[AMS-announce] ANNOUNCEMENT: AMS-LC Lecture: Annegret Fauser on Harold Spivacke, Washington DC, 18 Sep 2008

[Announcements for the AMS]

The American Musicological Society and the Music Division of the Library of Congress are pleased to present the second in a series of lectures highlighting musicological research conducted in the Division’s collections. The next lecturer, Annegret Fauser (University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill), will speak on her research about former Music Division Chief Harold Spivacke, in a talk entitled "After Pearl Harbor: Music, War, and the Library of Congress."
 
"Music of all kinds had a powerful role to play in World War II, and on each side, both Axis and Allied," states Fauser.  "Many American composers and performers offered their services in the cause of morale and victory. It is perhaps surprising, however, that one of the pivotal institutions in this musical war was the Music Division of the Library of Congress, led by its then Chief, Dr. Harold Spivacke. Today he is probably best known for his role in commissioning Aaron Copland’s 1944 ballet for Martha Graham, _Appalachian Spring_, when he served as musical advisor to Elizabeth Sprague Coolidge.

"My presentation of Spivacke’s (and the Library’s) musical activities during World War II provides a microcosmic exploration of music’s various roles during World War II in America, given that his involvement touched upon almost every aspect of music in this country. I will explore the rich materials of the Library, including Spivacke’s correspondence with musicians such as Barber, Copland and Milhaud, documents relating to his activity as the Chair of the Subcommittee on Music of the Joint Army and Navy Committee of Welfare and Recreation, and the Library’s involvement in the war-time concerts and commissions for the Coolidge Auditorium­the very same space in which this lecture will take place."

Prof. Fauser’s talk, which is free and open to the public, will be held on Thursday, 18 September, in the Coolidge Auditorium at 7 p.m. Further details and travel directions may be found at the Web site: www.ams-net.org/LC-lectures/ . 

The first lecture in the AMS/LC series, presented by Judith Tick (Northeastern University) and entitled "Ruth Crawford Seeger, Modernist Composer in the Folk Revival: Biography as Music History," is available for viewing on the Library of Congress Webcast site:  see www.ams-net.org/LC-lectures/seeger-tick.php . Prof. Fauser’s talk will also be available as a Webcast. 

The third lecture in the series will take place in the spring of 2009: Jeffrey Magee (University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign), discussing aspects of the work of Irving Berlin. 

Full details: www.ams-net.org/LC-lectures/