Finding Aid for James W Beauchamp Harmonic Tone Generator and Papers, 1963-1966 | The Sousa Archives and Center for American Music

By Scott Schwartz

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Collection Overview

Title: James W Beauchamp Harmonic Tone Generator and Papers, 1963-1966Add to your cart.

ID: 12/5/69

Primary Creator: Beauchamp, James W. (1937-2022)

Extent: 5.25 cubic feet

Arrangement: Organized in one series - Series 1: Harmonic Tone Generator Components and Papers.

Date Acquired: 01/14/2015. More info below under Accruals.

Subjects: Electrical Engineering Department, Music, School of

Languages: English

Scope and Contents of the Materials

The James W. Beauchamp Harmonic Tone Generator and Papers, 1963-1966 includes materials concerning Dr. James W. Beauchamp's research in acoustics, electronics, and music during his time at the University of Illinois. Includes the Harmonic Tone Generator, a voltage-controlled electronic music synthesizer, a bound copy of his dissertation, photographs, and professional publications.

Biographical Note

James Warren Beauchamp (1937-2022) was Professor Emeritus in both the School of Music and Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of Illinois. Dr. Beauchamp received his bachelor's and master's degrees from the University of Michigan, in 1960 and 1961 respectively. In 1965, he graduated from the University of Illinois with a PhD in electrical engineering. His dissertation was entitled Electronic Instrumentation for the Synthesis, Control, and Analysis of Harmonic Musical Tones. He worked closely with his mentor, composition professor Lejaren Hiller during his PhD studies to create the Harmonic Tone Generator, among the first voltage-controlled electronic music synthesizers. The HTG was used in a number of electronic music projects staged at the University of Illinois, including Salvatore Martirano's Underworld. He joined the electrical engineering faculty in 1965. Shortly after, he took a leave of absence which he spent working in Stanford's Artificial Intelligence Laboratory. He returned in 1969 to his joint appoitment in electrical engineering and music. During his tenure at Illinois, he served as director of the School of Music's Experimental Music Studios, during which time he headed the Hybrid Computer Project and the Computer Music Project. Dr. Beauchamp was a fellow of both the Audio Engineering Society and the Acoustical Society of America. He was also a visiting scholar at Stanford's Center for Computer Research in Music and Acoustics and a visiting researcher at the Institut de recherche et coordination in acoustique musique (IRCAM) in Paris.

Subject/Index Terms

Electrical Engineering Department
Music, School of

Administrative Information

Repository: The Sousa Archives and Center for American Music

Accruals: Folder of news-clippings donated on 11/16/2017.

Acquisition Source: James Beauchamp

Acquisition Method: Gift

Related Materials: For further information about other Lejaren Hiller sound recordings and personal papers please visit  the University at Buffalo's Lejaren Hiller Papers. For more information please see https://research.lib.buffalo.edu/hiller.


Box and Folder Listing


Browse by Series:

[Series 1: Harmonic Tone Generator Components and Papers, 1963-1966],
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Series 1: Harmonic Tone Generator Components and Papers, 1963-1966Add to your cart.
Box 1Add to your cart.
Folder 1: "The Harmonic Tone Generator, A Voltage-Controlled Device for Additive Synthesis of Audio Harmonic Spectra", 1964Add to your cart.
Presented at the 16th annual Audio Engineering Society meeting, October 12-16, 1964.
Folder 2: "Research in Music With Electronics" from Science, Vol. 150, No. 3693, pgs. 161-169, 1965Add to your cart.
Folder 3: "Additive Synthesis of Harmonic Musical Tones," Journal of the Audio Engineering Society, Vol. 14, No. 4, 1966Add to your cart.
Folder 4: Photographs, 8 x 10 black and white (2), ca. 1963Add to your cart.
Includes photo of James Beauchamp tuning the Harmonic Tone Generator at Stiven House, University of Illinois and photo of Magnavox grant being presented to Lejaren Hiller and group.
Folder 5: Electronic Instrumentation for the Synthesis, Control, and Analysis of Harmonic Musical Tones, bound dissertation, 1965Add to your cart.
Folder 6: Beauchamp News Clippings, 1963 and 1966Add to your cart.
News clippings from September 1963 and May 1966 from the Champaign-Urbana Courier and the News Gazette newspapers.
Item 1: Harmonic Tone Generator Module, 1963-1966Add to your cart.
Accession number: 2015.1205069.001
Item 2: Time Delay Network Module, 1963-1966Add to your cart.
Accession number: 2015.1205069.002
Item 3: Time Envelope Network Module, 1963-1966Add to your cart.
Accession number: 2015.1205069.003