American musicologist.
Dr. Charles Edward Hamm was born in Charlottesville, Va., on April 21, 1925. In 1947, he graduated from the University of Virginia with a BA in music. Dr. Hamm went on to earn his MFA in 1950 and his PhD in musicology from Princeton University in 1960. He taught at Princeton, the Cincinnati Conservatory of Music, Tulane University, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and Dartmouth College. Dr. Hamm was also president of the American Musicological Society from 1972-1974. He retired professionally in 1989. Reflected in the scope of his sound recording collection, Dr. Hamm focused his studies on twentieth century popular American music, publishing many journal articles and books on the subject. His writings later in his career delved more deeply into the growing use of mass media in late-twentieth century musical styles and rituals, and the intercultural reception of music.