Klaus D. Brunnemann

Longtime board member Klaus Brunnemann passed away on June 21. Read our tribute here.

Klaus is one of the early Friends of Music board members, having joined in 1986.

As the arrangement chair, his major tasks consist of making sure that everything is in order for the artists, such as scheduling, travel and stage set up. In addition, Klaus is a member of the programming committee, selecting artists and their programs. It takes up to two years in advance to book our performers. We take particular pride in appointing the winners of the Young Concert Artists series and providing them with an opportunity to perform for our audience.

Professionally, Klaus is a chemist with a keen interest in bioactive compounds as they relate to health. He has spent 30 years on the analysis and identification of carcinogens in tobacco smoke and chewing tobacco resulting in over 100 scientific publications of his research. For the past 12 years, Klaus has been working in the pathology department at New York Medical College where his research focuses on DNA damage caused by medicinal drugs and model compounds.

MUSICAL NOTES: Musically, Klaus is a late bloomer. As a youngster, he liked to listen to the greats of jazz (Lester Young, Art Blakey and Django Reinhardt). He also played drums and guitar in a band. It was not until age 24 when he bought his first classical albums (Bach violin concerto and Haydn cello concerto). It did not take long to discover the intimate setting of chamber music. From then on, there was no turning back.