First director of National Music Museum dies

The first director of the National Music Museum died Friday in Arvada, CO.

According to a press release from the National Music Museum, 74-year-old André Larson, the son of musical instrument collector Arne B. Larson, became the museum’s first director upon its launch in 1973. His father’s 3,000-piece collection of musical instruments formed the basis of the museum’s holdings.

As director of the museum, Larson strove to improve the museum’s collection and make it into the foremost museum dedicated to musical instruments. Larson also helped to found USD’s Center for the Study of the History of Musical Instruments and was a music professor at USD.

Larson was the president of the American Musical Instrument Society between 1981 and 1987 and was elected to the South Dakota Hall of Fame in 2006. He retired from his position as the director of the National Music Museum in 2011, and governor Dennis Daugaard declared May 13, 2011 “Dr. André P. Larson Day” in his honor.

Larson held bachelor’s and master’s degrees from USD and a Ph.D. from West Virginia University in Morgantown.