Wayne Crouse
Encyclopedia
Wayne Crouse was the viola
Viola
The viola is a bowed string instrument. It is the middle voice of the violin family, between the violin and the cello.- Form :The viola is similar in material and construction to the violin. A full-size viola's body is between and longer than the body of a full-size violin , with an average...

 professor emeritus
Emeritus
Emeritus is a post-positive adjective that is used to designate a retired professor, bishop, or other professional or as a title. The female equivalent emerita is also sometimes used.-History:...

 at the University of Oklahoma
University of Oklahoma
The University of Oklahoma is a coeducational public research university located in Norman, Oklahoma. Founded in 1890, it existed in Oklahoma Territory near Indian Territory for 17 years before the two became the state of Oklahoma. the university had 29,931 students enrolled, most located at its...

 and principal violist of the Oklahoma City Philharmonic
Oklahoma City Philharmonic
The Oklahoma City Philharmonic is the most prominent performing orchestra in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, and its environs.- History :The first Oklahoma City orchestra was formed as early as 1924. The Oklahoma Symphony Orchestra was founded in 1938 with Ralph Rose conducting its inaugural season...

 from 1982 until his death from cancer at the age of 75. Wayne Crouse graduated from the Juilliard School in 1951 where he studied with Milton Katims
Milton Katims
Milton Katims was an American violist and conductor. He was music director of the Seattle Symphony for 22 years . In that time he added more than 75 works, made recordings, premiered new pieces and led the orchestra on several tours. He expanded the orchestra's series of family and suburban...

, Ivan Galamian
Ivan Galamian
Ivan Alexander Galamian was an influential Armenian violin teacher of the twentieth century.He was born in Tabriz, Iran, but his family soon emigrated to Moscow, Russia. Galamian studied violin at the School of the Philharmonic Society there with Konstantin Mostras until his graduation in 1919...

, and Dorothy DeLay
Dorothy DeLay
Dorothy DeLay was an American violin instructor, primarily at the Juilliard School.She was born in Medicine Lodge, Kansas.-Career and education:...

. He served as the principal violist of the Houston Symphony for 28 of his 32 years there, during which he performed the Walton viola concerto under the direction of Sir William Walton
William Walton
Sir William Turner Walton OM was an English composer. During a sixty-year career, he wrote music in several classical genres and styles, from film scores to opera...

 3 times in January 1969. Crouse was also violist in the Lyric Art Quartet at the University of Houston
Moores School of Music
The Rebecca and John J. Moores School of Music is the music school of the University of Houston. The Moores School offers the Bachelor of Music, Bachelor of Arts in Music, Master of Music, and Doctor of Musical Arts degrees in music performance, conducting, theory and composition, music history...

, the Virtuoso Quartet, and the Shepherd Quartet at Rice University
Shepherd School of Music
The Shepherd School of Music is a university school of music located on the campus of Rice University in Houston, Texas. Shepherd School is itself very selective, accepting overall about 10-15% of all graduate applicants and 15% of all undergraduate applicants...

, where he taught for some time.

Former colleagues have described him as passionate, bold, and a bit eccentric. With his sunny personality, quick wit and superb playing, he was a popular and highly regarded musician. Crouse is survived by his partner of 32 years, Edward Petsch, as well as his brother, Robert Crouse. Crouse requested that no funeral be held, so after his death a musical celebration took place in his honor.

Throughout the years, Wayne Crouse has made recordings on many labels including CRI and Sony
Sony
, commonly referred to as Sony, is a Japanese multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan and the world's fifth largest media conglomerate measured by revenues....

.

The Crouse String Quartet was established in 2000 to honor Wayne Crouse's achievements at the University of Oklahoma. This quartet is funded by the office of OU president David L. Boren, and before Wayne Crouse's death was called the Presidential quartet. This quartet is made up of four graduate students who are pursuing music degrees and serving as teaching assistants.

The new Wayne Crouse Quartet, a student performance group that was formed in his honor, will be in residence at the University of Houston beginning in Fall 2006.
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