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Haussermann (John) Collection
ARS.0229
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Table of contents
Language of Material:
English
Contributing Institution:
Archive of Recorded Sound
Title: John Haussermann Collection
Creator:
Haussermann, John,
1909-1986
source:
Shaker, Sarah M.
Identifier/Call Number: ARS.0229
Physical Description:
2 Linear Feet
: (2) box(es)
Date (inclusive): 1936-1986
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.
Correspondence, biographical sketch, inventory of completed works, geneological sketch, and
listing of master reel to reel tapes filed in the ARS Subject File Collection (ARS.0201)
under 'John W. Haussermann' at the Stanford Archive of Recorded Sound. Other related
materials are held at the Music Division, Library of Congress and the Hargrove Music
Library, University of California, Berkeley.
Open for research; material must be requested at least three business days in advance of
intended use. Contact Archive of Recorded Sound for assistance.
Property rights reside with repository. Publication and reproduction rights reside with the
creators or their heirs. To obtain permission to publish or reproduce, please contact the
Head Librarian of the Archive of Recorded Sound.
John Haussermann Collection, ARS-0229. Stanford Archive of Recorded Sound, Stanford
University Libraries, Stanford, CA.
The John Haussermann Collection was donated to the Stanford Archive of Recorded Sound by
Sarah M. Shaker in 1987.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Chamber music
Orchestral music
Sacred vocal music
Shaker, Sarah M.