Howard Goding was born in Dedham, MA in 1893. Encouraged by his mother who was an amateur musician, Goding entered the New England Conservatory in 1910, where he studied organ with Wallace Goodrich and piano with George Proctor. Goding graduated with a degree in organ in 1913 and another in piano from NEC in 1915 and was the winner of the Mason and Hamlin piano competition. In December 1917, Goding made his debut as soloist with the Boston Symphony Orchestra in Sanders Theatre. As a soloist, Goding performed with the BSO under Koussevitzsky and Munch. He also toured as a concert pianist throughout the United States. In 1920, Goding returned to NEC, becoming a faculty member in the piano department. He continued teaching at the Conservatory for half a century until 1970, and held the title of Professor Emeritus from 1971-1981. During those 50 years, Goding was chair of the piano department for thirty-five of them. New England Conservatory awarded Goding an honorary doctorate in 1972 and was named the Conservatory’s Outstanding Alumnus in 1979. Goding lived much of his life in Duxbury, MA, having moved there in 1952. He died in a nursing home in Plymouth, MA on August 1, 1981.
Physical description
The Goding collection consists of one drop front box containing several paper files, one notebook, one ledger, one catalog, 2 compact discs and several photographs.
Provenance
The original part of this collection was bequeathed to NEC by Howard Goding through his estate in January 1982, along with a collection of published scores. In 2016, Goding's great nephew, Jeff Goding '65, '74, donated other items including several envelopes of newspaper clippings, many concert programs, a bit of correspondence, an NEC academic catalog, and 2 CDs.
Access
Appointments to view this collection must be made in advance with the NEC Archivist. There are no restrictions pertaining to this collection
Copyright
All copyrights to this collection belong to the New England Conservatory. Permission to publish is through the Director of Libraries. This collection should be cited as the Howard Goding Collection, New England Conservatory Archives. Boston, MA.