Obituary: Professor Tony Kemp

The University of Reading marks with great sadness the passing of Professor Anthony ‘Tony’ Kemp, who died on 8 July 2026, aged 92.

Tony was a leading voice in music education, his career spanning work as a music psychologist, an accomplished organist and chorister and, in the last part of his life, a priest.

He was Professor of Music Education at Reading, joining the University in 1973, and becoming director of its Music Education Centre in 1978.

Tony believed in the benefits of music for children and teachers, and led a Music Consultancy in Primary Schools project in the early 1980s, as well as a project focused on the creative use of microtechnology in music education in 1984.

While at Reading, Tony established the renowned International Centre for Research in Music Education in 1995. He was an ambassador for the power of diversity in research, and the Centre attracted diverse young researchers from all over the world.

Through the centre, he maintained connections with the International Society of Music Education. He later spent 11 years as co-editor of the International Journal of Music Education, significantly contributing to it becoming a leading publication in the field.

His work on the personality of musicians culminated in the publication of his seminal book, The Musical Temperament, in 1996.

Tony was a key early figure in the development of the Society for Education, Music and Psychology Research, with some its conferences being hosted at Reading.

Tony is remembered by his former students for his enthusiasm and positivity, and support in helping them to shape their own distinctive research voices.

Tony Kemp is survived by his wife Valerie, children Alison and David, and his grandchildren and great grandchild.

Credit to Panagiotis A. Kanellopoulos, of Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, one of Tony’s students at Reading, for much of the information and reflections in this obituary. And to Tony’s family for kindly providing the photographs.