UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN-MADISON ARCHIVES
ORAL HISTORY PROJECT

Interview #848
BLUM, RICHARD and MARTHA

BLUM, Richard (1929- )
Professor of Music; Pro Arte Quartet
At UW:1959-1989

BLUM, Martha (1931- )
Artist in Residence; Pro Arte Quartet
At UW:1959-1989

Interviewed: 2007		
Interviewers: Jim Crow and Robert Lange
Length: 4.5 hours

Abstract: Origin of the Pro Arte Quartet; Philanthropic support for the PAQ in the 1940s; Musical careers of the early PAQ members; Impact of World War II on the PAQ; Personnel of the PAQ through the 1950s and 1960s; Rudolph Kolish; The PAQ position in the UW School of Music; PAQ recordings and touring; Teaching activities of the PAQ members; Relations between the PAQ and the School of Music; The retirement of the Blums; The recent history of the quartet; Post-retirement activities.
							
Interview Session (March 7, 2007): Tapes 1-2

Tape 1/Side 1

00:00:50	Martha Blum explains how the Pro Arte Quartet came to UW Madison.  She talks about Elizabeth Sprague Coolidge and her role in bringing the Quartet to Madison.  Coolidge was also a musical performer and a significant supporter of chamber music.

00:03:01	MB talks about classical music in Hollywood in the 1940s, when she was a child.  She talks about her early exposure to and training in music.

00:04:14	Richard Blum talks about his early exposure to music.  

00:05:12	MB discusses Coolidge and Gertrude Whithall and their support for chamber music in the 1930s and 40s.  The women supported Quartet tours in the United States.  Richard Blum talks about the challenges of making a living as a professional musician.

00:08:10	MB talks about Coolidge’s interest in finding a permanent home for the Quartet in the US.  She discusses the personalities of the musicians in the quartet at the time.  Coolidge also composed music for the group.

00:13:05	Martha Blum explains how the Quartet moved to Madison and was housed in the UW Department of Music.  Their first concert in Madison was in 1939.  The Blums talk about how the start of World War II affected the Quartet, which was based in Belgium at the time.  MB talks about UW President Clarence Dykstra.

00:16:34	Richard Blum talks about efforts to raise money at UW to support the Pro Arte Quartet.

00:17:13	MB talks about the performances of the Pro Arte Quartet in the 1939 and 1940 seasons.  Cellist Robert Maas was ill and unable to perform on the 1940 tour of the US. C. Warwick Evans became the replacement cellist.  They discuss the personalities and group relationships among the members.

00:21:48	The Blums talk about took to Brussels in 1988.  No one at the music conservatory there was familiar with the history of the Pro Arte Quartet.  They talk about violist Germain Prevost.

00:28:01	MB talks about the violinist Alphonse Onnou.  

00:29:45	End of Side.

Tape 1/Side 2

00:30:15	They talk about the employment of many musicians by Hollywood studios in the 1930s and 1940s.  There were not many important city orchestras at the time.  Martha Blum talks about musicians that she saw perform in Los Angeles.

00:31:23	MB talks about attending UCLA and discusses the music department at the university. Gustav Mahler’s daughter taught art at UCLA at the time.

00:34:26	MB talks about Onnou’s health problems and death in 1940.

00:37:29	They discuss the effort to find a new violinist to take Onnou’s place. MB explains how Tony Brosa was added to the group as a violinist.

00:40:35	They talk about the other significant quartets in the US during the 1940s.  The Pro Arte Quartet was one of the few established groups at the time.  The Blums talk about several musicians who played cello in the Quartet.  Three of the musicians played as a trio at the same time.  

00:42:08	RB talks about national radio broadcasts on the Mutual Network in the 1940s.  They talk about Brosa’s personality, personnel changes, and the relationships among the musicians.

00:50:20	They discuss the departure of Laurant Halleux, who left the group in 1943 and went to Hollywood.  Albert Rahier replaced him as second violin.  They talk about violinist Rudolph Kolish.  

00:52:16	They talk about how the Quartet changed under the leadership of Kolish in the late 1940s. Kolish preferred German and Austrian composers and refused to perform Russian music.

