Scope and arrangement
The Conductors Guild Records illustrate the history and activities of the organization from its 1974 inception, as a component of the American Symphony Orchestra League, to 1997. They contain correspondence, financial and development records, board and committee meeting minutes, annual meeting and workshop records, publication information and photographs. Financial records make up the largest portion of the collection, followed by publications (which document in part the history of the Journal of the Conductors Guild). Annual meeting and workshop records include material on musical and historical lectures presented at those events. Records of the Journal include manuscripts and correspondence with authors including Max Rudolf. General files include membership records and topical essays such as Conductors and Criticism and Conductor Evaluations.
The Conductors Guild records are arranged in six series:
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1975-1996 and undated2 boxes
This series contains records of the evolving By-Laws of the Guild and associated correspondence, minutes of board and committee meetings, and memos and correspondence to and between board members discussing all the business and activities of the Guild. The By-Laws are documented from 1979-1995, and the minutes have a gap from the years 1982-1985; otherwise this series has content documenting the entire history of the Conductors Guild from 1975 to 1996. See also Series VI for correspondence discussing board issues.
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1987-19961.5 boxes
This series consists mainly of grant applications to and correspondence with the National Endowment for the Arts and the National Endowment for the Humanities, as well as other funding organizations. It also has records of member contributions and general correspondence about fundraising.
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1979-1996 and undated13.5 boxes
This series is the largest in the collection and contains financial activity reports, bank statements and correspondence, budgets, deposit records, expense reports, insurance information, paid invoices, annual financial statements for the organization, and tax information. The expense reports, consisting largely of receipts for goods and services, comprise about half of the series. See also Series VI for some correspondence discussing financial issues.
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1975-19977 boxes
The files in this series document the logistical, financial and programming details of the various meetings and programs presented by the Conductors Guild. These include the annual conferences, various symposia and seminars, and workshops held several times each year. All the Guild meetings present programs on musical or career development topics, but not all the files contain documentation of those programs. In general, the files are weighted toward logistical and financial papers, but more recent conferences tend to contain more programmatic information. Some meeting files contain photographs.
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1975-1997 and undated11 boxes
This series documents the three publications of the Guild: Conductor Opportunities, Journal of the Conductors Guild and Conductors Guild Newsletter. It contains issues of Conductor Opportunities and the Newsletter, correspondence from members of the Guild and between staff about the contents and production of the publications, manuscripts and correspondence from authors of articles for the Journal, as well as possibly unpublished articles. Manuscript authors include Max Rudolf, Robert Sataloff, Henry Bloch, Gerard Schwartz and Theodore Albrecht. The manuscripts contain an interview with Gerard Schwartz. There are also files containing advertising, sales and general correspondence. The Music Division holds most issues of the Journal of the Conductors Guild.
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1975-1996 and undated9 boxes
This series contains general correspondence, mailing lists, membership files, personnel and employment files, photographs, and topical essays and studies. Correspondence and membership files make up the bulk of the series. The correspondence covers a wide range of topics, some of which are chiefly dealt with in other series. For example, some board and financial topics are discussed in general correspondence, as well as membership issues. Correspondents include Frederick Fennell, Henry Bloch and Lukas Foss.
The membership files contain applications, correspondence (mainly from conductors desiring membership and requesting information), membership directories and lists, renewal records, and annual reports on membership. The topical essays cover particular subjects of interest to conductors, and were presumably presented to the membership at large. Subjects include Conductors and Criticism, Conductor Evaluations and Conductor-Orchestra Relations. The photographs contain images of the late Max Rudolf (a board member), Gunther Schuller, and group images of the Guild’s board and staff.