Pianist still casts broad shadow

When talking about the early days of classical music in Utah, the name of Maurice Abravanel quite naturally comes up. Abravanel was, of course, instrumental in putting the state on the musical map.

Starting in the 1960s, the long-term music director of the Utah Symphony made countless recordings with his beloved orchestra and took the symphony on a number of European tours. It's not an exaggeration to say that without Abravanel, the musical landscape here would be quite a bit different today.

There were other musicians during Abravanel's reign who had as great an impact on the performing arts as he did. One of these people was pianist and educator Gladys Gladstone. In fact, Abravanel famously said that he divided Utah into two musical periods, "BG" and "AG" — "Before Gladys" and "After Gladys."

"Maurice Abravanel adored her," said Susan Duehlmeier, chair of the piano department at the University of Utah and a former student of Gladstone's. "She was absolutely as important as Abravanel was to the musical life here in the early days. There was no one really quite like her."

Gladstone appeared as a soloist with the Utah Symphony under Abravanel on at least 15 occasions. "She played all the standard concertos by Mozart, Bach and Beethoven," said Gladstone's son, violist and conductor Joel Rosenberg. "But she also loved to play 20th-century works."

Besides performing, Gladstone also taught at the U. for some 50 years, starting as a part-time teacher in the 1950s and eventually becoming the head of the piano department. She finally retired from teaching in 2001, a year before she died at the age of 88.

"She was devoted to her career," Rosenberg said. "Her heart lay with her position at the U."

After Gladstone retired from the U., the school established a scholarship in her name. "It was a way of honoring her," Duehlmeier said. "We always choose a worthy Utah pianist every year to receive this scholarship, which pays for their tuition."

But as with so many other programs at the U., the scholarship is continually seeking ways to increase its funds in order to continue operating. To that end, Rosenberg and Duehlmeier have organized a benefit concert next week. On the program will be two works, both by Mozart — the Concerto for Two Pianos in E flat major, K. 365, and the Concerto for Three Pianos in F major, K. 242.