Forbes came from a
Boston Brahmin family; his parents were,
Edward Forbes, was the director of
Harvard's
Fogg Art Museum, and Margaret Laighton. He attended
Harvard University, receiving a BA in 1941 and an MA in 1947, both in music; he studied with
Walter Piston, and while he was a graduate student, he was the assistant conductor of the
Harvard Glee Club. From 1947 to 1958, he taught at
Princeton University, but in 1958 he returned to Harvard and remained there for the rest of his life as Fanny Peabody Professor of Music (and, after 1984, Professor Emeritus.) He was the chief conductor of the Harvard Glee Club and
Radcliffe Choral Society from 1958 to 1970; his students included
Isaiah Jackson, now director of the
Pro Arte Chamber Orchestra of Boston, and
William Christie, founder and director of the European
baroque ensemble
Les Arts Florissants. While conductor, he led both groups on a tour around the world in 1967. Aside from conducting, his scholarly work focused on the life and work of
Beethoven, particularly his choral music. His edition of ''
Thayer's Life of Beethoven'' (1964) has been called "a substantial contribution to Beethoven scholarship". He also wrote two notable volumes of the history of music at Harvard, and edited the Harvard-Radcliffe Choral Music Series. He was on the boards of the
New England Conservatory, Pro Arte Chamber Orchestra, and
Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, whose piano is dedicated in his honor. His grandson is musician
Ed Droste from
Grizzly Bear. == Ancestry ==