About Roy Howat
Born 1951. Roy Howat is a British musicologist, music educator, pianist, violinist, conductor and editor.
Roy Howat (born 1951) is a Scottish pianist and musicologist, who specializes in French music. Howat has been Keyboard Research Fellow at the Royal Academy of Music in London since 2003, and Research Fellow at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland since 2013.
Biography Howat was born in Ayrshire, Scotland. His mother was Czech, his father Scots. He was educated at Ardrossan Academy in Ayrshire and King's College, Cambridge, where he graduated with a first-class degree in Music in 1974. He has also studied under Vlado Perlemuter in Paris.
He is married to the Australian pianist and musical writer Emily Kilpatrick.
Publications He is one of the founding editors, with Pierre Boulez, François Lesure and others, of the Paris-based Complete Debussy Edition (Œuvres Complètes de Claude Debussy), for which he has edited much of the piano music. His other publications include the books Debussy in Proportion and The Art of French piano music, Urtext volumes of Chabrier and Fauré, an English edition of Jean-Jacques Eigeldinger's Chopin, Pianist and Teacher, and chapters in numerous other books on Schubert, Chopin, Debussy, Ravel, Bartók and others.
Performances His recordings include major piano and chamber works by composers including Debussy, Chabrier, Fauré and Pierné. In 2001 he toured in Egypt as both pianist and violist with the Sarastro Ensemble. More recent performances include those with the Panocha Quartet in Japan, the Czech Republic and the UK (including the Wigmore Hall).
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Important facts
People in Roy Howat's life
Named in this biography and alive at the same time
Contemporaries
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Frequently asked questions
Who is Roy Howat?
Scottish pianist and musicologist
When was Roy Howat born?
Roy Howat was born in 1951 in Ayrshire.
What is Roy Howat's occupation?
Roy Howat is a musicologist, music educator, pianist, violinist, conductor and editor.
What nationality is Roy Howat?
Roy Howat is British.
Sources & further reading
Cite this page
APA: Biography.guide. (2026). Roy Howat. https://biography.guide/roy-howat/
MLA: "Roy Howat." Biography.guide, https://biography.guide/roy-howat/.
Chicago: "Roy Howat." Biography.guide. https://biography.guide/roy-howat/.
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