Eric Hauser
1891 - 1964
Eric August Hauser was a prominent horn player, composer, and arranger in New York City in the first half of the twentieth century. He was born on June 20, 1891 in New York to Carl and Vonie Hauser. Carl was a music teacher, giving young Eric an early start on his career. He was a member of the Goldman Band and played in New York theaters including the famous Ziegfield Follies. He was also a member of the New York Symphony Orchestra under Walter Damrosch, where he was second horn to Josef Franzl. During the Great Depression he was employed by he Works Progress Administration (W.P.A.) and later was a frequent performer at Chautauqua, New York. Eric Hauser passed away in March, 1964.
Mr. Hauser was also a composer of the still popular elementary horn method book, Foundation to Playing the French Horn, published by Carl Fischer, Inc. in 1927. He also made several solo arrangements for horn, among them (all published by Carl Fischer, Inc.):
"Ave Maria Meditations on the First Prelude of J. S. Bach" by Charles Gounod
"Nocturno" (1932)
Berceuse from "Jocelyn" by Benjamin Godard
Modern French Horn Concert Repertoire, with piano accompaniment (1932)
Miniature Concert Repertoire for French Horn in F, with piano accompaniment (1935):
1. Twilight Thoughts. 2. At the Fair. 3. Soldier Song. 4. Woodland Memories
In the photo (which I am having trouble posting to my blog) Mr. Hauser is seen in a recording or broadcast studio with Miss Ellen Stone. His horn is a single B-flat with F extension. The photo below was taken at Chautauqua, New York in 1939. In the horn quartet, Mr. Hauser is standing on the left with Josef Franzl and two unidentified colleagues to his left. For the photo, other cool photos and the original source of information for this blog post go to http://www.rjmartz.com/horns/Hauser/
