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Coverage Dates

circa 1948-2015

Description

The Fairfield University Glee Club Collection is comprised of concert programs, flyers, brochures, black & white paper-based photographs and negatives of the Club members and directors, and copies of Glee Club recordings in both vinyl and CD. The time covered by the Collection ranges from 1948 through 2015. Concert programs include Glee Club performances from as early 1949 under the direction of Simon G. Harak, who established the choir in 1947, through 2015 under the direction of Carole Ann Maxwell, the present director. Most of the paper-based material is concert programs, ranging from 1949 through 2015. The photographs range from a 1948 negative of the Glee Club’s first radio broadcast to a black & white 1974 photograph of Glee Club members. Noteworthy is a photograph circa 1968 of the Glee Club with Director Harak that includes his son, Rev. G. Simon Harak, S.J., an American peace activist and professor of theology. Among the early Glee Club recordings is “Men in Red,” directed by Simon G. Harak.

Notes

Fairfield University Glee Club was established in 1947, the same year as the University’s first incoming freshmen class, by Rev. John P. Murray, S.J. and Simon G. Harak, an accomplished singer. Under the guidance of Mr. Harak, who was the director until his death in 1970, the University Glee Club developed a strong reputation for excellence and award-winning performances. Through Mr. Harak’s professional connections, the University’s original Alma Mater was composed by Alfonso D’Artega. The Glee Club, nicknamed “The Ambassadors of Song,” performed on local radio stations and at local area concert halls and parishes as well as singing for the campus community. The tradition of excellence continued under Paul D. LaMedica who assumed directorship after Simon Harak’s death until 1986, when Daniel Rowland took over as interim director. Soon after the University became co-ed in the 1970s, the Women’s Chorale was formed. In 1982, the Chamber Singers, Fairfield University’s first mixed choir, was established by Carole Ann Maxwell and Dr. Orin Grossman. In 1987, the University reorganized the choirs by merging the Men’s Glee Club, the Women’s Chorale, and the Chamber Singers into a single combined choir.

Quantity

2.1 linear feet; 6 archival storage boxes

Processed By

Ann Munnelly

Last Updated

February 2019

Type

Finding Aid

Publisher

Fairfield University

Place of Publication

Fairfield, Conn.

Collection

Finding Aids

Repository

Fairfield University Archives and Special Collections

Identifier

FIN0005

Fairfield University Glee Club Collection

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