Karl Richard Korte

1928 - 2022
Karl Richard Korte, an American composer of contemporary classical music and Professor Emeritus of Composition at the Butler School of Music at The University of Texas at Austin, died on March 27, 2022 at Cabrini Nursing Home in Dobbs Ferry, New York.

His work ranged from chamber music to symphonies and choral works, including an oratorio and a number of short pieces intended for school and church use. He also composed experimental music utilizing electronics and prepared tape. Much of his music attracted attention through publication, performance, recordings and national and international prizes and awards, including two Guggenheim Fellowships, two Fulbright Grants, Grants from the Ford Foundation and the National Endowment for the Arts, and a gold medal in the Queen Elizabeth International Composition Competition.

Renowned composer Dr. Robert Carl said: "Karl Korte's career, with its devotion to individual expression and a refusal to accede to any single "ism," is a reminder that those who look only to the traditional centers of musical activity do so at their peril, for they can miss art of genuine substance in the process."

Karl Korte was born on June 23, 1928 in Ossining, New York, and grew up in Englewood, New Jersey. His father was a sculptor and exposed him to classical music at an early age. In high school, Karl's musical influences were jazz and popular music, and he played trumpet in various bands and orchestras.

He served in the Army from 1946-47, where he played trumpet with the First Army Band.

After the Army, Karl attended the Juilliard School in New York City, where he studied with Peter Mennin,  and Vincent Persichetti, as well as Otto Luening, and Aaron Copland.

At Juilliard, Karl met and married Elizabeth Brown, an accomplished pianist from North Carolina. They had two children. Karl held several teaching positions throughout the U.S., settling at SUNY Binghamton in 1964 , where he taught until 1971. The family moved to Austin in 1971, where Karl was a tenured professor until 1997. Elizabeth Korte died in 1974.

In 1978, during one of his frequent summer stays at Yaddo, an artist's colony in Saratoga Springs, Karl met and later married Freda Chalcraft. Karl and Freda moved to Cambridge, New York in 1991, and began a happy union with their blended families. From 1997 to 2000 Karl was a visiting professor at Williams College in Williamstown, Massachusetts. Freda Korte died in 2020.

Karl was a devoted husband, father and stepfather. He cherished his family and was a lifelong dog lover. He enjoyed family gatherings, long walks in the woods, kayaking, sailing and traveling.

He is survived by his son, Eric Korte (Doris Eugenio), daughter Donna Korte Tagliarino (Scott Tagliarino), and four grandchildren, Evan Korte, Elliot Korte, Nicholas Tagliarino and Leah Tagliarino.

His extended family includes stepchildren Roberta Wilson, Roderick Wilson and Laurence Wilson (Alida Crisafulli), and stepgrandchildren Anika Wilson, Tanya Wilson, Lauren Wilson, Hannah Wilson and Tristan Wilson.

For more information on the career and work of Karl Korte, visit:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karl_
Korte
https://repositories.lib.utexas.edu
/handle/2152/11357