Finding Aid for Fred and Connie Fairchild Parkland College Band and ISYM Records and Audio Recordings, 1959-2020 | The Sousa Archives and Center for American Music

By Kelli McQueen

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Collection Overview

Title: Fred and Connie Fairchild Parkland College Band and ISYM Records and Audio Recordings, 1959-2020

ID: 12/9/173

Primary Creator: Parkland College Band (1969-)

Other Creators: Illinois Summer Youth Music (ISYM)

Extent: 1.25 cubic feet

Arrangement: Arranged chronologically by type of material.

Date Acquired: 12/23/2021. More info below under Accruals.

Subjects: Bands, Concert Programs, Local History

Scope and Contents of the Materials

The collection consists of concert programs, correspondence, course syllabi, newspaper clippings, photographs and sound recordings documenting the Parkland College Band and Illinois Summer Youth Music program between 1959 and 2020. Fred Fairchild was on the ISYM percussion faculty 1970-1997 and was Advanced Percussion Camp Headmaster 1984-1997. It also includes a newly published history of the Parkland College band, Parkland Concert Band: The First Fifty Years that was published in 2021.

Biographical Note

The Parkland College Band started forming December 8, 1969 and began rehearsals the first week of January 1970, two and half years after classes first started at the community college. Carolyn Whitney, who helped start the original band, served as its director for the first season and its first concert took place on March 3rd of that year. An announcement placed in Champaign's News-Gazette on February 27, 1970 invited instrumentalists with at least two years of experience to join the free, non-credit, class as a community band. The first rehearsal began with twelve musicians but after six weeks, the ensemble had doubled in size. In 2001, the community ensemble had grown to 117 members.

The band originally rehearsed in the basement of the First Methodist Church in downtown Champaign. However, because of the rehearsal hall's low ceiling, the band eventually moved its rehearsals to the Jefferson Life Building on Hill Street. Beginning in 1978 the community band finally began regular rehearsals on the Parkland College campus.

Although Carolyn Whitney served as the band's first director, her music background was choral music. When Erwin "Ernie" Hoffman, hired in 1970 as a full-time faculty member for Parkland's music department, he started as the college's choral director even though his music background was directing wind ensembles. However, beginning in 1971, he took over directorship of the Parkland band from Whitney, who became the college's choir director, and he remained the band's director until 1996. Since HoffmanÃ¢??s departure from Parkland College, the band has had eight different conductors including William Worra (1997-2001), Gregory Grove (2001-2005), Jeffrey Marshall (2005-2008), Verlin Richardson, Joseph Manfredo and Michael Allen (Fall 2008), Joseph Manfredo (2009-2011) and Lawrence Stoner (2011-2020). Currently Matthew Dixon, a trombonist and DMA alumnus from the University of Illinois, became the Parkland Band's eighth director in 2020.

The Parkland College Band continues to serve the community by providing a creative performance outlet for amateur instrumentalists, and brings together different communities through collaborations with high school bands and other community bands around Central Illinois.

Subject/Index Terms

Bands
Concert Programs
Local History

Administrative Information

Repository: The Sousa Archives and Center for American Music

Accruals:

Parkland College Concert Band: The First Fifty Years 1970-2020 donated by Marilyn Marshall, November 16, 2021. An addition of sound recordings of the Parkland College Community Band and Connie and Fred Fairchild's programs and ISYM sound recordings was made on July 5, 2022.

Audio cassette of the 1997 Parkland Band concert with program and explanatory note and all of Series 3 were donated by Connie Fairchild on September 7, 2023.

