Skip to main content
Giving
Large group of students on campus

Anthea Morrison

The zither gifts

Above: Concert zither, labelled 'Anton Kiendl, Wien'.

Dr Anthea Morrison worked as an academic in the Department of English at Durham University until her retirement in the mid-1980s.  Anthea owned two beautiful Viennese concert zithers, which she gifted to our Department of Music in her will.  These antique zithers had belonged to her mother, who took lessons from a French zitherist in the 1920s and 30s.

It is thought that these zithers were made in the mid-19th century by Anton Kiendl, a famous Viennese zither maker, known as the “Stradivarius of the zither world”.

The zithers have been an exciting addition to our Department of Music and a great resource for our academic staff and students alike.

Above: Alto zither, labelled 'Anton Kiendl, Wien'.
Below: Three boxes of antique zither strings.
University student
My plan is to introduce a lecture about the concert zither in my teaching in the Music Department, examining the instruments in detail, exploring their historical, social and personal significance, and encouraging the students to do their own research and also to have a go. These instruments are a wonderful unique gift for which the Department is very grateful.
Dr Simon Mills
Department of Music