Conditions Governing Reproduction and Use

The copyright status of this collection is unknown. Copyright restrictions may apply. Contact Special Collections and University Archives for assistance in determining the use of these materials.

Reproduction or digitization of materials for personal or research use can be requested using our reproduction/digitization form: http://bit.ly/scuareproduction . Reproduction or digitization of materials for publication or exhibit use can be requested using our publication/exhibition form: http://bit.ly/scuapublication . Please contact Special Collections and University Archives (specref@vt.edu or 540-231-6308) if you need assistance with forms or to submit a completed form.

Conditions Governing Access

The collection is open for research.

Preferred Citation

Researchers wishing to cite this collection should include the following information: [identification of item], [box], [folder], Blacksburg Music Club Records, Ms1979-008, Special Collections and University Archives, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Va.

Source of Acquisition

The Blacksburg Music Club Records were donated to Special Collections and University Archives in 1979.

Processing Information

The processing, arrangement, and description of the Blacksburg Music Club Records commenced and was completed in August 2012.

Administrative History

A musical appreciation club had been founded in Blacksburg, Virginia as early as 1904. That club was succeeded by the Music and Dramatic Club, founded in 1912 and disbanded around 1928. The Blacksburg Music Club was organized on October 24, 1931, with a goal "to promote the study of musical art among its members and to stimulate the interest in and appreciation of good music in the community." The club soon thereafter became affiliated with the Virginia Federation of Music Clubs and the National Federation of Music Clubs. Club meetings were held monthly from September through May, and programs were staged at various sites in the Blacksburg area and on the campus of Virginia Tech. The club worked closely with other local organizations, including the Blacksburg Concert Association, the Blacksburg Recorder Group, the VPI Glee Club, and the VPI Orchestra, and supported musical programs in local schools by donating money for two pianos, providing funds for special events, and donating the time of members for musical instruction. Perhaps the club's biggest accomplishment was the staging of two Gilbert and Sullivan operettas, The Mikado and Pirates of Penzance in 1958 and 1959, respectively. Due to an aging membership and decline in interest, the Blacksburg Music Club disbanded in 1971.

Scope and Content

This collection contains records of the Blacksburg Music Club, an organization founded to promote the study of music among its members and to stimulate local interest through regularly scheduled musical programs. The collection includes such materials as correspondence, minutes, programs, newsletters, reports, financial records, membership rosters, constitutions and bylaws, scrapbooks, and printed materials. Also included are materials issued by the Virginia Federation of Music Clubs and the National Federation of Music Clubs, including communications, convention programs, and printed materials.

Arrangement

The collection is arranged in the following three series, based on organizational hierarchy:

Series I. Blacksburg Virginia Music Club, 1907-1971. This series contains materials issued by or directly relating to the local club. Included are administrative correspondence, minutes, programs, newsletters and other communications, annual reports, financial records, club history and bylaws, membership rosters, yearbooks, scrapbooks, and printed material. Also included here is a single folder of materials issued by other southwestern Virginia organizations including the Blacksburg Recorder Society, the Blue Ridge Chamber Music Players, and the Pulaski Music Club.

Series II. Virginia Federation of Music Clubs, 1933-1971. Included in this series are materials relating to the state organization. A folder of materials from the federation's first district, to which the Blacksburg club belonged, consists largely of programs from annual conventions. The remainder of the series contains communications to local clubs and convention programs, as well as administrative and promotional materials

Series III. National Federation of Music Clubs, 1944-1971. This series includes materials received from the local club by the national organization. The series contains reports, circular letters, announcements and other communications; price lists for instructional materials sold by the federation; and printed materials consisting of promotional, instructional, and administrative materials.

Separated Material

The following item was removed from the collection and cataloged in the Rare Book Collection:

Andrews, Mary Raymond Shipman. The Counsel Assigned . New York: Scribner's, [1940?]. Request via the library catalog.

Subjects and Indexing Terms

• Blacksburg (Va.)
• Local/Regional History and Appalachian South
• Montgomery County (Va.)

Rights Statement for Archival Description

The guide to the Blacksburg Music Club Records by Special Collections and University Archives, Virginia Tech, is licensed under a CC0 ( https://creativecommons.org/share-your-work/public-domain/cc0/ ).