138: Do the Voiceless Need a Voice? – A Conversation with Glenn Kurtz

In this episode, we speak with author Glenn Kurtz about the art of remaking oneself, thematic throughlines linking his three very different books, and the moral ambiguity of attempting to represent individuals and reclaim communities that history has sought to erase. Glenn began his career as a classical guitarist, graduated from the New England Conservatory-Tufts University double degree program, earned a PhD in comparative literature and German from Stanford University, and has authored three books: Practicing: A Musician’s Return to Music (Knopf, 2008), Three Minutes in Poland: Discovering a Lost World in a 1938 Family Film (Farrar, Strauss, and Giroux, 2014), and Men at Work: The Empire State Building and the Untold Story of the Craftsmen Who Built It (Seven Story Publishing, 2025). His honors include a fellowship from the Guggenheim Foundation, his writing has appeared in ZYZZYVA, Artweek, Tema Celeste, and elsewhere, and he’s taught at both Stanford and the California College of the Arts.