Ernest S. Williams (27 September 1881 – 8 February 1947) was a prominent American band conductor, cornet soloist, composer, and music educator.

Education

Ernest S. Williams' first teacher was his father. He then moved to Boston where studied cornet with Henry C. Brown and Gustav Strube. In 1910, Williams moved to New York where he studied with Herbert L. Clarke.

Performance career

A native of Wayne County, Indiana, Ernest Williams' musical career began in 1898 as a volunteer in the 158th Regiment of the Indiana Volunteer Infantry when he served as cornet soloist during the

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. His talents as a performer were highly regarded and, after successfully substituting as bandmaster in his regiment, Williams was chosen to lead the 161st Indiana Regiment, beginning his rise through the ranks of the Army bands. Between 1907 and 1912, Williams conducted the Cadet Band (the representative band of the city of Boston) as well as his own band at Lakeside Park, Colorado. In the ten years following this period, Williams traveled the world as a cornet soloist, performing with such well-known bandleaders as

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and

Edwin Franko Goldman Edwin Franko Goldman (January 1, 1878 – February 21, 1956) was an American composer and conductor. One of the most significant American band composers of the early 20th century, Goldman composed over 150 works, but is best known for his marches. ...

. Williams was Goldman's first cornet soloist, beginning with the New York Military Band in 1917 and later the

Goldman Band The Goldman Band was an American concert band founded in 1918 by Edwin Franko Goldman from his previous New York Military Band. Both bands were based in New York City. It was Goldman's contention that the New York symphony and orchestra musici ...

from 1918-1922. He joined the Philadelphia Orchestra in 1917, performing as solo trumpeter under

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, Richard Strauss,

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and

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Ernest Williams School of Music

In 1922, Williams’ interest in music education led him to form the Ernest Williams School of Music in Brooklyn, New York. The premise of the institution was to offer students comprehensive training in the field of music on a variety of instruments, provide experience with the theoretical and practical aspects of music, and work in ensemble settings that emphasized equally band and orchestra repertoire. In 1930, the school extended its activities, adding an eight-week summer session, held annually in the Catskill Mountains in Saugerties, New York. The school gained a reputation for producing skilled musicians who became successful professional musicians. A number of noteworthy composers lectured, taught, conducted, and/or had their works premiered at the Ernest Williams School, including

Percy Grainger Percy Aldridge Grainger (born George Percy Grainger; 8 July 188220 February 1961) was an Australian-born composer, arranger and pianist who lived in the United States from 1914 and became an American citizen in 1918. In the course of a long an ...

, Erik W. G. Leidzén, Ferde Grofé, Henry Cowell, and

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. From 1929 to 1931, Williams divided his time between the Brooklyn school and as the new Dean of the Ithaca Conservatory Conway Band School, being the chosen successor of

. While fulfilling administrative duties at his respective institutions, Williams continued to conduct and also composed. He earned high praise for his conducting prowess with the Kismet Temple Band in Brooklyn and also, beginning in 1935, as the conductor of the

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then- Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin. In 1832, th ...

Symphonic Band. As a composer, Williams became the first American to write a full symphony for band when he penned the ''Symphony in C Minor'' in 1937. Recent investigations have revealed that Erik Leidzén possibly ghost-wrote many of Ernest S. Williams' pieces from scratch, even the Symphony in C Minor. Also of note are his opera, ''Rip Van Winkle'', and tone poem, ''America'' (for chorus and band or orchestra), which stand alongside numerous marches, concerti and solos.

Honors

In 1931, Ernest S. Williams was elected to the

American Bandmasters Association The American Bandmasters Association (ABA) was formed in 1929 by Edwin Franko Goldman to promote concert band music.Raoul F. Camus. "American Bandmasters Association." In Grove Music Online. Oxford Music Online, http://www.oxfordmusiconline.com/sub ...

and, in 1983, he was posthumously installed in the National Band Association Hall of Fame of Distinguished Band Conductors.Headed North, “The National Band Association: Hall of Fame;” available fro
http://www.nationalbandassociation.org/hof/
; Internet; accessed 23 July 2012.

References

External links

Ernest S. Williams Collection
- Special Collections in Performing Arts at the University of Maryland
Ernest S. Williams Discography
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, Ernest S. American male conductors (music) 1881 births 1947 deaths 20th-century American conductors (music) 20th-century American male musicians Musicians of the Philadelphia Orchestra Cornet