John Davison (1930-1999), a composer and pianist, grew up in upstate New York and New York City. He studied music at the Juilliard School, Haverford College, Harvard University, and Eastman School of Music, where he earned his doctorate degree in creative composition. Davison received numerous prizes and Fellowships for his works, which have been performed throughout the United States, Europe and Asia. Among orchestras playing his compositions have been the Eastman-Rochester Orchestra, the Concerto Soloists of Philadelphia, the Susquehanna Symphony, and the Minnesota Orchestra. Davison also co-authored a book on the songs of Robert Burns with John Ashmead. His music was rooted in the great Western classic-romantic tradition with Baroque, Renaissance, jazz, modernist, and folk elements mixing in at times. He taught as a member of the Music Department at Haverford College from 1959 until his death.
John Davison
Studios
MacDowell
John Davison worked in the MacDowell studio.
Built in 1912, Pine Studio was renamed MacDowell Studio in 1943 in recognition of support from a group of Edward MacDowell’s music students. It was built as a composers’ studio and the stuccoed walls were intended to be soundproof. Like many of the studios on property, MacDowell was winterized in the 1950s when the program began welcoming…