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Gregg Smith Singers Collection

An inventory of the collection at Syracuse University


Finding aid created by: MRC
Date: 8 May 2015

Biographical History

The Gregg Smith Singers were founded by Gregg Smith in 1955, who remains their director, program designer and conductor today (2011). The group's mission, as articulated on their website, is "to encourage the development and preservation of American choral music, with an emphasis on new works of the 20th and 21st centuries, through performances, recordings, workshops and publications."

The Gregg Smith Singers have won numerous awards over the course of their career, and are internationally known for their intepretations of contemporary music and performances of works by living composers. The group had a strong working relationship with Igor Stravinsky for more than a decade and performed at his funeral. Among other achievements, in 1973 the group initiated both a New York City concert series and the Adirondack Festival of American Music (AFAM) in Saranac Lake, N.Y., both of which continue today (2011). They have won three Grammy Awards, two Montreux Awards, and the Stereo Review 1966 Record of the Year award for their Columbia recording of the music of the Revolutionary American composer, William Billings. Gregg Smith has also received a number of individual awards recognizing his contribution to the field of American choral music.

Scope and Contents of the Collection

The Gregg Smith Singers Collection consists of miscellaneous material relating to the Gregg Smith Singers, but acquired separately and independently from the main collection, the Gregg Smith Singers Recordings. It includes clippings and printed material.

Arrangement of the Collection

Items are in chronological order with undated material at the end.

Restrictions

Access Restrictions:

The majority of our archival and manuscript collections are housed offsite and require advanced notice for retrieval. Researchers are encouraged to contact us in advance concerning the collection material they wish to access for their research.

Use Restrictions:

Written permission must be obtained from SCRC and all relevant rights holders before publishing quotations, excerpts or images from any materials in this collection.

Related Material

See also the Gregg Smith Singers Recordings.

Subject Headings

Persons

Smith, Gregg.

Corporate Bodies

Gregg Smith Singers.
Gregg Smith Vocal Quartet.

Subjects

Choral conductors -- United States.
Choral music -- 20th century
Choruses, Secular (Mixed voices)
Composers -- United States.
Music -- United States -- 20th century.

Genres and Forms

Sound recordings.

Occupations

Conductors.
Singers.

Administrative Information

Preferred Citation

Preferred citation for this material is as follows:

Gregg Smith Singers Collection,
Special Collections Research Center,
Syracuse University Libraries

Acquisition Information

Gift of Jim Pfafflin, 2015.

Table of Contents

Printed material

Inventory