Contemporary Music Project
Encyclopedia
In 1957, the Ford Foundation
began to explore the relationship between arts and American society. Resulting from a suggestion by Norman Dello Joio
, the Young Composers Project (YCP) was founded in 1959. Funded by the Ford Foundation and administered by the National Music Council, the project placed young composers (age 35 and under) in public school systems as composers-in-residence.
From 1959 to 1962, 31 composers participated in the project. They discovered that many music educators were not prepared to deal with contemporary music. In 1962 the YCP was elevated from a pilot program to one of the ten major projects of the Ford Foundation. The Music Educators National Conference (MENC
) submitted a proposal to the Ford Foundation that the project be expanded to include seminars and workshops on contemporary music in the schools, and that pilot programs be established in public schools. In 1963 the Ford Foundation awarded MENC a grant of $1,380,000 to organize the Contemporary Music Project for Creativity in Music Education. YCP continued under the title Composers in Public Schools. By 1968, 46 more composers had been matched with public school systems.
One of the first activities of the Contemporary Music Project was the establishment of 16 workshops and seminars held at various colleges throughout the country to help teachers better understand contemporary music. Six pilot projects were established in schools, including the Baltimore, San Diego, and Farmingdale, New York systems.
In 1965 the Seminar on Comprehensive Musicianship
was held at Northwestern University
. Its purpose was to develop and implement means of improving the education of music teachers. In 1967 a symposium was held at Arlie House in Warrenton, Virginia to discuss means of evaluating Comprehensive Musicianship. The resultant document, Procedures for Evaluation of Music in Contemporary Education, offers guidelines for the evaluation of techniques and attitudes acquired through comprehensive musicianship studies.
In 1968 the Ford Foundation gave MENC a grant of $1,340,000 to administer the Contemporary Music Project for and additional five years. MENC contributed $50,000 per year. From 1968 to 1973 the Contemporary Music Project consisted of three programs: Professionals-in-Residence to Communities, the Teaching of Comprehensive Musicianship, and Complementary Activities.
Ford Foundation
The Ford Foundation is a private foundation incorporated in Michigan and based in New York City created to fund programs that were chartered in 1936 by Edsel Ford and Henry Ford....
began to explore the relationship between arts and American society. Resulting from a suggestion by Norman Dello Joio
Norman Dello Joio
- Life :He was born Nicodemo DeGioio in New York City to Italian immigrants. He began his musical career as organist and choir director at the Star of the Sea Church on City Island in New York at age 14. His father was an organist, pianist, and vocal coach and coached many opera stars from the...
, the Young Composers Project (YCP) was founded in 1959. Funded by the Ford Foundation and administered by the National Music Council, the project placed young composers (age 35 and under) in public school systems as composers-in-residence.
From 1959 to 1962, 31 composers participated in the project. They discovered that many music educators were not prepared to deal with contemporary music. In 1962 the YCP was elevated from a pilot program to one of the ten major projects of the Ford Foundation. The Music Educators National Conference (MENC
MENC: The National Association for Music Education
MENC: The National Association for Music Education is an organization of American music educators dedicated to advancing and preserving music education and as part of the core curriculum of schools in the United States...
) submitted a proposal to the Ford Foundation that the project be expanded to include seminars and workshops on contemporary music in the schools, and that pilot programs be established in public schools. In 1963 the Ford Foundation awarded MENC a grant of $1,380,000 to organize the Contemporary Music Project for Creativity in Music Education. YCP continued under the title Composers in Public Schools. By 1968, 46 more composers had been matched with public school systems.
One of the first activities of the Contemporary Music Project was the establishment of 16 workshops and seminars held at various colleges throughout the country to help teachers better understand contemporary music. Six pilot projects were established in schools, including the Baltimore, San Diego, and Farmingdale, New York systems.
In 1965 the Seminar on Comprehensive Musicianship
Comprehensive Musicianship
In 1965 the Seminar on Comprehensive Musicianship was held at Northwestern University. Its purpose was to develop and implement means of improving the education of music teachers. In 1967 a symposium was held at Arlie House in Warrenton, Virginia to discuss means of evaluating comprehensive...
was held at Northwestern University
Northwestern University
Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston and Chicago, Illinois, USA. Northwestern has eleven undergraduate, graduate, and professional schools offering 124 undergraduate degrees and 145 graduate and professional degrees....
. Its purpose was to develop and implement means of improving the education of music teachers. In 1967 a symposium was held at Arlie House in Warrenton, Virginia to discuss means of evaluating Comprehensive Musicianship. The resultant document, Procedures for Evaluation of Music in Contemporary Education, offers guidelines for the evaluation of techniques and attitudes acquired through comprehensive musicianship studies.
In 1968 the Ford Foundation gave MENC a grant of $1,340,000 to administer the Contemporary Music Project for and additional five years. MENC contributed $50,000 per year. From 1968 to 1973 the Contemporary Music Project consisted of three programs: Professionals-in-Residence to Communities, the Teaching of Comprehensive Musicianship, and Complementary Activities.