Kerr Cultural Center

The Kerr Cultural Center includes two buildings which were originally the home and studio of Louise Lincoln Kerr (pronounced “care”).  Mrs. Kerr was an important and influential musician, composer and patroness of the arts in Scottsdale and the Phoenix metropolitan area.  Born Louise Lincoln in Cleveland, Ohio in 1892, she attended Barnard College and Columbia University, where she studied music composition.  She eventually joined the Cleveland Symphony Orchestra as a violist.  She moved to Arizona in 1936.  After living briefly in Phoenix and Los Angeles, she built her home in Scottsdale in 1948.  From her home she oversaw the construction of the studio/performance hall in 1959.  The buildings are both Spanish Colonial style, constructed of adobe bricks made on the property, with red clay tile roofing and parapet coping, hand-carved wood beams, and decorative ironwork.  An addition was constructed to the studio in 1969.  Mrs. Kerr donated the property to Arizona State University prior to her death in 1977.   The property continues to serve as a musical performance venue operated by ASU.  The Kerr Cultural Center still plays an important role in the musical community in Scottsdale and the Phoenix metropolitan area due to its outstanding acoustics and small, intimate performance setting.