I’ve always wished that everyone could have a lesson with my teacher, Margaret Saunders Ott. Her students left her home with a powerful sense that somehow, in that 45 minutes, the world had become a better place. Margie May, as all her friends call her…Mrs. Ott as all her students call her…has been very active in the Music Teachers National Association, or MTNA…the largest music teachers’ organization in the country. The MTNA gave Margie May their Teacher of the Year Award in 2003, when she was 83 years old. Her lessons are models of practical creativity in teaching, and of the art of revealing “the pattern that connects” as Gregory Bateson said. Margie May attended Mills College in Oakland, and was one of the first women to get a Masters degree from Julliard Conservatory. She taught at Whitworth College and Gonzaga in Spokane, where she has lived for most of her life. Her husband, Franklin, passed away a few years ago. A farmer and farm implement dealer, he was the perfect partner for Margie May. Their home was a glowing refuge for many of the artists who played in Spokane, including Artur Rubinstein and Glenn Gould, who became friends of the Otts, as did everyone they met.
This interview took place over several days in Spokane where we talked about her childhood, ideas about teaching, years at Julliard, life and music…and more. This program is a very short Lesson With Margie May Ott. -Philip Aaberg
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Download: Margaret Saunders Ott
You are a very inspiring woman. I personally love music myself and play flute. I have been researching my family tree and was just wondering if you may be my great-grandmother. Do you have a daughter who was born in Red Bluff?