Head and Shoulders photo of Michael Robinson

MICHAEL FINLAY ROBINSON was born on March 3rd 1933 at Gloucester, England. He studied music at New College, Oxford, where he was music scholar. He started his career teaching harmony and counterpoint at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music, Glasgow, 1960-61, then moved to a lectureship at Durham University, 1961-65. He was subsequently Associate Professor of Music at McGill University, Montreal, and then Senior Lecturer in Music at Cardiff University. He was appointed Professor of Music at Cardiff University in 1991, retired in 1994 and was made Emeritus Professor one year later. In Oct 2009 Oxford University awarded him the degree of Doctor of Music for his compositions.

Throughout his university career Michael Robinson has conducted research into the early history of opera between 1600 and 1800 and has paid special attention to the development of Italian opera during the eighteenth century. He has been a frequent lecturer at music conferences throughout Europe, the US and Canada, and in 1989 was a visiting professor at the University of Naples, Italy. His books on opera include 'Opera before Mozart', 'Naples and Neapolitan Opera' and a catalogue of the works of the late eighteenth-century Neapolitan composer Giovanni Paisiello. A fuller list of his research output is to be found here. Michael Robinson has also composed music throughout his career; his compositions include an opera, band music, string quartets, duos for various combinations, pieces for solo harpsichord and for violoncello, also twenty songs. A list of his compositions from 1960 onwards is here.

Selected pages from his sheet music and excerpts from his compact discs are displayed on separate pages on this website (see Site Map at top right). Purchases of both sheet music and compact discs can be made on application to the composer by email at this address.





This page last updated 16/5/22


Site Map:

Home Compositions Sheet Music Compact Discs Opera Research