Olga Von Till

Olga Von Till (March 27, 1897 – February 6, 1996) was an American classical pianist and piano teacher.[1]

Olga Von Till
Born
Olga Till

(1897-03-27)March 27, 1897
Brooklyn, New York, U.S.
DiedFebruary 6, 1996(1996-02-06) (aged 98)
New Brunswick, New Jersey, U.S.
Other namesOlga Kormos, Olga Von Till, Olga vonTill, Olga Von Till Carmell
OccupationPianist
Known forPiano teacher of Bill Evans, Barry Miles, and Larry Young. Introducing Hungarian musical influences to Jazz.
Spouse(s)
Hugó Kormos
(
m. 1919)

Samuel Carmell

Biography

Till was born in the borough of Brooklyn, New York in 1897. As a teenager she worked as a pianist accompanying silent films. At age 17, before World War I broke out, she travelled to Budapest, Hungary to study with Béla Bartók[1][2] at the Franz Liszt Academy of Music. Bartok encouraged Till's compositional skills, an indication that he was confident in her talent.[3] While there she also studied under Zoltán Kodály[4] and Ernő Dohnányi.[1][5]

Von Till returned to the US after the war[6] and taught piano in New Brunswick, New Jersey.[7][8] Her pupils included Bill Evans[1], Barry Miles[9][5] and Larry Young.[4][2]

When Von Till was studying in Budapest, Bartok, Kodály, and Dohnányi were experimenting with harmonies based on fourths and using pentatonic melodic structures.[1] Von Till carried their influence throughout her life as a musician and teacher. That influence, particularly from Kodály, can be heard in Larry Young's compositions.[10] [1]. The common musical sensibilities of Larry Young and Bill Evans were influenced by Von Till with respect to their approaches to lyricism and harmonic expansions [1] particulary with respect to their chords built on fourths.[10] Through Evans and Young, Von Till had influence on Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Cannonball Adderley, Tony Williams, John McLaughlin, Jimi Hendrix, Woody Shaw, Carlos Santana, and Jack Bruce.[1]

Von Till died on February 6, 1996 and is buried in Van Liew Cemetery in North Brunswick, New Jersey.[11]

Personal life

While living in Hungary, Von Till met Hugó Kormos and married him in 1919. She was the great aunt of Steve Von Till and Katherine Von Till.[12]

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References
  1. Koenig, John (2016). "The Remarkable Olga Von Till". Larry Young In Paris/The ORTF Recordings (booklet). Larry Young. Resonance Records. pp. 13–15. HCD-2022.
  2. Fremer, Michael (6 April 2016). ""Larry Young In Paris" From Resonance Records A Must Have". AnalogPlanet. AVTech Media Americas Inc. Retrieved 3 April 2020.
  3. Young III, Larry (2016). "Larry Young: The Duke of Newark". Larry Young In Paris/The ORTF Recordings (booklet). Larry Young. Resonance Records. p. 7. HCD-2022.
  4. Chilton, Marton; Hewett, Ivan (18 May 2016). "The best jazz albums of 2016". The Daily Telegraph. Telegraph Media Group Limited. Retrieved 3 April 2020.
  5. Brody, Richard (9 March 2016). "Larry Young's Self-Questioning Jazz". The New Yorker. Condé Nast. Retrieved 3 April 2020.
  6. "Magyar Hirnők = Magyar Herald (New Brunswick, N.J.) 1909-1970". Library of Congress. Retrieved 3 April 2020.
  7. "Music Teacher Holds Recital for Students". The Central New Jersey Home News. 26 January 1948. p. 7. Retrieved 3 April 2020.
  8. "Fennel & walnut croquettes". 20 January 2013. Retrieved 3 April 2020.
  9. Feather, Leonard; Gitler, Ira, eds. (2007). The Biographical Encyclopedia of Jazz. Oxford University Press. pp. 462–463. ISBN 9780195320008.
  10. Feldman, Zev (2016). "Zev Feldman On How This Album Came To Be". Larry Young In Paris/The ORTF Recordings (booklet). Larry Young. Resonance Records. p. 3. HCD-2022.
  11. "Olga von till Carmell (Onbekend-1996) - Find A Grave".
  12. "Leimeiszter Barnabás: Amerikai Olga néni megváltoztatta a jazzt | Mandiner".
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