(c) 2017 Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, Boston

Daniel Kuntz

Oberstaufenbach, Germany, 1860 - 1959

BiographyBOSTON, June 14 -- A retired violinist, who became a member of the Boston Symphony Orchestra in its first season in 1881 and remained with it until 1914, returned to the stage of Symphony Hall here last night for a surprise sentimental reunion at one of the concerts of the informal Boston "Pops."

https://www.nytimes.com/1952/06/15/archives/violinist-spry-92-wields-bow-again-daniel-kuntz-original-member-of.html I.S. 11/1/2018

Daniel Kuntz (born April 19, 1860 in Oberstaufenbach , † 1959 in the US) was a violinist. He was co-founder of the Boston Symphony Orchestra , first violinist and later appointed honorary conductor .

Biography
After attending elementary school, Daniel Kuntz went on his first trip to the USA as a traveling musician . He stayed there when a friendly family provided for his further musical education.

In 1881 he became co-founder and first violinist of the Boston Symphony Orchestra. In 1892 he was hired to reinforce the orchestra of the Bayreuth Festival . He was the first violinist in the performances of Wagner's operas Parsifal , Tristan and Isolde , The Mastersingers of Nuremberg and Tannhäuser . He then returned to Boston.

His brother Edmund lived with him in the USA for three years. He took care of his music education, among others with a music professor in Vienna. His brother August also came to the US and worked as a violinist with the New York Symphony Orchestra .

He died in 1959, highly decorated as Honorary Conductor of the Boston Symphony Orchestra.

Sources
Marliese Carter: cuckoo call and nightingale. Gollenstein publishing house, ISBN 3-933389-27-5
Paul Engel: Pfälzer Musikantenland Museum at Burg Lichtenberg. Gorres-Verlag, Koblenz, ISBN 3-920388-99-2

https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daniel_Kuntz I.S. 11/1/2018

Person TypeIndividual

Last Updated8/7/24

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