Muriel Kerr
Canadian pianist and music instructor
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Muriel Kerr Benditzky (née Kerr; January 18, 1911 – September 18, 1963) was a Canadian pianist and music instructor with the Juilliard School and University of Southern California.[1][2][3]
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Muriel Kerr | |
|---|---|
Kerr pictured in 1929. | |
| Born | January 18, 1911 Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada |
| Died | September 18, 1963 (aged 52) California, United States |
| Occupations | Pianist, associate professor |
| Years active | 1928–1963 |
| Spouse | Naoum Benditzky (married 1938) |
Early life and education
Kerr was born in Regina, Saskatchewan to Lorence and Edith Kerr.[4][3][5][6] Lorence was prominent in Regina's business community as the owner of Kerr Land Company, a real estate development business, and co-owner of the Kerr-Patton Coal Company.[6][7] During his lifetime, he was known as the developer of the "impressive" multistory Kerr Block on Regina's Scarth Street.[6][8] The house he built in Regina for his family in 1911, the Kerr Residence (2326 College Avenue), became a municipal heritage property in 2007, and remains on the National Historic Sites of Canada register as of 2026.[6][7]
Education
Muriel Kerr began learning piano early in life and gave her first public performance at the age of seven, playing Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 24.[1][9][10] Her grade school friends would later recall that her mother "kept [Kerr] to a stringent schedule of four to six hours of practice daily."[5] Kerr was not allowed to play with friends outdoors until she completed her assigned study, which she would do "obediently, though not always happily".[5]
For a short time, she studied under Paul Wells in Toronto at the Royal Conservatory of Music.[11] Hoping to further Kerr's music career, her family relocated to the United States permanently in 1919.[5][7]
Musical education
In 1920, Kerr won a scholarship to study with Percy Grainger in Chicago for seven weeks over the summer.[9] Kerr remained in Chicago for two years under the mentorship of Alexander Raab until Raab left for Europe in 1922.[9] Kerr subsequently relocated to New York City to work with Ernest Hutcheson, studying privately for four years before serving as his assistant at Juilliard between 1926 and 1930.[9][12]
Career
Concert pianist
In 1928, Kerr was among the first recipients of the Franz Schubert Memorial Award.[13] This afforded her an opportunity to record music for Victor Records, perform with the New York Philharmonic, and debut at the Town Hall.[14] Kerr's 1928 recital with the Philharmonic was poorly received by critics, though her 1929 performance at the Town Hall attracted more positive reviews.[9] For Victor Records, Kerr recorded two Scriabin Études.[9]
Kerr maintained a career as a concert pianist from the 1930s onward,[9] performing under her maiden name during her two marriages.[12][15] She embarked on her first European tour in 1948,[1][16] and recorded compositions by Robert Schumann and Paul Hindemith for Victor Records in 1952.[17]
Teaching
In 1942, Kerr began teaching at Juilliard.[9] She visited its first president, John Erskine, at his home throughout his 1949 recovery from a cerebral haemorrhage to play music for him.[18] Her relationship with Erskine's successor, William Schuman, was not as positive.[19] In March 1950, she resigned in protest after Schuman introduced a policy terminating the employment of older instructors such as Carl Friedberg.[19]
Kerr joined the faculty of the University of Southern California in 1955,[20] and began serving as the director of the Punahou Music School in Honolulu in 1957.[1] In the latter role, Kerr organized an annual festival of contemporary music and art.[1] For her contributions to Hawaii's musical development, she was honoured by the Sigma Alpha Iota in 1958.[1] She was also a member of Mu Phi Epsilon from 1956 onward.[12]
Reception
Kerr's popularity with audiences occasionally eclipsed her estimation by critics, though she was consistently well received by her peers.[9] Writing in 1957, Abram Chasins described Kerr as one of his contemporaries "whose abilities exceed their public recognition."[21]
Throughout her lifetime, Kerr was regarded by the residents of her birth city and province as a source of pride.[5][8][22][23][24][25] She featured often in the column of Dan Cameron, long-running music correspondent for the Regina-based Leader Post.[24][26][27][28] Cameron himself had assisted Kerr when she performed as a novelty "child pianist" across Saskatchewan in her youth.[29][30] Throughout her career, he occasionally reprinted reviews sent in by readers from other newspapers about performances that had featured Kerr, but only the sections related to her.[22][27][28]
Personal life and death
Kerr owned a Turkish Angora cat during the 1930s, which was a "constant companion" during her four hours of daily practice.[31] Though she described music as both her career and principal hobby, she was also noted to enjoy bridge and ping-pong.[31] While travelling, she enjoyed reading classic literature and biographies.[31]
In 1928, Kerr, then 17, eloped to marry Harry Fagin, a 21-year-old violinist and fellow Juilliard student.[32][33][15][34] The marriage took Kerr's parents by surprise, though Ernest Hutcheson was aware of his students' intentions and kept their plan to marry a secret.[32] To the justice of the peace who married them, Kerr and Fagin claimed to be aged 21 and 24 respectively.[32][34] They divorced in September 1937.[35]
During the 1930s, Kerr performed with the Gordon String Quartet, of which Russian-born cellist Naoum Benditzky (1901–1972) was also a member.[12][36][37][35] They married in April 1938 and remained together until Kerr's death.[36][35][20]
Death
Kerr died at her home in 1963 after suffering a fatal asthma attack.[20] Her Schumann and Hindemith recordings were reissued in 1966 to fund a scholarship in Kerr's honour.[38][39]
Notable students
- Fredric Myrow – composer of the soundtracks for Soylent Green, Scarecrow, and Phantasm.[40][41]
- Michael Tilson Thomas – conductor, pianist, and composer.[42][43]
- Marilyn Neeley – Emmy Award-winning pianist.[44]
- Zhanna Arshanskaya Dawson – Russian-American pianist and Holocaust survivor; mother of journalist Greg Dawson.[45] Kerr, described as Zhanna Dawson's "hero," played at the reception of Zhanna's wedding in 1947.[45][46]