00:56:34	RB explains why Kolish played the violin left handed due to a childhood accident.

00:59:10	End of Side.  End of Tape. 

Tape 2/Side 1

00:59:35	Martha Blum talks about her friendship with Kolish’s wife Lorna.  They talk about her musical career.  

01:02:30	They talk about the careers of Kolish and violinist Bernard Milofsky in popular orchestras before they joined Pro Arte. The Kolish Quartet.

01:04:04	The group talks about Lorna Kolish.  University policy prevented spouses from performing full time with the Quartet.

01:06:25	MB discusses Rudolph Kolish and his interest in modern music.  He enjoyed and promoted new music by contemporary composers.  “Popular” music vs. more serious music.

01:07:38	They talk about the popularity of the PAQ in the 1950s.  The group played frequently on the radio and toured the country. 

01:11:03	They discuss Kolish’s approach to rehearsal and his “condescending” attitude toward the audiences.  They talk about his performances and sense of timing.  He was very rigid in his sense of the proper tempo.

01:19:25	Rich Blum talks about his earlier career in music and explains how he came to join the PAQ. He comes from a musical family in Chicago and performed frequently as a young man.  He worked for a while at the San Antonio Symphony. 

01:21:22	He talks about some young musicians he knew during his early years in Chicago.  PAQ cellist Lowell Creitz was a good friend of Blum’s brother.

01:24:30	The Blums talk about when they met in Texas and got married in the mid-1950s.  They moved to Madison shortly after that.

01:26:35	End of Side.

Tape 2/Side 2

Interview Session II (March 8, 2007): Tapes 2-3

00:00:17	Rich Blum talks about violist Bernard Milofsky.  MB discusses her interview with Milofsky’s son David.  They talk about Milofsky’s skills and attitude about music.

00:03:45	They discuss a book written by David Milofsky about music. Bernard Milofsky’s taste for off color jokes and unconventional behavior.  

00:06:40	They talk about Milofsky’s illness with multiple sclerosis and his decline.  

00:07:00	The Blums return to a discussion of Kolish’s skill as a performer and his rigid attitude about composition.  Milofsky had to leave the group in 1955 due to his health problems.  His wife substituted for him the following season.

00:08:58	They talk about the UW School of Music in the 1950s.  Quartet members often taught some classes in the department.  

00:10:35	Rich Blum joined the PAQ in the fall of 1957.  He talks about the personalities and the group dynamics in the Quartet at the time.

00:14:53	He talks about the music that the PAQ performed in the late 1950s.  They talk about violinist Albert Rahier, who played 2nd violin at the time.

00:28:30	End of Side.  End of Tape.

Tape 3/Side 1

00:28:40	Rich Blum talks about his first years as a member of the PAQ in the mid-1950s.  He talks about Rahier’s departure and the addition of Robert Basso on violin.  

00:31:17	He describes some factionalization in the group and Kolish’s leadership.  Kolish’s playing ability declined and he became somewhat erratic. 

[No time code]  RB explains how Kolish left the group and was replaced by Leo Steffens on piano. The performed as the University of Wisconsin Piano Quartet for several years.

00:31:54	RB talks about tension between the faculty of the School of Music and the PAQ.  Basso had a drinking problem and his performance suffered during this time.  He left the group in the late 1960s and he was replaced by Won Mo Kim.

00:40:00	Kolish retired in 1967.  RB talks about how the group replaced him and revived the PAQ. Won Mo Kim also left, which meant there were two violin positions to fill.  Norman Paulu and Thomas Moore filled the positions.  These four played together into the 1973/74 season.

00:45:02	They share some anecdotes about Kolish in his later years.  Kolish played with other area groups during this time and remained a respected member of the musical community.

00:53:15	They talk about how the members of the PAQ became tenured faculty in the School of Music.  Moore wanted to leave the group in 1973 and teach full time.  This made it hard for the PAQ to replace him

00:57:58	End of Side.

Tape 3/Side 2

00:58:05	Rich Blum talks about Moore’s departure.  The group had many concerts scheduled and needed to replace the violinist quickly.  The School of Music agreed to hire a temporary player to fulfill the group’s contracts.  He talks about their tour of South America in 1973.

