Born in Nassau, Germany, Arnold Rönnebeck studied architecture. He moved to Paris with an interest in painting and sculpture and studied under Aristide Maillol and Emile Bourdelle during the birth of Cubism. He also associated with Gertrude and Leo Stein. Rönnebeck served in World War I and was awarded for his service to the German Guard. He came to the United States in 1923 and lived in New York City, then traveled to New Mexico and worked with Alfred Stieglitz and Georgia O’Keeffe. He met his wife Louise, also an artist, on a visit to Taos, NM. In late 1926, they moved to Denver where he served as Director of the Denver Art Museum from 1926 to 1930 and taught sculpture at the University of Denver from 1929 to 1935. Rönnebeck’s lithographs were quite popular in addition to his sculptures.

This piece featuring three unknown musicians comes from a 1930 unrealized commission for a theater in the Denver Public School System. Only two identical panels were fabricated; one belongs to the University of Denver and the other to The Kirkland.