][9] The issue was also published separately in hardcover asThe Creative World of Beethoven edited byPaul Henry Lang.^[10][11][12] Downs placed Beethoven's comment about his "new way" of composing to the year 1802 to 1803 (when the Third Symphony was begun).^[8]: 585 He further demonstrated how this new style of composition was used in theEroica symphony first movement, depicting a purgatorial pathway through psychological challenges to a higher state of purification, yet still operating within the classical forms.^[13] This paper is a much referenced source forEroica analysis, with about 42 citations currently in published research.^{[5][6][14][15]}

Downs was commissioned to write a major volume for the NortonIntroduction to Music History series. The book,Classical Music : The Era of Haydn, Mozart and Beethoven, was published in 1992 and extended to 720 pages, including analysis and new insights into the major works of Haydn, Mozart and Beethoven, an era which Downs described as the "Golden Age" of music.^{[13]: 667 [16]} The book was subject to republishing in several languages, including Chinese, Italian, and Spanish.^[17][18][19] Music history courses at universities often refer to this book for course study and it is a staple resource in music libraries.^{[6][20][21][22][23][24]} The book currently appears in 7 editions in 862 libraries in North America.^[25]

Downs authored several articles inThe Canadian Encyclopedia,^[26] includingClifford Evens,Music in London,Clifford von Custer, andMartin Boundy.

Downs authored the notes and historical articles for concert programs of theLondon Symphony Orchestra, later known asOrchestra London.^[27]

Downs was Chairman of Music History at University of Western Ontario from 1985 to 1993.^[28] The Faculty of Music at Western developed a PhD program in Musicology and Music History in 1987.^[29]

The Philip Downs Scholarship in Music History, University of Western Ontario, was established in his name beginning in 2008.^[30]

• British musicologists
• British music historians
• 1928 births
• 2014 deaths
• Haydn scholars
• Beethoven scholars
• Mozart scholars
• Academic staff of the University of Western Ontario

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