Finding Aid for Paul Rolland Papers, 1939-1992 | The Sousa Archives and Center for American Music

Title: Paul Rolland Papers, 1939-1992

ID: 12/5/21

Primary Creator: Rolland, Paul (1911-1978)

Extent: 26.85 cubic feet

Arrangement: Series 1 arranged topically and chronologically thereunder, series 2 arranged by format.

Date Acquired: 08/18/1972. More info below under Accruals.

Subjects: American String Teachers Association, Austria - Art and Literature, Correspondence, European String Teachers Association, Faculty, Faculty Papers, Illinois String Project, Illinois Summer Youth Music, Music, School of, Music Extension, Music Publishers, Music teachers, Music Teachers National Association, National Academy of Music, Photographs, Stringed Instruments, Summer Youth Music, Violin, Walden Quartet

Formats/Genres: Music instruction, Papers

Languages: English, Hungarian, Russian, Croatian, Hebrew, German, Japanese

Consists of correspondence, photographs, research files, method books, sheet music, audio recordings, films, and concert ephemera, documenting the life of Paul Rolland (1911-78) and his tenure as professor of music at the University of Illinois (1945-78). Of note are photographs, films, and sound recordings, documenting his Illinois String Project. Also of note are letters between Rolland and Sinichi Suzuki, Yehudi Menuhin, and Pablo Casals. In addition several photographs document his performance work at the University of Illinois with guest conductors like Igor Stravinsky as well as ensembles like the Walden Quartet.

Paul Rolland (1911-1978) was born on November 21, 1911 in Budapest under the name Pali Reisman. He began his studies on the violin at age 11 with the Hungarian violinist Jenö Hubay. At age 18 Reisman studied with Dezsö Rados. In 1933, he began his studies at the Franz Liszt Academy of Music in Budapest under Imre Waldbauer and Leo Weiner. While in Budapest, he served as the first violinist of the Budapest Symphony and taught violin at the Gimes Institute of Music. He emigrated to the United States in 1938, traveling with the Pro Ideal Quartet to the West Minster Choir College in Princeton, New Jersey. Around 1940 Reisman earned a position with Trenton Symphony Orchestra, playing in the first stand of violas.  Reisman joined the faculty of Simpson College in Indanola, Iowa in 1942, leading their orchestra and string program. In 1943, he also became a member of the Lerner String Quartet. Reisman's wife Clara, who had graduated from the Royal Hungarian Academy of Music in 1939 with a degree in piano performance, joined Reisman on faculty at Simpson College around this time. While in Iowa, Reisman also served as the choir director at First Presbyterian Church in Indianola.

Following the outbreak of World War II, Paul and Clara Reisman changed their last name to Rolland, adopting an anglicized name to avoid anti-German sentiments. In 1945, Rolland joined the faculty of the University of Illinois. Rolland was instrumental in establishing and making alterations to the Doctor of Musical Arts degree in performance. At the University, he performed regularly with the Illinois String Trio. He also gave regular faculty recitals alongside prominent faculty members. While John Kuypers was the director of the School of Music, Rolland also gave performances as principal of the University of Illinois Symphony Orchestra, which was conducted by serveral prominant composers and conductors, including Igor Stravinsky.

Rolland's research principally considered methods of teaching young children in group settings. One of his first major research projects considered the work of Shinichi Suzuki, a project that led to Suzuki's US Talent Education Tour and Rolland's film on the same subject. Beginning in 1954, Rolland noticed that several of his younger students needed additional support holding their full-size violin bows, so he constructed the "Rolland Bow Grip." This research endeavor turned into a side business called the String Research Company, which was operated out of Rolland's home. In 1966, Rolland received government funding to start the University of Illinois String Research Project. The project analyzed various methods of teaching young students across the state of Illinois and constructed a dossier of photographic data analyzing bow holds and body positions of violin students. The project resulted in his method book series, The Teaching of Action of String Playing, as well as several pedagogical films that are still used by the Paul Rolland Society and those who practice the Rolland Method. The resulting method served as a tool for both young students and violin instructors, espousing the benefits of group lesson environments over one-on-one instruction.

In addition to his innovative research, Rolland served the University in several professional organizations. In 1946, Rolland became a founding member of the American String Teacher's Association (ASTA), serving as its first president. Four years later, Rolland unveiled the ASTA's journal, American String Teacher. He would serve as the editor of this publication until 1960. Under the auspices of the ASTA, Rolland assisted with the publication of several important treatises on the violin, including Joseph Szigeti's Ten Beethoven Sonatas for Violin and Piano. Because of his involvement with ASTA, Rolland was invited to join several other music education organizations, including the European String Teachers Assocation (ESTA), Music Educators National Conference (MENC), Music Teachers National Association (MTNA), and several other international organizations.

Rolland also gave frequent workshops, serving as a guest performer and conductor for youth programs and festivals across the country. Shortly after ariving at Illinois, Rolland joined the faculty of the Illinois Summer Youth Music program, which was sponsored by the Illinois Music Extension Office. He also gave a series of radio workshops over WILL Radio in 1946. In 1959 he served as string faculty member at the national summer camp for music at Interlochen. As president of the ASTA, Rolland served as a guest clinician to several regional branches of the ASTA. He also used his sabbaticals as opportunities to give workshops. In 1961 he received State Department funding to tour Austria, West Germany, Hungary, Russia, Yugoslavia, Turkey, and Israel. Throughout this trip, Rolland gave workshops and lectures. He received additional funding to travel to the UK in 1975 and Austria, Hungary, Australia, and New Zealand in 1978.

In 1974, Rolland became a founding member of the National Academy of the Arts, an early charter high school located in Urbana, Illinois. Serving as the string instructor, Rolland helped expand the program throughout the mid-1970s, accepting many talented students including Lucia Lin. After Rolland died in 1978 in Champaign, Illinois, the National Academy of Music renamed it's orchestra the Paul Rolland Orchestra.

American String Teachers Association
Austria - Art and Literature
Correspondence
European String Teachers Association
Faculty
Faculty Papers
Illinois String Project
Illinois Summer Youth Music
Music, School of
Music Extension
Music Publishers
Music teachers
Music Teachers National Association
National Academy of Music
Photographs
Stringed Instruments
Summer Youth Music
Violin
Walden Quartet

Repository: The Sousa Archives and Center for American Music

Accruals: An additional batch of material was received from the Rolland Estate on May 8, 1991. MPAL retained the audio and film recordings until 2017, when these were transferred to the Sousa Archives.

Acquisition Source: Rolland Estate

Acquisition Method: Gift

Related Materials: For original control files and acquistion information see the Music Library Administrative Records (35/3/68), Box 4, Folder 10.