Richard Kanter
Richard Kanter (July 7, 1935 – October 10, 2014) was born in Chicago and began his oboe-playing career at the age of 14 in 1949, as a student of Robert Mayer, English horn player of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. After four years, Mr. Kanter was admitted to the Curtis Institute of Music, where he studied with Marcel Tabuteau and John de Lancie. Upon graduating from Curtis, Mr. Kanter joined the U.S. Navy Band for four years. During those years he traveled to every state in the continental United States.
After leaving the Navy Band in 1961, Mr. Kanter was appointed second oboe of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra (CSO). During his years with the CSO, he performed under Fritz Reiner, Jean Martinon, Georg Solti, and Daniel Barenboim, as well as hundreds of guest conductors. Chicago Symphony tours took Mr. Kanter to many parts of the world, including Europe, Britain, the Soviet Union, Australia, Brazil, Argentina, Japan, and Hong Kong. He retired from the CSO in 2002, after a career of 41 years. He is now the oboe and English horn coach with the Asian Youth Orchestra, based in Hong Kong.
Kanter died in Chicago on October 10, 2014.