Ernie Rosecrans
- Music Department
Ernie Rosecrans (Ernest, Eugene Rosecrans, 1919-2000) was one of the old guard, music copyists in the Hollywood, Los Angeles area for some fifty years. A music copyist trade is working with composers, editing, transposing and rewriting the composer's work by hand for each part in the orchestra so it can be performed. Every major motion picture studio had a group of copyists on call to work with the film composers to hand-copy and prepare the compositions for recording. He worked at all of the studios around Los Angeles but his main position was as lead copyist at 20th Century Fox for over 20 years. He worked on the orchestra scores for hundreds of films from the 1944-1985. Music copyist weren't receiving on-screen credits until the mid 1990's so his work and that of all his colleagues went uncredited.
At 20th Century Fox where he was first call copyist, he worked with the giants of the motion picture composition. John Williams and Jerry Goldsmith in particular were two composers that he worked closely with.
Ernie started out studying violin as a child. His father had hopes he would be a Hollywood orchestra, recording musician. He never lived up to his fathers expectations and dreams and instead started playing in small Mexican combos around the Los Angeles area. The Rosecrans' native language was Mexican, Spanish due to them living in Silver City New Mexico for many years. When they moved to Los Angeles in the late 1920's. Ernie started out in the art of music copying during the depression as the result of one of his music professors at Los Angeles City College obtaining a grant from the Roosevelt Public Works Program (WPA) to hire music copyist for his original orchestra compositions. He liked the work and decided to pursue it further after the WPA grants ran out. He wanted more assured work than he was making playing violin and he found an opening at Republic Studios in Hollywood.
Copying can be done in many styles. Some of neat and some written hurriedly and sloppy. Ernie was well respected and known as one of the artists in the craft. The composers and recording musicians were always happy to read his work. He could write with great speed when necessary because of recording deadlines but he was always known to be precise and artistic at the same time.
His son, Glen Rosecrans (aka Glen Rose) apprenticed and joined him and joined at 20th Century Fox for many years. Glen wrote a college text on music copying and dedicated it to his father. "A Music Notation Primer", was endorsed by John Williams and Sammy Nestico and was widely used in university music departments until computer software replaced the hand-drawn craft of copying.
At 20th Century Fox where he was first call copyist, he worked with the giants of the motion picture composition. John Williams and Jerry Goldsmith in particular were two composers that he worked closely with.
Ernie started out studying violin as a child. His father had hopes he would be a Hollywood orchestra, recording musician. He never lived up to his fathers expectations and dreams and instead started playing in small Mexican combos around the Los Angeles area. The Rosecrans' native language was Mexican, Spanish due to them living in Silver City New Mexico for many years. When they moved to Los Angeles in the late 1920's. Ernie started out in the art of music copying during the depression as the result of one of his music professors at Los Angeles City College obtaining a grant from the Roosevelt Public Works Program (WPA) to hire music copyist for his original orchestra compositions. He liked the work and decided to pursue it further after the WPA grants ran out. He wanted more assured work than he was making playing violin and he found an opening at Republic Studios in Hollywood.
Copying can be done in many styles. Some of neat and some written hurriedly and sloppy. Ernie was well respected and known as one of the artists in the craft. The composers and recording musicians were always happy to read his work. He could write with great speed when necessary because of recording deadlines but he was always known to be precise and artistic at the same time.
His son, Glen Rosecrans (aka Glen Rose) apprenticed and joined him and joined at 20th Century Fox for many years. Glen wrote a college text on music copying and dedicated it to his father. "A Music Notation Primer", was endorsed by John Williams and Sammy Nestico and was widely used in university music departments until computer software replaced the hand-drawn craft of copying.