Michael F. Robinson

Michael Finlay Robinson (3 March 1933 – 18 February 2026) was an English composer, musicologist and academic best known for his scholarly work on Italian opera, particularly Neapolitan opera of the 17th and 18th centuries. Life and career Robinson was born in Gloucester on 3 March 1933. He earned Bachelor of Arts, Bachelor of Music, Master of Arts, and Doctor of Philosophy degrees from New College, Oxford. In October 2009 he obtained the Oxford Doctor of Music degree by examination. In 1965, he emigrated to Canada to join the Music Faculty at McGill University in Montreal as Assistant Professor, and was promoted to Associate Professor in 1967. Returning to the United Kingdom in 1970, he joined the Music Department at University College, Cardiff (now Cardiff University) as Lecturer, becoming Senior Lecturer in 1976 and Professor in 1991. He served as Head of Department from 1987 to 1994, retiring in 1994 and being named Professor Emeritus in 1995. Robinson’s research interests included 17th and 18th century Neapolitan music, opera studies, the sociology of music, opera house management, and theoretical aspects such as the concept of time in music. His research was supported by grant