Civic Music Association of Winston-Salem Records

Collection

Identifier: MC-0008

Staff Only

Scope and Contents

This collection is comprised of materials produced by the Civic Music Association of Winston-Salem from 1970-1975, particularly during their 1971-1972 and 1972-1973 concert series, as well as the association’s dissolution in 1975. This collection contains correspondence with artists, booking agencies, and members of the board of directors; information about touring artists; the association’s founding documents; financial reports; notes and meeting minutes. Correspondence with artist management groups makes up a large part of this collection, particularly with Community Concerts, Inc., a division of Columbia Artists Management.

Faculty from the North Carolina School of the Arts were heavily involved in the association, with Martin Sokoloff serving as Vice President and Nicholas Harsanyi as a board member. Roger Hall, President of the North Carolina School of the Arts Foundation, and Ralph P. Hanes, an original trustee at NCSA, served as the organizations first presidents.

Dates

1970-1975

Creator

Civic Music Association of Winston-Salem (Organization)

Conditions Governing Access

Open for research.

Conditions Governing Use

Copyright is retained by the creators of items in this collection, or their descendants, as stipulated by United States copyright law.

Archives collections may contain materials with sensitive or confidential information which is protected under federal or state privacy laws, the North Carolina Public Records Act (N.C.G.S. § 132 1 et seq.), and Article 7 of the North Carolina State Personnel Act (Privacy of State Employee Personnel Records, N.C.G.S. § 126-22 et seq.). Researchers are advised that the disclosure of certain information pertaining to identifiable living individuals represented in the collections without the consent of those individuals may have legal ramifications (e.g., a cause of action under common law for invasion of privacy may arise if facts concerning an individual's private life are published that would be deemed highly offensive to a reasonable person) for which the University of North Carolina School of the Arts assume no responsibility.

Biographical / Historical

Ralph P. Hanes established the Civic Music Association of Winston-Salem in 1930. Operating until 1975, the Association brought a series of musical artists and ensembles to perform in Winston Salem each year. Acts included Gladys Swarthout, the National Ballet of Washington, and Maria Luisa Faini, among other national and international celebrities.

Hanes, one of the first trustees of the North Carolina School of the Arts, founded the Association and served as its first President. After Hanes’ resignation Roger Hall, president of the North Carolina School of the Arts Foundation, assumed the role of President. Hall’s service was short and after resigning in 1972, the board elected Clemens Sandresky, Dean of the School of Music at Salem College, who would become the Association’s last President. Ralph P. Hanes continued to serve as Chairman of the Board until his death in 1973.

Financing for each year’s series came entirely from membership dues. No tickets were sold for individual performances, but patrons were able to buy membership passes that included entrance to all shows at an affordable rate. After several attempts with different artist management agencies, membership sales continued to decline and the Board of Directors voted to liquidate the Association in July 1975.

Extent

0.21 Linear Feet (1 document box)

Language of Materials

English

Additional Description

Abstract

This collection is comprised of materials produced by the Civic Music Association of Winston-Salem from 1970-1975, particularly during their 1971-1972 and 1972-1973 series, as well as the association’s dissolution in 1975. The collection contains correspondence with artists, booking agencies, and members of the board of directors; information about touring artists; the association’s founding documents; financial reports; notes and meeting minutes.

Arrangement

Material within each folder has been converted from reverse to standard chronological order, with undated material held behind dated material.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

The material in this collection appears to have been donated by a single member of the board of directors, potentially Roger Hall, President of the Board of Directors and the North Carolina School of the Arts Foundation, or Martin Sokoloff, Vice President of the Board of Directors and Vice Chancellor of Administration. However, no documentation of the donation exists.

Related Materials

While this collection begins with material related to the 1971 season, the Civic Music Association was active beginning in 1930. Materials related to the earlier days of the association can be found at Wake Forest University’s Z. Smith Reynolds Library. A finding aid is available from https://wakespace.lib.wfu.edu/handle/10339/27974.

Performance and event programs from the Civic Music Association can also be found in the Program Collection (RG-0045).