The Ernest Kanitz papers contain professional and personal correspondence, orchestrations, concert reviews, musical publications, and other material regarding Ernest Kanitz, an Austrian composer and musician. Materials also document his performances and programs of his concerts. Topics covered by the collection include commentaries on music compositions, documentation of his work history, and business materials associated with his work as a professor.

Ernest Kanitz was born in Vienna, Austria in 1894. He came to the United States after a forced immigration from Vienna in 1938. After studying law at the University of Vienna, Kanitz began to study piano, music theory, and composition. Shortly after, Kanitz became a professor of music theory and analysis at the New Vienna Conservatory. In 1930, Kanitz went on to found the Vienna Womens Choir, aimed at bringing newer choral tunes to the Viennese public. Kanitz came back to the United States in 1934 to continue his career as a professor at Winthrop College, in Rock Hill, South Carolina. He left this position in 1941, and transferred to Erksine College where he became the head of the Music Department until 1944. In 1945, Kanitz moved to Los Angeles, CA for a professor position at the University of Southern California where he worked until his retirement in 1959. His activities had been severely restricted by 1967 as a result of diminishing vision caused by glaucoma. Kanitz died in California in April of 1978.

7.56 linear feet (15 boxes)

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