A History of the Longview Symphony Orchestra of Longview, Texas from 1968-2011
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UNIVERSITY OF OKLAHOMA GRADUATE COLLEGE A HISTORY OF THE LONGVIEW SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA OF LONGVIEW, TEXAS FROM 1968-2011 A DOCUMENT SUBMITTED TO THE GRADUATE FACULTY in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of DOCTOR OF MUSICAL ARTS By GENE H. MOON Norman, Oklahoma 2012 A HISTORY OF THE LONGVIEW SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA OF LONGVIEW, TEXAS FROM 1968-2011 A DOCUMENT APPROVED FOR THE SCHOOL OF MUSIC BY _____________________________ Dr. William Wakefield, Chair _____________________________ Dr. Jonathan Shames, Co-chair _____________________________ Dr. Roland Barrett _____________________________ Dr. Edward Gates _____________________________ Dr. Andrew Miller © Copyright by GENE HO MOON 2012 All Rights Reserved. Acknowledgements I wish to express my sincere gratitude to my committee, Dr. William Wakefield, Dr. Jonathan Shames, Dr. Roland Barrett, Dr. Edward Gates, Dr. Andrew Miller and Dr. K.B. Lee, for the time and devotion they have put forth towards the completion of this project and my degree. I am grateful to the Longview Symphony Orchestra and the League for allowing me access to the archives. The resources provided were paramount in shaping the story of the LSO. Special acknowledgement to Kaki Crim, Executive Director, Randy Maines, League president 2010-2011, LSO music directors James Snowden and Tonu Kalam and wife of past music director Frank Carroll, Constance Carroll, for their time and energy. I wish to acknowledge my mentors who have shaped my musical life since the start of my career as a seven-year old boy taking piano lessons with Jan Pokorny Steele. To you, I am most grateful for instilling the work ethic and determination I have today in my music making. To Roger Strong, I thank you for the guidance and mentorship during my collegiate years, and most of all, the knowledge that we can be strong Christian men while we purse our academic achievements and teach our younger generation of musicians. Most of all, I am thankful for my friends and family. To my parents, I cannot express to you how much I am thankful for the love and support you give me for my life and career. I am most expressly grateful for my wife, Theresa, and three children, Jonathan, Rebecca and Isabel, who have waited patiently and supported me through this iv arduous time. It is with their unending love and support that I have been able to complete the document and degree. Most of all, I am thankful to my God and Savior, to whom all things are possible. v Table of Contents Acknowledgements ...................................................................................................iv Abstract......................................................................................................................ix Chapter 1: Introduction Introduction ....................................................................................................1 Purpose of Study.............................................................................................4 Need for Study................................................................................................5 Scope and Limitations of Study .....................................................................5 Methodology...................................................................................................6 Survey of Related Literature ..........................................................................7 Chapter 2: James Snowden (1968-1979)..................................................................11 The Beginning ..............................................................................................11 Wells Burton and the Longview Symphony League....................................17 The Women’s Society of the Longview Symphony League........................19 The First Five Years (1968-1973) ................................................................21 The Shreveport Initiative..............................................................................31 1972-1973 Season: Three-concert Series to Four-concert Series.................33 1973-1974 Season: Frank Carroll Begins His Association with the LSO....35 Snowden’s Return ........................................................................................36 Longview’s Development with the LSO......................................................38 Lorraine Martin and the Longview Symphony Foundation.........................41 Snowden’s Era..............................................................................................42 Chapter 3: Frank Carroll (1979-1988)......................................................................45 vi Carroll’s Return to the LSO: The Transition to Professional Status............45 The Administration During the Carroll Years..............................................46 Carroll and the LSO personnel.....................................................................47 Programming and Guest Artists under Carroll.............................................52 Expansion and Improvements of the T.G. Field Auditorium Stage.............55 Wells Burton and the LSO’s Educational Outreach.....................................59 Carroll’s Era .................................................................................................64 Chapter 4: Tonu Kalam (1988-present)....................................................................67 The Search (1987-1988)...............................................................................67 Kalam and the League: The first year ..........................................................72 Expansion of the LSO: The next four years .................................................74 The LSO’s Growth under Kalam .................................................................79 A Night in Old Vienna: The New Year’s Eve Concert................................83 The Chamber Music Series ..........................................................................85 Frank Carroll’s Death; Wells Burton’s Resignation ....................................87 The 25th Anniversary Season: 1992-1993 ....................................................89 Elliott Stonecipher and Evets Management, Inc. .........................................90 The Youth Orchestra Hiatus.........................................................................94 The LSO’s New Endeavors..........................................................................99 The Belcher Center and Beethoven............................................................106 Chapter 5: Programming ........................................................................................111 Chapter 6: Summary and Conclusions ...................................................................120 Summary.....................................................................................................120 vii Conclusions ................................................................................................123 Recommendations for Future Study...........................................................126 Bibliography...........................................................................................................128 Appendix A: Edited Interview Transcript: James Snowden ..................................132 Appendix B: Edited Interview Transcript: Tonu Kalam ........................................139 Appendix C: Edited Interviews Transcript: Randy Maines ...................................156 Appendix D: Longview Symphony Orchestra programs, 1968-2011....................165 viii Abstract The Longview Symphony Orchestra is a regional professional orchestra based in Longview, Texas. The orchestra was founded in 1968 under the direction of James Snowden, a local band director who led the charge to develop a high school orchestra program in a district that lacked such a program. Governed by a board known as the Longview Symphony League, the orchestra initially began as a volunteer ensemble whose original mission was to foster the growth of music education in the public schools while offering an outlet for orchestral playing to its community. After forty-four years, the Longview Symphony Orchestra has become an organization whose members are all paid, professional musicians. This study will focus on the organization’s development from an orchestra whose membership began as volunteers to that of paid professionals. Special interest will be devoted to the development of the organization’s governing board, the Longview Symphony League and the orchestra’s three music directors, James Snowden, Frank Carroll and Tonu Kalam. ix Chapter 1: Introduction In 1871, almost 100 years before the Longview Symphony Orchestra was formed, the city of Longview was founded as a result of railway development by the Southern Pacific Railroad line. While laying track, an engineer stood upon a rock hill known as “Capps Hill”, looked into the expanse of the south and considered the name Longview for the new town.1 Upon its establishment, the rural town included a dozen saloons and a few city services including a post office. In 1872, Longview profited once more from a second rail line running through the town built by the International Railroad Company. The rail line bought 244 acres east of the Southern Pacific site that later became known as Kilgore, Texas, home of renowned pianist Van Cliburn and sister city to Longview. In the same year, Southern Pacific was acquired by the Texas & Pacific Railway, which established its home base in Longview, bringing