Réti, Rudolph (Richard)

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Réti, Rudolph (Richard)

Réti, Rudolph (Richard) , Hungarian-American music theorist, pianist, and composer; b. Užice, Serbia, Nov. 27, 1885; d. Montclair, N.J., Feb. 7, 1957. He studied at the Vienna Academy of Music and at the Univ. of Vienna. He took an early interest in new music and was one of the founders of the ISCM (Salzburg, 1922). In 1938 he went to the U.S.; in 1943 he married the Canadian pianist Jean Sahlmark; in 1950 they settled in Montclair, N.J. His compositions are marked by precise structure and fine stylistic unity. Among his works are Symphonia mystica (1951), Triptychon for Orch. (1953), Concertino for Cello and Orch. (1953), 2 piano concertos, Violin Sonata, several choruses and solo songs, and piano pieces. An original music analyst, he wrote several books which contributed to the development of logical theory of modern music: The Thematic Process in Music (N.Y., 1952), Tonality, Atonality, Pantonality (N.Y., 1958), and Thematic Patterns in Sonatas of Beethoven (ed. by D. Cooke, London, 1965).

—Nicolas Slonimsky/Laura Kuhn/Dennis McIntire