Hanson-Dyer, Louise (1884–1962)

Australian-born arts patron and music publisher of the mid-20th century. Name variations: Louise Berta Mosson; Louise Dyer. Born Louise Berta Mosson in Melbourne, Australia, in 1884; died in 1962; studied at the Royal College of Music, London; married James Dyer; married a second time to a man named Hanson, in 1939.

Founded the British Music Society of Melbourne (1921); moved to Paris and founded a music-publishing house (early 1930s).

Louise Mosson was born in Melbourne, Australia, in 1884 and exhibited a talent for the piano at an early age. As a young woman, she traveled to Edinburgh, Scotland, for further musical study, which she pursued in London at the Royal College of Music. She returned to Australia, married James Dyer, and was active among Melbourne's music-loving set for a number of years. In 1921, she was responsible for establishing Melbourne's British Music Society. She and her husband moved to London in 1927, and later to Paris where she founded Éditions du Oiseau-Lyre, a music publishing house. Under her guidance, the house released complete editions of works of obscure composers, and issued some of the first "long-playing" recordings of the music of Italian composer Claudio Monteverdi (considered the founder of opera) and Baroque composer George Handel, among others. Remarried in 1939 to a man named Hanson, she began using a hyphenated name. Hanson-Dyer was an innovator who helped generate interest in early music. During World War II, she remained in France but moved to Monaco following the war. When she died in 1962, her fortune was willed to Melbourne University for the purpose of music scholarship.

Carol Brennan , Grosse Pointe, Michigan