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2006 National Medal of Arts
ERICH KUNZEL
Conductor, Cincinnati Pops Orchestra, Cincinnati, OH
In a 42-year association with the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra (CSO), Cincinnati
Pops Conductor Erich Kunzel has an impressive list of accomplishments including
a catalog of 83 Pops recordings on the Telarc label; four consecutive years
as Billboard Magazine's Classical Crossover Artist of the Year;
and extensive touring with the Pops, including 10 Carnegie Hall concerts,
two tours to Taiwan, and one to China. The Cincinnati Pops is one of the
most active classical pops ensembles worldwide, maintaining a year-round
performing and recording schedule.
Educated at Dartmouth, Harvard and Brown universities, Kunzel studied with
and was personal assistant to the great French conductor Pierre Monteux.
Kunzel made his professional debut in 1957 conducting the Santa Fe Opera.
In October 1965, Max Rudolf, then music director of the CSO, invited him
to conduct a Pops concert the success of which inspired the orchestra to
establish the Cincinnati Pops Orchestra in 1977 with Kunzel as its conductor.
Among the Pops's recordings is Copland: Music of America which
earned a Grammy Award as "Best Engineered Album, Classical" in
1997. Five other recordings have received Grammy nominations, and American
Jubilee was awarded France's Grand Prix du Disque in 1989. Kunzel has
led the Cincinnati Pops in eight themed PBS specials through the years,
including "Fourth of July From the Heartland." Since 1991 he has
led the National Symphony on the lawn of the U.S. Capitol in PBS-TV's nationally
televised Memorial Day and Fourth of July concerts.
Dubbed the "Prince of Pops" by the Chicago Tribune,
Kunzel has appeared in more than 100 performances each of the Chicago Symphony
Orchestra and the Boston Pops. He made his debut at the Tokyo International
Festival in September 2004, the same year he led the San Francisco Opera
for the first time, conducting 12 performances of The Merry Widow.
In 2005, Kunzel participated in the 100th anniversary season of the Vienna
Volksopera, conducting the Viennese premiere of The Sound of Music.
Kunzel is the recipient of numerous honors and awards, including the 2006
Irma Lazarus Award from the Ohio Arts Council and the 1989 Sony Tiffany
Walkman Award for "visionary recording activities." In 1995, the
Cincinnati MacDowell Society honored Mr. Kunzel's contributions to the arts
community by awarding him the MacDowell Medal.
He has served on the faculties of Brown University and the University of
Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music. He holds honorary degrees from
Northern Kentucky University, The College of Mount St. Joseph, Wilmington
College, and the University of Cincinnati. Kunzel is chairman of the Greater
Cincinnati Arts and Education Center, an organization with which he plans
to fulfill his personal dream of building a new School for the Creative
and Performing Arts adjacent to Music Hall.
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The 2006 National Medal of Arts was awarded to Erich Kunzel, conductor of the Cincinnati Pops Orchestra and presented by President Bush on November 15, 2007 in an East Room ceremony. (Mr. Kunzel was not able to attend last year's ceremony.) Mr. Kunzel received the award "for his innovative achievements as a conductor. His remarkable Pops performances of classical and popular music have expanded the appeal of both and brought great music to millions. The National Medal of Arts is a presidential initiative managed by the National Endowment for the Arts." Photo by Michael Stewart for the National Endowment for the Arts. Photo by Michael Stewart for the National Endowment for the Arts |
< 2006 National Medal of Arts press release
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