John Amis

Author

1922 – 2013

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Who was John Amis?

John Preston Amis was a British broadcaster, classical music critic, music administrator, and writer. He was a frequent contributor for The Guardian and to BBC radio and television music programming.

Born in Dulwich, London, in 1922, he was a cousin of the novelist Kingsley Amis. He was educated at Dulwich College, where he began a lifelong friendship with his contemporary, Donald Swann. A serious bout of mastoiditis as a child left him deaf in his left ear. He began his career working in a bank for five and a half weeks before leaving to earn a living in music. Amis had a number of roles, including gramophone record salesman, and orchestra manager, before becoming a music critic, initially with The Scotsman in 1946. He was for several years manager for Sir Thomas Beecham.

In 1948, William Glock invited him to run a summer school for musicians at Bryanston School, Dorset. The summer school moved to Dartington in 1953. Amis remained administrative director until 1981, during which time he brought to the school a long line of international musicians, amongst them Paul Hindemith, Igor Stravinsky, and Sir Michael Tippett.

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Born
Jun 17, 1922
Dulwich
Also known as
  • John Preston Amis
Nationality
  • United Kingdom
Profession
Education
  • Dulwich College
Died
Aug 1, 2013

Submitted
on July 23, 2013

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