Williams, Ernest S. (Ernest Samuel), 1881-1947

Ernest Samuel Williams was born on 27 September, 1881, in Washington, Indiana. He began playing the cornet at a very early age under the tutelage of his father. With the outbreak of the Spanish-American War, Williams joined the Army and at the age of 18 became the bandmaster of the 161st Indiana Volunteer Infantry Regiment. Williams left the military in 1899 to pursue a performance career.

During his performance career, Williams performed with the John Philip Sousa Band in 1902 and 1903; as a soloist with the bands of Alessandro Liberati, Mace Gay, Frederick Innes, and Patrick Conway in the years that followed; as principal trumpet player with the Philadelphia Symphony under Leopold Stokowski from 1917 to 1923; and as a soloist with the Goldman Band from 1918 to 1922 during its summer series at Columbia University.

In 1922, Williams began teaching students at his home in Brooklyn, founding the Ernest Williams School of Music. In June of 1929, following the death of Patrick Conway, Williams was appointed Dean of the Conway Military Band School, affiliated with the Ithaca Conservatory of Music. In 1931, he returned to the Ernest Williams School of Music, which lasted until 1943 when World War II took away much of the student body. He established the companion Ernest Williams Band and Orchestra Camp in 1930, located in Saugerties, New York. Faculty members at the camp include Arthur Pryor, Arthur Brandenburg, Mayhew Lake, Erik Leidzen, Percy Grainger, Morton Gould, and Henry Cowell. The camp operated until Williams's death in 1947. In 1948, the camps main building and many of the camps records were destroyed by fire.

From the guide to the Ernest S. Williams Collection, 1917-2002, 1925-1948, (Special Collections in Performing Arts)