William Kolodney

William Kolodney (1899 – January 18, 1976) was a Russian-born American cultural educator and program director for two major New York City institutions, the 92nd Street Y and the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

At the same time, he felt that fees for "Y" programs "should be small enough to enable the clerical or the salaried worker with a modest income to enroll in any activity which might meet his needs and interests.

"[3] Kolodney felt that music was a way to educate the emotions and that each person "responds differently to every sound, from the wind in the trees to a Shostakovich symphony.

"[5] He presented great musicians such as Rudolf Serkin, Myra Hess, Gregor Piatigorsky, Erica Morini, and Joseph Hoffman as well as the Budapest String Quartet in annual series.

Other dancers or faculty at the "Y" have included Doris Humphrey, Charles Weidman, Hanya Holm, Anna Sokolow, Agnes de Mille, Paul Taylor, José Limón and Alvin Ailey among others.

[10] In 1953 Kolodney arranged for the Poetry Center to present the first NY performance of Dylan Thomas's Under Milk Wood.

[12] When he retired from the 92nd Street Y after 35 years in 1969, a New York Times editorial noted that he had made the "Y" "the source of some of the most varied and stimulating artistic fare in the nation.

[14] The first season of concerts presented pianist Arthur Rubinstein, violinist Isaac Stern, folk singer Burl Ives, and contralto Marian Anderson.