Minuetta Kessler
Minuetta Kessler | |
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | Minuetta Shumiatcher |
| Born | September 5, 1914 Gomel |
| Died | November 30, 2002 (aged 88) Belmont, Massachusetts |
| Genres | classical |
| Occupation | composer |
| Instrument | piano |
Minuetta Kessler (September 5, 1914 – November 30, 2002) was a Russian-born Canadian and later American concert pianist, classical music composer, and educator.[1] Kessler performed at New York’s Carnegie Hall and Town Hall and with the Boston Civic Symphony and Boston Pops conducted by Arthur Fiedler. The New York Times called her, “A rare phenomenon among the younger pianists of today.” Cite error: The <ref> tag has too many names (see the help page).
Life
The daughter of Abraham Isaac Shumiatcher, a lawyer born in Gomel, and Luba Lubinsky,[2] a graduate of the University of Warsaw who worked as a tutor for children,[3] she was born Minuetta Shumiatcher in Gomel and grew up in Calgary; her parents had been living in Calgary but her mother was visiting Russia when Kessler was born.[4] Her paternal grandfather Judah Shumiatcher is said to have brought the first Torah to Calgary. A paternal uncle, Morris Shumiatcher, founded a hat company which manufactured the white cowboy hats that became the symbol for Calgary.[5] Her younger brother, Dr. Morris Shumiatcher,[6] became a lawyer.[7]
A child prodigy, she first performed her own compositions in public at age five.[4] She studied with Gladys Egbert in Calgary and Ernest Hutcheson, Ania Dorfmann and Ivan Langstroth at the Juilliard School, where she also taught for several years.[1]
She won CAPAC awards for her compositions New York Suite(1945) and Ballet Sonatina (1946). In 1947, Kessler premiered her Alberta Concerto on CBC radio; it was also performed by orchestras in Boston, Calgary, Montreal, Quebec City, Regina and Toronto.[1]
Kessler composed music for piano, violin, voice, flute, clarinet and cello, as well as for chamber ensembles. In 1978, recordings of several of her chamber pieces were made featuring prominent Boston area musicians.[8]
Kessler moved to Cambridge, Massachusetts in 1952 and moved to Belmont the following year.[1] She operated her own publishing company, Musical Resources, in Belmont.[4] In 1958, she founded the New England Jewish Music Forum. Kessler served as president of the New England Pianoforte Teachers' Association from 1965 to 1967 and of the Massachusetts Music Teachers Association from 1979 to 1981. Kessler gave workshops and lectures for teachers and wrote articles for periodicals such as The Christian Science Monitor, Clavier and Massachusetts Music News.[1] In 1984, she received a Master Teachers Certificate Diploma from the Music Teachers National Association.[4]
Kessler married Dr. Ernest Borek, a Columbia University microbiologist, in 1936. They had a son, Ronald Kessler, a noted journalist and New York Times bestselling author. After divorcing, she married Dr. Myer M. Kessler, a Massachusetts Institute of Technology physicist, in 1952. They had a daughter, Jean Brenner. Cite error: The <ref> tag has too many names (see the help page).
Kessler died in Belmont at the age of 88.[1]
References
- ^ a b c d e f Musselwhite, Florence. "Kessler, Minuetta". The Canadian Encyclopedia.
- ^ "Abraham I. Shumiatcher fonds". Glenbow Museum.
- ^ Gray, Anne (2003). "Celebrating Minuetta Kessler (1914-2002)". IAWM Journal. 9 (1). The Alliance: 19.
- ^ a b c d "Minuetta Kessler fonds". Archives Society of Alberta.
- ^ Land of Promise: The Jewish Experience in Southern Alberta. Jewish Historical Society. 1996. p. 266. ISBN 1-55056-457-9.
- ^ Roberts & Tunnell 1975, p. 1004.
- ^ Nilsen, Jeff (1 December 2002). "Minuetta Kessler, Pianist and Teacher". The Boston Globe. Retrieved 11 January 2016.
{{cite web}}: Unknown parameter|subscription=ignored (|url-access=suggested) (help) - ^ "Minuetta Kessler". Violin music by women.
Sources
- Roberts, Sir Charles George Douglas; Tunnell, Arthur L. (1975). The Canadian Who's Who. University of Toronto Press.
{{cite book}}: Invalid|ref=harv(help) - Kessler, Ronald (2012). The Sins of the Father: Joseph P. Kennedy and the Dynasty He Founded. Hachette UK. ISBN 1455521876.
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External links
- The Boston Composers Project: A Bibliography of Contemporary Music. Boston Area Music Libraries. 1983. pp. 265–275. ISBN 0262021986.
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