Martha Fischer is Emeritus Professor of Piano and Collaborative Piano at the Mead Witter

School of Music at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She has recorded extensively as a

collaborative pianist on the Naxos and Summit labels to critical acclaim. Her most recent

release (June 2026) is a recording on the Parma label entitled “Filled with the Light: Songs from

New England” with soprano Jamie-Rose Guarine and cellist Karl Knapp. A singer as well as

pianist, Fischer has performed unique recitals of art song in which she accompanies herself.

With her husband, Bill Lutes, she founded Schubert ensembles in Boston and Washington, DC.

Their interpretation of Schubert’s “Fantasie in F minor” was described by the Washington Post

as “an energetic performance bursting with heartfelt intensity.” A dedicated teacher, Fischer

has presented papers and served on national panels devoted to the pedagogy of collaborative

piano. She also served as Artistic and Music Director of Opera for the Young and on the faculty

of the Interlochen Arts Camp. Fischer was a 2022 recipient of the Chancellor’s Distinguished

Teaching Award at UW, and was recently honored by the Music Teacher’s National Association

as a Foundation Fellow. She has also been inducted into the Steinway & Sons Teacher Hall of

Fame.