This collection contains the master reel-to-reel audio tapes from the personal collection of composer John Haussermann. They capture live performances of his compositions during his lifetime and include performances by the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, conductors Eugene Goossens and Eugene Ormandy, the Philadelphia Orchestra, NBC Symphony Orchestra, the Roth String Quartet and the Kronos Quartet among others. Some of these audio reels are copies from original instantaneous discs not included in the present collection. Venues include the First Unitarian Church of San Francisco, the College-Conservatory of Music (CCM) at the University of Cincinnati, Radio City Music Hall, Cincinnati Music Hall, and Wahlberg Recording Studio in San Francisco.

John W. Haussermann Jr. (1909-1986) was a Phillipine-born American composer who lived his entire life with cerebral palsy. Despite this disability, Haussermann through the aid of colleagues and musical secretaries (amanuenses) created a steady flow of chamber, sacred vocal, and orchestral works throughout his lifetime. He studied organ with Marcel Dupré and composition with Paul Le Flem in Paris during the 1930s and shortly after his return to the United States founded the first contemporary concert series in Cincinnati, Ohio. Haussermann is probably best known for his 'Concerto for Voice and Orchestra', a unique work utilizing the voice as a musical instrument with full orchestral accompaniment. The work premiered in 1942 with Margot Rebeil as vocalist accompanied by the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Eugene Goossens and had subsequent performances over a 20-year period with the Philadelphia Orchestra under the direction of Eugene Ormandy and other ensembles. In 1984, the 'Haussermann Festival' a 2-day retrospective of his works took place at the College-Consevatory of Music (CCM), University of Cincinnati and was later broadcast over WGUC 90.9 FM Radio Cincinnati.

2 Linear Feet : (2) box(es)

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