Klein, Kenneth
Klein, Kenneth
Klein, Kenneth, American conductor; b. Los Angeles, Sept. 5, 1939. He studied violin at the Univ. of Southern Calif. School of Music in Los Angeles with Eudice Shapiro, Vera Barstow, and Peter Meremblum, and took piano lessons with Gerhard Albersheim. He also studied conducting with Fritz Zweig in Los Angeles, Izler Solomon at the Aspen (Colo.) School of Music, and Richard Lert in Asilomar, Calif., and received instruction in theory from Boulanger in Paris. He was a violinist in the Pasadena Sym. Orch., then was founder-conductor of the Westside Sym. Orch. in Los Angeles (1963–68). He was music director of the Guadalajara Sym. Orch. (1969–78), the Nassau (L.I.) Sym. Orch. (from 1980), the Santa Cruz (Calif.) Sym. Orch. (1981–85), the N.Y. Virtuosi (from 1982), and the S.Dak. Sym. Orch. (1983–85). He also appeared widely as a guest conductor in Europe. He taught at the Univ. of Guadalajara (1968-69; 1973) and the Univ. of Calif, at Santa Cruz (1981–83).
—Nicolas Slonimsky/Laura Kuhn/Dennis McIntire