Hamm, Charles (1925-2011) | University of Illinois Archives

Charles Edward Hamm (1925-2011) was a musicologist and faculty member at the University of Illinois (1963-1976). Born in Charlottesville, Virginia on April 21, 1925, Hamm began his music studies in high school, where he played in a local swing band and sang in the choir. After serving in the Marine Corps during World War II, he attended the University of Virginia, where he studied music of the Renaissance. During this time, Hamm was a member of Sigma Chi Fraternity, was a member of the Glee Club, and played trombone in the Marching Band.

After graduating in 1947, Hamm earned both his master's degree (1950) and Ph.D. in musicology (1960) from Princeton University. Following the successful completion of his dissertation, Hamm taught at the Cincinatti Conservatory of Music (1950-1957). While at Cininatti, he composed the chamber opera The Secret Life of Walter Mitty (1956). Following this, he accepted a position at Tulane University (1959-1963). In 1963, Hamm joined the faculty at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. Four years later, he founded the Musicological Archives for Renaissance Manuscript Studies, serving as its director until 1975. During his time at Illinois, Hamm was closely connected with the Experimental Music Studios, frequently composing for New Music concerts in Urbana. From 1972 to 1974, he served as president of the American Musicological Society. In 1976, Hamm accepted a position at Dartmouth College, where he was named the Arthur R. Virgin Professor of Music. During this year, he received a Fulbright grant to give a series of lectures in music schools around India. Following his return, he served as chair of the music department at Dartmouth. In 1988, he toured the Peoples' Republic of China, giving a series of lectures at schools of music.

Hamm began his career as a researcher in Renaissance studies, writing: A Chronology of the Works of Guillaume Dufay (1964) and Leonel Power: Complete Works (1969). After writing three additional books--Opera (1966), Petrushka (1967), and Contemporary Music and Music Cultures (1974)--, he became an influential scholar in the field of popular American music. Hamm wrote the following books on American popular music: Yesterdays: Popular Songs in America (1979); Music in the New World (1983), which won the Irving Lowens Book Award by the Society for American Music; Putting Popular Music in its Place (1995); and Irving Berlin: Songs from the Melting Pot (1997). In 1981 he became a founding member of the International Association for the Study of Popular Music (IASPM). He would later serve two times as chairman of IASPM. He was also the recipient of the Society for American Music's Lifetime Achievement Award in 2002. Hamm died in Lebanon, New Hampshire on October 16, 2011.

Zachary Woolfe, "Charles Hamm, Author on American Popular Music, Dies at 86," New York Times (October 23, 2011).

"Hamm Joins Music Staff: Professor of Musicology Appointed to Faculty at Dartmouth College," The Rutland Daily Herald (August 14, 1975): 13.

Curriculum Vitae, Box 1, Folder 20.