KPFA-FM Music Dept. ➔ Morning Concert: A Visit with Arthur Berdahl, 2 of 2

Analog Audio

Event Type

Interviews

Origin

KPFA

Identifier

MC.1976.04.29.c1.B

Program Series

Morning Concert

Program Length

49 mins

Part

2 of 2

Dates

1976-04-29 | broadcast
| 1975-11-28 | created

Description

Charles Amirkhanian talks with the Knute Rockne of American music educators, Dr. Arthur C. Berdahl, longtime professor of music at Fresno State College (retired) and one of the founders of symphonic music in Fresno, California. From 1932 to 1954, Berdahl conducted the Fresno State College Symphony Orchestra and taught music theory, composition, and other music courses to the most prominent musicians to come out of the Central Valley. One of his students, Leslie Bassett, won the 1966 Pulitzer Prize for music. Berdahl describes how when he first arrived in Fresno he managed to expand the size and quality of the College Orchestra by incorporating local non-student musicians, to the mutual advantage of all involved. He also modestly describes his early career as an English literature graduate, athletic director, and coach, before finally deciding to pursue his interest in music and teaching. This recording was made on November 28, 1975, and although he was 70 years old at the time, Berdahl was still as lively as many Fresnans will remember him. (from KPFA Folio)

Genres

Orchestral music

Subjects

Conductors (Music)
Music -- Instruction and study

Acknowledgment

Funding for the preservation of this program made possible through a grant by the GRAMMY Foundation.

Related places

Fresno (Calif.) (was recorded at)
Berkeley (Calif.) (was broadcast at)

Related Entities

Amirkhanian, Charles
Berdahl, Arthur C., 1906-1989