Eduard Hanslick

Eduard Hanslick (11 September 1825 – 6 August 1904) was an Austrian music critic, aesthetician, and historian. He was the chief music critic for the Neue Freie Presse from 1864 until his death. His most famous work, the 1854 treatise "Vom Musikalisch-Schönen" (On the Musically Beautiful), is a foundational text in the aesthetics of music. Hanslick championed absolute music over programmatic music and was a prominent supporter of Johannes Brahms, while often criticizing composers like Richard Wagner and Franz Liszt. He taught music history and aesthetics at the University of Vienna, holding a professorship and receiving an honorary doctorate. Despite his critical engagements, he also served on juries for musical competitions and held administrative roles. Hanslick's critical approach emphasized the inherent form of music as its primary source of meaning, often clashing with the more expressive and programmatic tendencies of some of his contemporaries.