Peter Frederic Ostwald

Background

Mr. Ostwald was born in Berlin, Germany, on January 5, 1928. Later he became a naturalized U.S. citizen.

Education

Peter Frederic Ostwald completed his psychiatric training as a resident for New York Hospital’s Payne Whitney Clinic in New York City. He attended the University of California School of Medicine in San Francisco.

Career

Mr. Ostwald served in the U.S. Army Medical Corps between 1953 and 1955. After contributing articles to several medical reference works and medical journals, he wrote Soundmaking — The Acoustic Communication of Emotion in 1963. Mr. Ostwald's other works include several biographies on well-known artists with mental illnesses.

For many years he served as mental health consultant to the San Francisco Conservatory of Music. Dr. Ostwald also instituted a seminar on psychobiography at Mount Zion Hospital in San Francisco.

Achievements

• In 1986 Peter Ostwald founded the Health Program for Performing Artists, a voluntary group of specialists engaged in research, education and clinical care of the particular mental and medical problems afflicting musicians, dancers and other performing artists, both professionals and students.
  
  Dr. Ostwald was recognized internationally for his work on the interaction between music and psychiatry.

Works

More photos

• book

  • Schumann: The Inner Voices of a Musical Genius

    (After obtaining access to long sought-after archival mate...)

  • Glenn Gould: The Ecstasy and Tragedy of Genius

    (Traces the life of the eccentric pianist, descibes the fe...)

  • The Pleasures and Perils of Genius: Mostly Mozart

    (Few subjects have been more intriguing and more puzzling ...)

  • Vaslav Nijinsky: A Leap Into Madness
  • Schumann: Music and Madness
  • Glenn Gould : Extase d'un génie
  • Semiotics of Human Sound
  • 19th Century Music: Articles
  • Communication and Social Interaction

Connections

Peter Ostwald was married to Lise Deschamps, a concert pianist. They had a daughter, Chantal, and a son, David.

Wife:

Lise Deschamps

Daughter:

Chantal Ostwald

Son:

David Ostwald

References

• Peter F. Ostwald, 68, a Scholar Linking Music and Psychiatry - The New York Times