Ann Schluter

Ann Schluter died peacefully in her home of esophageal cancer on Thursday, May 23, 2024 at age 73. Ann was born December 16, 1950, in Glenwood, MN, to Elayne and Dean Schluter. She attended a two-room school in Sedan for 6 years ("best education ever!") before transferring to Glenwood for junior and senior high school, graduating in 1968. She played piano from age 6 and violin from age 9, before learning bass to play in the Glenwood Concert Band. Ann earned a B.A. in Double Bass & Cello performance in 1972 and a B.S. in K-12 String Education in 1974 from Moorhead State College. She was Principal Bassist in the F-M Symphony Orchestra and the F-M Civic Opera Company for many years and taught bass at Concordia College and Moorhead State.

Ann worked for Schmitt Music Centers in Fargo and moved to Vienna, Austria, in 1978 where she did childcare and tutored students in English. She taught one year in Glenwood, MN, before moving to Fargo to establish the F-M Suzuki School in 1979. She taught Suzuki Violin and Piano, as well as beginning fiddling, and concurrently taught fiddling on the Turtle Mountain Reservation for over 11 years. She stopped teaching in 2013 due to health concerns and in 2015 began Music for Memory, fiddling for and reminiscing with elders in memory care.

Ann's article about Turtle Mountain fiddlers was published in Fiddler Magazine, Winter 2001. She was president of the North Dakota Old Time Fiddlers Association from its inception and served on the board of the Minnesota State Fiddlers Association. She taught fiddle workshops, judged contests, and organized jam sessions in MN and ND. Ann was inducted into the ND Fiddlers Hall of Fame at the International Peace Garden in 2016. She recorded "Annie's Waltzin' Fiddle" with Truman Sorenson in 1996 and developed a method for beginning fiddle students.

Ann enjoyed gardening, both inside and out, and loved sharing plants with others. She studied holistic health and energy healing and enjoyed reading mysteries. During the last several years, she explored North Dakota and Minnesota with her special friend, Wayne Quibell (1934-2023).

Ann is survived by her brothers, Joe (Lori), Cortez, CO and Bob (Michele), Parkman, WY, niece Cassie Schluter Burnham, and many cousins.

In lieu of a service, Ann asks friends to gather, reminisce, play some tunes, and eat all the food she couldn't.