The Society for Seventeenth-Century Music

The Society for Seventeenth-Century Music

President’s Reminiscences

Lex croppedIn   anticipation of   our   forthcoming 24 Annual Conference, I thought back to our previous twenty-three   conferences (OK—I had to skip a couple), and it occurred to me that each one was in some ways special: different from all the others, and memorable. Several had fabulous locations and venues, like La Jolla and New York’s Metropolitan Museum; noteworthy historic hotels, like the Nassau Inn in Princeton and the Gunter in San Antonio; fascinating historic attractions, like Shaker Village in Kentucky (where we stayed in the original buildings and sang from shape notes), Old Salem Village in North Carolina (with its musically rich Moravian Archive and historic organ), and the Ephrata Cloister near Lancaster; unique strolling opportunities like the incredible Botanical Gardens at LA’s Huntington Library and San Antonio’s Riverwalk; and fantastic banquets—can anyone forget the feast in New York’s Chinatown? I must add that in each case we owed a great deal of the success of the meeting and the pleasure it offered to the thoughtful planning and the warm hospitality of the people in charge of the program and local arrangements.

Which brings me to the last conference, and to the forthcoming one. The outstanding special feature of our Iowa meeting was of course the joint gathering with the American Handel Society. It was a treat to have the Handelians join us in some of our sessions and other events, as well as to have the opportunity to attend some of theirs! Through the combined efforts of our Local Arrangement host Bob Ketterer and the Program Committee headed by Wendy Heller we were presented with a well-designed program, which notwithstanding the logistical complexities worked out beautifully; and being in friendly, comfortable Iowa City was an additional pleasure.

Nonetheless, the venue of our 24th conference, Coconut Grove in Miami, will be hard to beat. If your image of Miami is high-rise hotels, crowded beaches, and glitzy supper clubs, you are in for a surprise! David Dolata, our Local Arrangements Chair, sings the praises of Coconut Grove elsewhere in this newsletter, but, if you will forgive my indulgence, I would like to add a personal note here. In 1957, while working at the Marine Lab on Virginia Key (this was in my pre-musicology, scientist days), I lived for a year in a little apartment a few blocks from our conference venue. In those days Coconut Grove resembled a smaller, tropical version of Greenwich Village during those same years: hole-in-the-wall art galleries, book stores, coffee shops, and a playhouse, all of which also served as beatnik hangouts. Like the Village, “the Grove” has changed and become a bit gentrified, but has nevertheless retained some of its original ambiance. For me, however, the most important part of my Grove year was being initiated, at the ripe old age of twenty-two, into early music. Not long after moving there I discovered the Coconut Grove Recorder Workshop, where early music and instruments were taught, sold, and enthusiastically performed. The Workshop is long since gone, but it was there that for the first time in my life I touched a harpsichord––a little Dolmetsch spinet––and, if you pardon the cliché, the rest is history (or in any case, my history). But back to the future! David managed to find great venues for us to meet, eat, and sleep, incredibly affordable considering their prime location, and he has planned a couple of what promise to be exceptional concerts. I look forward to seeing you all there––this is a conference not to be missed!

I must add a concern that some members won’t be able to attend because they cannot afford the costs. Conferences, of SSCM as well as other organizations, have become increasingly expensive, and I expect that Miami will not be an exception. Therefore I once again urge you to contribute to our Travel Awards Fund, if you have not already done so (or even if you have). Let’s make sure that our Society’s conferences remain inclusive!

– Lex Silbiger

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