Tellefsen, Thomas (Dyke Acland)

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Tellefsen, Thomas (Dyke Acland)

Tellefsen, Thomas (Dyke Acland), Norwegian pianist and composer; b. Trondheim, Nov. 26, 1823; d. Paris, Oct. 6, 1874. He began his training in Trondheim with his father, Johan Christian Tellefsen, an organist, and with O. Lindeman, making his debut there at age 18. He then went to Paris in 1842, where he continued his studies with Charlotte Thygeson, and also received some lessons from Kalkbrenner; in 1844 he became a pupil of Chopin, and accompanied him to England and Scotland in 1848. In later years he gave frequent concerts in Paris, London, and Scandinavia; about 1861 ill health compelled him to concentrate his energies on teaching and composing. His early works were greatly influenced by Chopin; he wrote 2 piano concertos (1852, 1854), a Piano Trio (1861), 2 violin sonatas (1856), a Sonata for 2 Pianos (1870), 16 mazurkas, and a number of Norwegian dances. He also made use of Norwegian folk songs in many of his works, and thus became an early proponent of national music in Norway

—Nicolas Slonimsky/Laura Kuhn/Dennis McIntire