Trampler, Walter

Walter Trampler (1915-1997) was an American violist of German birth. He was taught by his father, and attended the Akademie der Tonkunst in Munich until 1934. Trampler made his debut as a violinist in Munich in 1933, playing Beethoven's concerto; his debut as a violist was in Mozart's Sinfonia Concertante in Berlin in 1935. He was first solo violist with the Deutschlandsender radio network from 1935 to 1938.

In 1939, Trampler emigrated to the United States, where he was a member of the Boston Symphony Orchestra from 1942 to 1944. Later, he performed with the symphony and opera orchestra of the City Center in New York from 1946 to 1948. He was a founding member of the New Music String Quartet, which was active from 1947 to 1956. Other chamber groups he performed with over the years included the Budapest, Juilliard and Guarneri String Quartets, and the Beaux Arts Trio. From 1969 to 1994, he was a member of the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center.

As a soloist, Trampler gave about 40 premiere performances, including works by Hans Werner Henze, George Perle, Vincent Persichetti, Luciano Berio, Marc Neikrug, and Simon Bainbridge. He recorded the Mozart and Brahms quintets with the Budapest Quartet, as well as the Brahms piano quartets with the Beaux Arts Trio. He also made solo recordings of works by Riegger, Stravinsky, and Hindemith. Trampler played a viola built especially for him by Samuel Zygmuntowicz, an instrument noted for its beautiful sound.

Trampler taught generations of violists who went on to become noted musicians themselves. He served on the faculties of the Juilliard School, the Peabody Conservatory, the Yale School of Music, Boston University, the New England Conservatory, and the Mannes College of Music. He died in Nova Scotia in 1997.

Source: Watson Forbes and Dennis K. McIntire. "Trampler, Walter." Grove Music Online. Oxford Music Online. Oxford University Press, accessed July 23, 2013, http://www.oxfordmusiconline.com/subscriber/article/grove/music/28263.