The deeply beloved vocal coach, Barbara Maier Gustern, known to many in the world of popular music, cabaret and theater, has died of injuries sustained from a random act of violence five days earlier, on Thursday, March 10. Slight of build, the 87-year-old was forcefully pushed to the ground from behind near her Chelsea apartment building. She hit her head on the pavement, leading to a traumatic brain injury, from which she never recovered. Gust
ern had been rehearsing in her apartment with collaborators Barbara Bleier, Paul Greenwood and actor/playwright Austin Pendleton, leaving for Joe’s Pub where she intended to see a performance by one of her students. The woman who thence assaulted her can be seen on a security video, but thus far is still at large.
Gustern grew up in Boonville, Indiana, where, as a child, she would entertain her family by standing on a chair and belting out tunes. In high school she sang in a jazz group, in nearby Tell City. This was a paid, regular Saturday night gig for a fraternal organization, where she was the replacement for Florence Henderson. At 21, she arrived in New York City to get her master’s degree in psychology at Columbia University.
Classically trained in opera, Gustern ultimately decided to pursue her vocal artistry. One of her early jobs came to her via Madeline Kahn, whom she met in an opera workshop. When Kahn left her gig at a German restaurant on Sunrise Highway in Long Island, she offered it to Gustern, who accepted. Gustern also had a job singing at the Adath Israel synagogue in the Bronx, where she fatefully met opera singer, Joe Gustern, whom she married, and who died in 2017. The pair had a daughter who passed away many years ago.
At 40, no longer getting roles for leading ladies or ingénues, and feeling at an impasse, Gustern took the advice of a stranger she met at a party, applying to the American Musical and Dramatic Academy to teach. She took to it immediately and never looked back. Her many students over the years have included Justin Vivian Bond, Taylor Mac, Diamond Galas, Lady Rizo, Penny Arcade, John Kelly, Carol Lipnik, Martha Graham Cracker, John Jarboe, Sofia Rae, Sanda Weigl and many more.
In the 1980s, she worked with singer and performance artist Diamanda Galás, which led to her coaching Blondie’s Debbie Harry. Gustern also worked with the cast of Daniel Fish’s 2019 Broadway revival of Oklahoma!
Barbara Maeir Gustern is survived by many friends and family, including grandson AJ Gustern, who was with her when she died, plus legions of students who uniformly remember her a a magical force of nature and a shining light in the world.
NiteLife Exhange extends deepest condolences to all who knew her and to those who hold her in their hearts.
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