October-December, 2009
From 1770 to the present day, music has played a key role in the life of the Mission campus. "Don't Stop the Music! The Campus Musical Experience at Santa Clara University," a new exhibit in the Harrington Learning Commons, surveys the variety of musical expression at Santa Clara through three centuries. Visitors will see manuscripts from the early Mission period, music and printed books from the Santa Clara College years (1851-1911) and numerous photographs of the University Orchestra, Choir, and various campus bands, from 1950s to the 1990s.
Highlights of the exhibit include two music manuscripts from Mission Santa Clara - a choir book in the hand of the 19th-century Franciscan musician and scribe Florencio Ibáñez, and a manuscript of the Catholic Mass, in the key of C. Also on display are: the 1856 first edition of "The Santa Clara Polka," composed by James R. Lawrie, Professor of Piano at Santa Clara College from 1856-1902; the original steel engraving plate used to print the cover of Lawrie's work; musical scores for University songs of the early 20th Century; programs and posters for student performances; and numerous photographs of professional popular musicians who have performed at Santa Clara University from the 1960s to the present.
The exhibit features books, manuscripts and ephemera from the Archives & Special Collections, with additional materials loaned by the Department of Music, the Department of Theatre and Dance, and several private collectors.