Paul Steinitz - Scholarship, Honours and Personal Life

Scholarship, Honours and Personal Life

Steinitz’s scholarship and profound understanding of his subject did not prevent him from trusting his players and singers on matters of technique and interpretation. This mutual trust led to some memorable readings and glowing praise in the national press. "All of Bach’s music is dance music except for the recitatives" he would tell his musicians.

His publications include the chapter on German church music in the 18th century 'The New Oxford History of Music, to many harmony textbooks for music students as well as books entitled Bach’s Passions, Bach for Choirs, and Performing Bach’s Vocal Music. There are also numerous letters and articles published by The Musical Times from the 1950s to 1980s and in various American Journals including that of the American Choral Directors Association (ACDA).

Paul Steinitz was a Fellow of the Royal Academy of Music and Royal College of Organists. He was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in 1985, the Bach ter-centenary year. However, he would wish Bach to have the last honour: a portrait of the great composer would often be leaning against the conductor's rostrum, and then held high to rapturous applause at the end of the concert.

Dr. Steinitz died on 21 April 1988 at home in his beloved 18th century cottage in Old Oxted village after a short illness. He was a devout Quaker who held a passionate belief that music could contribute to peace by bridging political divides.

A public memorial to him was placed in the Cloister of St Bartholomew-the-Great, West Smithfield, in the City of London. It was provided by public subscription, created by Richard Kindersley and unveiled in 1991 by the serving Lord Mayor of London Sir Alexander Grahame GBE. The ceremony was followed by an all-Bach concert that reflected the musical forces Steinitz was advocating, now being handed on to the next generation to take forward. The programme of Bach's seasonal cantatas, the famous Chaconne and Third Suite was given to a distinguished audience of public figures, musicians and supporters. It was a fitting memorial and provided encouragement for the future, the seamless continuity Dr. Steinitz wanted so much to take place after his death.

At the opening of the London Bach Festival that celebrated the LBS Golden Jubilee in 1996, the composer John Tavener paid tribute to Paul Steinitz for his contribution to British musical life and to the London Bach Society. He said: "I do not think that Paul was ever truly recognised and I think that England should hang its head in shame…… without him the London Bach Society would not have existed. "

Paul Steinitz is survived by his wife Margaret whom he married in 1976, and by two sons, one of whom is the founder of the Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival Professor Richard Steinitz, and a daughter from previous marriages. Today Mrs Steinitz continues her husband's work and has developed the London Bach Society to incorporate Steinitz Bach Players and an annual Bachfest, and she is Artistic Director. In 2001, she became an Honorary Associate of the Royal Academy of Music (Hon.ARAM) and was awarded the Officer's Cross of the German Order of Merit in 2006.

Dr. Steinitz' centenary was reflected appropriately at the London Bach Society's Bachfest in 2009 and by other organisations with whom he was closely associated. Care was taken to present a series that was active rather than passive in keeping with Dr. Steinitz' own approach to Bach study and performance. A concert in the Royal Academy of Music/Kohn Foundation Bach Cantata series was dedicated to him, a Steinitz Bach String Prize was inaugurated at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama, a special Bach Cantata concert performed by Steinitz Bach Players and an array of contemporary Bach singers was presented in the Priory Church of St. Bartholomew the Great and a new 18-30 Bach Club founded. In 2010 a development campaign was launched at the London Bach Society's 20th Bachfest entitled "Bach for Life",a five-year project, the chief aim of which is to secure a central headquarters for the London Bach Society. The 21st Bachfest will take place in November 2011.