University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Dept. of Music.

The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Department of Music was established in 1919 with the appointment of Paul John Weaver as Professor of Music. Prior to that time the study and performance of music in the University had been sporadic. Before 1900, according to L. R. Wilson, there had been an occasional glee club, a University quartet, and late in the 1890s a choral group directed by Dr. Karl P. Harrington, Professor of Latin. For music at events such as commencements, the University had to rely on guest bands. Dissatisfied with this state of affairs, President Venable asked his secretary, Charles T. Woollen, who had come to the campus in 1901, to promote musical activities. By 1903 Woollen was directing the first University Band. He also was instrumental in the formation of the Guitar and Mandolin Club, the Glee Club, the Orchestra, and the University Musical Association. Plans for the formal establishment of a music department were being developed when the advent of World War I forced the University to put them on hold. The war also caused the temporary disbanding of the musical organizations that Woollen had fostered.

When President Chase took office in 1919, he made the establishment of a music department a priority and promptly hired Paul John Weaver. The department's initial course offerings included Appreciation of Music, History of Music, Sight Singing and Ear Training, and Harmony, all taught by Professor Weaver. Weaver reorganized the Band, the Orchestra, and the Glee Club and inaugurated a series of concerts by noted guest artists. Under his direction the Glee Club became quite accomplished and toured extensively in 1925, 1926, and 1927; the 1927 tour included concerts in London and Paris. In addition to his other duties, Weaver also was in charge of the Bureau of Community Music in the Extension Division. The Bureau, in cooperation with the Department of Music, sought to stimulate the formation of local choruses and instrumental ensembles and to foster the public appreciation of music. Later it provided administrative assistance to the Institute of Folk Music (est. 1931), the North Carolina Symphony Society (1932), and the Carolina Opera School (1951).

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