Carolyn Glover Utz (1913 – March 9, 2005) was an American musician,conductor and educator. She was abass player for theColumbus Symphony Orchestra for 30 years and was the first black member of the orchestra's predecessor, theColumbus Philharmonic Orchestra.
Carolyn Glover was born in 1913 inColumbus, Ohio, the eldest daughter of college graduate Edward Glover and Jessie F. Stephens Glover, the first black woman to graduate from Ohio State University.[1] She earned both her bachelor's and master's degrees fromOhio State University (OSU).[2] She taught at several colleges after graduating from OSU, including atNorth Carolina State College,Kentucky State College, andEdward Waters College.[2]
In 1944, Utz was a candidate for theColumbus Philharmonic Orchestra.[3] She auditioned withIzler Solomon, who was looking to hire black musicians.[2] Utz, onbass, became the firstAfrican-American member of the orchestra and was, at the time, the only black person working for an orchestra of its size in the country.[4][5] Utz performed with the orchestra, which later became theColumbus Symphony Orchestra for 30 years.[6] From 1974 to 1991, she was theconductor of theTop Teens Orchestra.[6]
Utz was a member ofAlpha Kappa Alpha.[3] She was inducted into theChillicothe chapter of theTop Ladies of Distinction in 1984.[7] In 1988, she was inducted into theOhio Women's Hall of Fame.[8] She was inducted into theSenior Musicians Hall of Fame in 1996.[6]
Utz died on March 9, 2005, at the age of 91.[9]