Gerstman, Blanche

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Gerstman, Blanche

Gerstman, Blanche, South African pianist and composer of English descent; b. Cape Town, April 2, 1910; d. there, Aug. 11, 1973. She adopted the family name of her adoptive parents. She studied theory with Hely- Hutchinson and later with William Henry Bell at the South African Coll. of Music. She was subsequently active as a radio pianist; in 1950 she went to London, where she took additional courses at the Royal Coll. of Music with Howard Ferguson. Returning to South Africa in 1952, she taught at the Coll. of Music in Cape Town. She composed pleasurable piano pieces, singable choruses, and some playable chamber music.

—Nicolas Slonimsky/Laura Kuhn/Dennis McIntire