Dolmetsch, Carl Frederick
Dolmetsch, Carl Frederick
Dolmetsch, Carl Frederick, French recorder player, instrument maker, and scholar, son of (Eugene) Arnold Dolmetsch; b. Fontenay-sous-Bois, near Paris, Aug. 23, 1911. He received a thorough musical education from his father. He was only seven when he made his first public appearance, and only eight when he made his first tour. In 1937 he became director of the Society of Recorder Players. In 1940 he succeed his father as director of the Haslemere Festivals. From 1940 to 1976 he served as chairman of the firm Arnold Dolmetsch, Ltd. In 1971 he became director of the Dolmetsch International Summer School. He was chairman of Dolmetsch Musical Instruments from 1982. As a recorder player, he made regular tours of Europe and North and South America. He also commissioned scores for his instrument and prepared many recorder editions. He was the author of Recorder and German Flute during the 17th and 18th Centuries (London, 1960). In 1954 he was made a Commander of the Order of the British Empire.
—Nicolas Slonimsky/Laura Kuhn/Dennis McIntire