Music and the mountains were the sources which made retirement easier for Director Kurt Muthspiel in 1995, after 37 years of service in the House of Styria. As leader of the Zeltweger A-cappella-Chors (Zeltweg Choir) and as founder of the Steirischen Singwochen (Styrian Singing Week) beside his professional career, he widely made a name for himself in music in the Styrian province.

Kurt Muthspiel came from Linz and had initially learned the trade of typesetter, before he became head of the Styria-Druckerei (printing works) in Judenburg in 1959 and at the same time took over the running of the “Murtaler Zeitung”. In 1976, Muthspiel was promoted to assistant technical director in Graz and in 1983 he was made director of the printing works.

In this position, he accompanied the relocation of the printing works to the printing centre in Messendorf as well as the path from Gutenbergs lead typesetting period into the world of computers. A development that provoked critical words from Muthspiel, who was awarded the Josef-Krainer-Prize for his services, on the occasion of his leaving: He remarked how surprising it was that forward-looking intentions were crowned with prizes, but at the same time barely received the necessary intellectual and material support to overcome and convert the lowest stage of development into practice.

Kurt Muthspiel died in March 2001, at 70 years of age.