Herbert Deutsch

Biography

Herbert Deutsch was born on February 9th, 1932 in Hempstead, New York, and developed an interest in music in his early childhood. Deutsch received a B.S. in Education from Hofstra in 1956, and earned a second B.A. and M.A. in music theory and composition at the Manhattan School of Music. In 1961, he started teaching at Hofstra as Professor of Music, where he later named emeritus and served as chair of the the department. His career at Hofstra lasted for a period of 61 years until his death in 2022.

Deutsch had built a theremin using Bob Moog's kit in 1962, and the two met in 1963, later collaborating on designing the original Moog modular synthesizer in 1964. In addition to designing the hardware, Deutsch also performed with the synthesizer with the New York Improvisation Quartet, and performed with Moog at the Museum Of Modern Art in New York in 1969. Deutsch's composition "Jazz Images: A Work Song in Blues" was an early example of a piece composed specifically for the Moog, and he was the author of the 1976 book "Synthesis: An Introduction to the History, Theory & Practice of Electronic Music", which was packaged with a 7" record containing ten of Deutsch's compositions and performances.

From 1976 to 1983, he served as the director of sales and marketing at Moog Music Co., and co-founded Long Island Composers alliance in 1972, serving as its president from 2009 to 2011.

Deutsch died on December 9, 2022.