Michael Kuttner

Photo shared by Indiana University.

The Gordon String Quartet in a series of six concerts. Courtesy of Asheville Art Museum, 2017.40.310.01

FOCUS

Music

ROLE

Guest

ATTENDANCE

1945 - 1945

DEATH

1975-10-10

Bloomington, IN

Michael Kuttner was a guest in the fall of 1945, playing alongside the Gordon String Quartet.

Indiana University has a fellowship in Kuttner's name and shared this biography,

"Born in Hungary, Michael Kuttner attended the Franz Liszt Academy in Budapest in 1935, receiving the professor of music diploma in 1937 and the state artist diploma in 1938. During his professional career he was both a noted conductor and an acclaimed musician.

Professor Kuttner studied conducting with the late Serge Koussevitzky at Tanglewood, and went on to conduct the New York City Opera and the Trenton Opera Association. Perhaps he is best remembered for his illustrious career as a violinist, having performed with some of the most prestigious chamber music groups of his time.

He started his American career as first violinist of the Pro Ideale Quartet, quartet-in-residence at Westminster Choir College in Princeton, NJ, from 1938 til the early 1940s. Professor Kuttner was a member of the Gordon, Lener, Hungarian, and Berkshire Quartets.

In 1972 he was appointed Professor of Music at Indiana University, where he shared his talents and enthusiasm with others. After Professor Kuttner's death in 1975, Charles Webb, Dean of the School of Music, remembered him fondly. "We remember Michael as a conscientious and devoted teacher," Webb said, "as a warm and concerned friend, and for his vibrant love of the art of music.""

The New York Times also shared an obituary article upon his passing in 1975.

The Gordon String Quartet in a series of six concerts
Photograph of author

Author

Amanda Hartman

Amanda Hartman is the creator of BMC Yearbook, serving as the lead director, engineer, and researcher. She holds a MLIS in archive/ collections management, MA in art/ museum education, and BA in design. After working in museums and archives for a decade, she made the transition to tech and is now a software developer specializing in applications for museums, archives, and higher education.

Her interest in Black Mountain College began while working as a digital archivist with the Asheville Art Museum's BMC archive collection. She transcribed and digitized over 1500 documents created by the college. While working closely with these archives, she began independent research on the interracial program and Negro Week activities BMC, writing biographies of lesser known students and staff members. That research transformed into this BMC Yearbook project.

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