Norman Schweikert, former associate professor of horn and longtime member of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, died December 31, 2018, at age 81. 

A native of Los Angeles, Schweikert began piano lessons at the age of six, added violin soon after, and turned to the horn at age 13. His first horn teachers were Odolindo Perissi and Sinclair Lott, both members of the Los Angeles Philharmonic. During high school, Schweikert won a scholarship to the Aspen Music Festival, where he studied with Joseph Eger. In 1955, he auditioned for Erich Leinsdorf, then music director of the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra, and won his first professional post as fourth horn there. He was its youngest member and in succeeding years played second and third horn. 

While in Rochester, Schweikert attended the Eastman School of Music, studying with Morris Secon and Verne Reynolds. He graduated in 1961 with a bachelor's degree and a performer's certificate in horn. During his 11-year tenure in Rochester, Schweikert served three years with the United States Military Academy Band at West Point as well as five years on the faculty of the Interlochen Arts Academy as instructor of horn and a member of the Interlochen Arts Quintet.

In 1971, at the invitation of music director Georg Solti, Schweikert joined the Chicago Symphony as assistant principal horn, just in time for the Orchestra's first tour to Europe. In 1975, he was named second horn, the position he held until his retirement in 1997. From 1973 until 1998, Schweikert served as associate professor of horn at Northwestern University. He was one of the founding members of the International Horn Society and served as its first secretary and treasurer. 

In his retirement, Schweikert, and his wife, Sally—a 30-year veteran of the Chicago Symphony Chorus—made their home on Washington Island in Wisconsin, where he performed with the Washington Island Music Festival. Schweikert also continued his research into the lives of U.S. orchestra members, a project that he started while studying at Eastman. In 2012, his book The Horns of Valhalla—the story of horn players Josef and Xaver Reiter—was published by WindSong Press Limited.
 
Schweikert is survived by his wife and their son, Eric, principal timpani of the Fort Wayne Philharmonic.