01:01:20	RB shares some humorous stories about the group’s performances in the early 1970s.  

01:04:45	John McCleod filled in on violin for one year.  Martha Blum joined the group in 1974.  

01:07:05	The Blums explain how the PAQ moved out of the School of Music in the mid-1970s.  They also had to hire a new cello player at this time.  This is when Perry Karp became the cellist. 

01:11:36	Martha Blum talks about her audition for the PAQ.  She was hired as a half time Artist in Residence and never became a professor.  

Interview Session III (March 9, 2007): Tapes 3-5

00:00:15	The PAQ was very stable and successful between 1976 and 1988.  He talks about the group’s recordings.  Rich Blum talks about some of the concert tours and notable performances.  He shares in incident where Paulu lost his extremely valuable Amati violin.  

00:06:34	They talk about their performances of Milton Babbitt’s difficult Fifth Quartet.  

00:11:12	RB discusses the group’s finances.  They toured frequently, but the trips were not that lucrative.  He explains how the group was sponsored by different organizations to help defray expenses.  The Blums talk about a trip to Latin America.

00:15:34	End of Side.  End of Tape.

Tape 4/Side 1

00:15:44	The Blums continue to talk about their memorable trip to Latin America.  The State Department sometimes provided guards for the group.  

00:19:50	MB talks about musicians, teachers, and others they met in Latin America.  

00:23:45	The Blums talk about some of their favorite pieces of music performed in the 70s and 80s.  

00:27:17	They talk about the group’s reputation as significant players of modern compositions.  They introduced some pieces for the International Society of Contemporary Music in New York.

00:30:38	RB describes a contest held by the group to find new compositions.  Writers submitted dozens of scores to the contest and the group found new and interesting pieces to play.

00:34:40	They talk about playing contemporary music written by East European composers.  

00:36:34	RB explains how the PAQ first starting making tours under the sponsorship of the State Department.  Political unrest and civil wars in Latin America.

00:40:35	They talk about their faculty appointments in the School of Music.  Except for Martha Blum, they all had to teach half time.  They talk about how the PAQ was reintegrated into the School of Music.

00:44:12	They discuss the popularity of the group in the Madison area.  They enjoyed a lot of popular support at the UW and in the community.  Chancellor Shain’s support for the PAQ.

00:46:20	End of Side.

Tape 4/Side 2

00:46:25	They talk about the relationship between the PAQ and the others in the UW School of Music.  There was some jealously related to the prominence of the group.  Many of the faculty in the school were also very skilled musicians, but few of them attained the fame that the members of the PAQ enjoyed.  Professor Cecil Burleigh.

00:49:48	They discuss efforts to include School of Music faculty in some PAQ performances.

00:51:18	RB explains how the PAQ chose which musical compositions to perform.  They talk about how new pieces were tried out before audiences.

00:56:20	The Blums recount some of the more memorable and satisfying performances from their careers.  They also discuss some performances they feel were poor.

00:58:56	RB talks about the challenges of learning the acoustics of performance halls when they were on tour.  Each hall is different, and they always wanted to maximize the sound for the audience.

01:04:26	The Blums talk about the experience of being a husband/wife team in the same quartet and their relationships with the other PAQ members.

01:06:10	RB talks about lodging arrangements when the group was on tour.  They share some of the off stage stories from the later part of their touring career.

01:10:12	End of Side.  End of Tape.

Tape 5/Side 1

01:10:40	The Blums discuss their departures from the PAQ.  Martha left in 1988 and she was replaced by Jae-Kyung Kim.  RB stayed until 1991.  He talks about some students he had at the end of his teaching career.  Later additions to the PAQ in the 1990s and 2000s.

01:14:08	They talk about the quality of the current PAQ and their satisfaction with the lasting reputation of the group.

01:17:41	After they retired, the Blums played in a small orchestra and toured Europe.  They discuss some of the other musicians in this group and some notable performances.

01:19:40	They talk about their experiences playing with Madison Symphony Orchestra and other area groups. Conductor John DeMain.

01:27:29	They talk about music education at UW and the future of classical music in the US.  Funding for music education and performance.

01:35:36	End of Side.  End of Tape.  End of Interview.

END