Katims, Milton
Katims, Milton
Katims, Milton, American violist and conductor; b. N.Y., June 24, 1909. He attended Columbia Univ., studying violin with Herbert Dittler and conducting with Barzin (1931–35). From 1935 to 1943 he was solo violist and asst. conductor for WOR Radio in N.Y., and from 1943 to 1954 he was 1st violist in the NBC Sym. Orch. in N.Y., where he was asst. conductor under Toscanini from 1947. He also taught at the Juilliard School of Music in N.Y. (1947–54). From 1954 to 1976 he was music director of the Seattle Sym. Orch., from 1976 to 1984, artistic director of the Univ. of Houston School of Music, and from 1985 a prof, at the Shanghai Cons, of Music. He prepared various eds. of compositions for viola. In 1964 he received the Alice M. Ditson Award for conductors and in 1986 the Arturo Toscanini Artistic Achievement award.
—Nicolas Slonimsky/Laura Kuhn/Dennis McIntire