K. Ethel Merker
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K. Ethel Merker
Interview Date: July 10, 2002
Job Title: Instrument Designer, Musician
Company: G. LeBlanc Corporation
Birthdate: July 20, 1923
Deceased: July 19, 2012
Ethel Merker was asked by the Holton Company to create the now popular Merker French horn. Her career has included acclaimed symphonic performances, radio and TV jingle work, and several well-known music education programs over the years. Her list of accomplishments is even made more impressive when you realize she did all of this as a woman musician in Chicago in the 1940s, where she was a pioneer who made it possible for women to follow in her footsteps. Her NAMM Oral History interview was completed on July 10, 2002.