Elsa Ludewig-Verdehr, 52-year faculty member and University Distinguished Professor at Michigan State University, is one of the most prominent clarinetists in the United States and worldwide. Ludewig-Verdehr was born on April 14, 1936. She received her Bachelor of Music degrees in clarinet performance and music education from the Oberlin Conservatory of Music and her Master's and Doctor of Musical Arts degrees from the Eastman School of Music. In 1962, she accepted an assistant professor position at MSU, receiving full professorship in 1977. She has performed, lectured, and given master classes at over 50 national and international clarinet congresses and for several years was a participant in the Marlboro Music Festivals and touring groups. She has appeared frequently throughout the United States and abroad as a recitalist, clinician, and soloist with orchestras and was principal clarinetist of the Grand Teton Festival Orchestra for 24 years. She and her husband Walter founded the Verdehr Trio in 1972 performing in 52 countries over the next 42 years and making numerous recordings. The group helped define the personality of the violin-clarinet-piano trio by commissioning 250 new works from some of the most important composers of the time. In 2007 she was awarded honorary membership in the International Clarinet Society for her "lifetime achievements as a performer and teacher." Her former students fill numerous university and orchestral positions throughout the United States and worldwide.
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