Rudolf Serkin was a renowned pianist who was born in Czechoslovakia in 1903. He was known for his interpretations of the works of Beethoven, Mozart, and Brahms. He was a founding member of the Marlboro Music School and Festival in Vermont, and he was a professor at the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia. He was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1963 and the National Medal of Arts in 1986. He died in 1991.