CCi Artists

ROBERT HELPS

Robert Helps (1928-2001) belonged to the small coterie of American new music pianists who emerged in the late forties and early fifties. He was also a highly original composer, whose work might be characterized as the missing link between the Columbia-Princeton atonal school and the "New Romanticism" movement that made tonality fashionable for composers in the 20th century's final decades. As a much sought-after teacher, Helps embodied the legacy of his teacher Abby Whiteside, whose theories of musculature and physical rhythm stood apart from the mainstream of piano teaching in her day. Likewise, the influence of Roger Sessions on Helps' career was early and lasting, and Helps was arguably the world's leading exponent of his mentor's piano music. From 1980 until his death from cancer at 73 in November 2001, Helps lived, taught, and made music in Tampa, where he was Professor of Music at the University of South Florida. CCi is proud to have presented Bob's last New York recitals, December 1 & 2 1997 on Solo Flights.

Affiliation: BMI
Publisher: C.F. Peters

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Last Update 03/15/2007