A native of St. Petersburg, Russia, Dr. Dina Lentsner joined the faculty of the Conservatory of Music in 2004. She completed her undergraduate studies in music theory at Pskov College of Music (Russia), and her graduate studies in composition at St. Petersburg Rimsky-Korsakov Conservatory. In 2002 she received her Ph.D. in music theory from The Ohio State University with an analytical study of Scenes from a Novel, one of the vocal cycles of the contemporary Hungarian composer György Kurtág. Dr. Lentsner has been teaching a vast array of classes including music history, music theory, composition, counterpoint and form and analysis.
As a musicologist, Dina Lentsner is interested in the relationship between poetic and musical structures in vocal compositions, primarily focusing on contemporary music. She has been active in American and international musicological scenes as a presenter at numerous international, national, and regional conferences, including International Kurtág Conference in Balatonföldvár, Hungary (2001), International Symposium La musique et la creation de György Kurtág, Paris, France (2006), and Teaching Music History Day sponsored by the American Musicological Society, DePauw University (2008) among many others. Her other professional engagements include a three-month research grant at the Paul Sacher Foundation, international center for studying 20th century music, and teaching a seminar on Russian 19th and 20th century opera for the Slavic Department of the University of Basel (2006). Dr. Lentsner’s articles, focusing on the music of György Kurtág, have been published in musicological journals in France, Hungary, and Switzerland. Recently she has contributed a chapter on György Kurtág and George Crumb to the forthcoming book Centre and Periphery, roots and exile: Interpreting István Anhalt and György Kurtág (Wilfrid Laurier University Press, Canada, 2009).
As a pedagogue, Dr. Lentsner is interested in transforming and improving the traditional chronological method of teaching music history by using intertextual connections between composers, styles, and music eras. She is also a strong supporter and promoter of undergraduate student scholarship. In 2007 the National Organization for Women-Capital University recognized Dina Lentsner with the Inspiring Female Teacher Award.