Barker, Andrew, 1943-2021

Trained as a philosopher, Andrew Barker entered the field of ancient music when it still had very few inhabitants. His translations of ancient theoretical treatises on harmonics made available, for the first time in English, a large number of difficult and demanding texts, but above all he drew out their philosophical implications, showing how they contributed to ancient debates about perception, definition, and scientific methodology. His translations and exegeses both enriched the field and enlarged it, and his collaborations with colleagues—especially in Italy, which became an important part of his life—created and fostered international networks that transformed the study of ancient music.

Posted to Biographical Memoirs of Fellows of the British Academy, 20