Acquisition Source: Connie Fairchild

Acquisition Method: Gift

Box and Folder Listing

Browse by Series:

[Series 1: Parkland College Band and Orchestra Records and Audio Recordings, 1973-2020],
[Series 2: ISYM Records and Audio Recordings, 1959-2000],
[Series 3: University of Illinois Summer Band Records and Audio Recordings, 1911-2023],
[All]

Series 1: Parkland College Band and Orchestra Records and Audio Recordings, 1973-2020

Box 1

Folder 1: Concert Programs and Set lists, 1973-1989
Folder 2: Concert Programs and Set lists, 1990-1999
Folder 3: Concert Programs and Set lists, 2000-2009
Folder 4: Concert Programs and Set lists, 2010-2019
Folder 5: Parkland Concert Band: The First Fifty Years, 1984-2019: Brouchure about the history of the Parkland band; correspondence; syllabi; and newspaper clippings
Folder 6: Photographs taken by Fred Fairchild, 1985-1996

Box 2

Folder 1: Parkland College Community Orchestra and Concert Band Poster, 2011

Box 3

Folder 7: Parkland Band Concert with Program and Note, 1997-2023: Cassestte Tape

Box 4

Item 16: Parkland College Band: Disturbing the Peace, No Date: 1 compact disc. Parkland College Band audio recording of the "Disturbing the Peace" album, directed by William Worra.
Item 17: Parkland Community Band: American Lutheran Church, December 14, 2004: 1 compact disc. Audio recording of Parkland Community Band recital at American Luthern Church. Conducted by Greg Grove. 12/14/2004.
Item 18: Parkland Community Band: Spring 2005 Concerts, Vol. 1, 2005: 1 compact disc. Audio recording of several Parkland Community Band concerts from April 2005. Dates include April 24, 2005 at First Baptist Church of Champaign and April 28th, 2005 at Parkland Theater. Conducted by Greg Grove.
Item 19: Parkland Community Band: Spring 2005 Concerts, Vol. 2, 2005: 1 compact disc. Audio recording of several Parkland Community Band concerts from spring 2005. Continued recording from Vol. 1 of the concert on April 28th, 2005 at Parkland Theater and another concert from February 27th, 2005 at First Baptist Church of Champaign. Conducted by Greg Grove. Conductors names written in by donor Connie Fairchild.
Item 20: Parkland Orchestra and Community Band Concert, March 1, 2009: 1 compact disc. Audio recording of Parkland orchestra and community concert band recital from March 1st, 2009. Conductors Jack Ranney and Joe Manfredo written in by donor Connie Fairchild.
Item 21: Parkland Wind Ensemble and Parkland Community Concert Band, April 23, 2009: 1 compact disc. Audio recording of Parkland Wind Ensemble and Parkland Community Concert Band. Conductors Verlin Richardson and Joe Manfredo written in by donor Connie Fairchild.
Item 22: Parkland Community Band and Bloomington Community Band: Bloomington Concert, October 25, 2009: 1 compact disc. Audio recording of Parkland and Bloomington Community Bands Bloomington Concert. Conducted by Mike Wallace and Joe Manfredo. Inside jewel case is a white paper recital program entitled "Bands Across the Prairie"
Item 23: Parkland Concert Band 2009-10 CD #1, 2009-2010: 1 compact disc. Audio recording of two Parkland Concert Band recitals from October 25, 2009 in Bloomington, IL and March 18, 2010 in Champaign, IL. Conductor Joe Manfredo.
Item 24: Parkland Band: March 18th 2010, Champaign IL, 2010: 1 compact disc. Audio recording of Parkland Band concert on 3/18/2009 in Champaign, IL. Joe Manfredo Conductor. "copy 4 f+C" (Fred and Connie Fairchild) written on disc, as well as 5 track titles.
Item 25: Parkland Concert Band 2009-2010 CD #2, April 25, 2010: 1 compact disc. Audio recording of parkland concert band recital on April 25, 2010 in Rantoul, IL. Conducted by Joe Manfredo. Set list printed on disc.
Item 26: Parkland Concert Band 2010-11 CD #1, 2010: 1 compact disc. Audio recording of two Parkland concert band recitals in Champaign, IL. One from 10/17/2010 and the other from 12/5/2010. Track list printed on disc. Conducted by Joe Manfredo.
Item 27: Parkland Band CD, December 5, 2010: 1 compact disc. Audio recording of parkland band concert. Conducted by Joe Manfredo.
Item 28: Parkland Concert Band 2010-11 CD, 2011: 1 compact disc. Audio recording of Parkland Concert Band from two different performances: 3/3/2011 in Mahomet, IL and 5/1/2011 in Champaign, IL. Conducted by Joe Manfredo. Track lists printed on CD.