Henderson, William James (EN)

Henderson William James, *4 December 1855 Newark (New Jersey), †5 June 1937 New York, American music critic and writer. In 1886, he graduated from Princeton University, where he was awarded an honorary doctorate in literature in 1922. Between 1868 and 1873, he studied piano under C. Langlotz, and from 1876 to 1877, singing under A. Torriano. He was self-taught in music theory and history. In 1886 he was a reporter for the “New York Tribune,” from 1887 to 1902 a music critic for the “New York Times,” and from 1902 to 1937 for the “New York Sun.” From 1889 to 1895 he lectured on music history at the New York College of Music, and from 1904 on the history of vocal art at the Institute of Musical Art.

Henderson was not only a long-standing music critic for the New York press, but also the author of interesting, recently reprinted studies on vocal music (Early History of Singing, Some Forerunners of Italian Opera, The Art of the Singer) and popular books and articles on the history of music and the lives and works of composers (including Wagner, Beethoven and Tchaikovsky). Henderson sought to define the function of music criticism and the aesthetic criteria of so-called “good music”; his frequently reprinted book What Is Good Music reflects views typical of American musical culture at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries. Henderson also wrote novels, short stories and poetry. He was also an expert in navigation; his book Elements of Navigation served as a textbook in American naval schools during the First World War.