Department of Music & Dance Facilities
Instruction, Rehearsal, and Research Spaces
The instructional and performance activities of the Department of Music and Dance take place in several locations on the Lawrence campus. Murphy Hall is a five-level facility containing offices for faculty in applied music, music theory and composition, opera, musicology, and ensembles. It contains choral and instrumental rehearsal halls, the Music and Dance Library, the Electronic Music Studio, the Kansas Center for Music Technology, classrooms, and practice rooms. Murphy Hall contains offices for faculty in music education and music therapy, the Psychology and Acoustics of Music Laboratory, and classrooms. Robinson Center contains the dance faculty offices and two large dance studios, including the Elizabeth Sherbon Dance Theatre.
Archive of Recorded Sound
The Archive of Recorded Sound is an exceptional collection of sound recordings of great historical significance. It contains more than 75,000 items, including the Wright Jazz Collection, the Seaver Opera Collection, and Bierley Early Band Collection. The Archive contains all equipment necessary for playback of its various early recording technologies, including Pathe, Edison, and cylinder players. The Archive is a tremendous resource for performers and scholars.
Richard F. Wright Jazz Archive
The Richard F. Wright Jazz Archive at the University of Kansas is one of the most complete of its kind in the Midwest. Its holdings thoroughly cover all major jazz periods from the 1920’s and 1930’s on 78-rpm recordings. The Archive also has an on-line database of its recordings.
For more information, click here.
Instruments
The Department of Music and Dance has a significant inventory of musical instruments. There are 150 pianos, mostly Steinways, Yamahas, and Baldwins, including six concert grands. Other specialized equipment includes a Roland keyboard lab; the Collegium Musicum instrument collection which includes recorders, shawms, sackbuts, cornetts, crumhorns, lutes, violas da gamba, cornamuses, a ranket, a Baroque trumpet, and percussion instruments; a clavichord; four harpsichords; six practice organs; and a full complement of band and orchestra instruments.
Thomas Gorton Music and Dance Library
A fine library is a fundamental component in any school and the Thomas Gorton Music and Dance Library is an exceptional resource for the faculty and students of the Department of Music and Dance. Books, scores, sound recordings, periodicals, and microforms number in excess of 100,000, fully servicing all degree programs offered. The facility contains listening equipment, study carrels, and computer terminals for on-line searches. The Library is staffed with professional music librarians who are able to assist with any need.
Music & Dance Computer Lab
Lab hours are as follows:
Sunday: 1:00pm–10:00pm
Monday: 12:30pm–1:30pm, 4:30pm–10:00pm
Tuesday: 12:30pm–10:00pm
Wednesday: 4:30pm–5:30pm, 7:30pm–10:00pm
Thursday: 12:30pm–1:30pm, 4:30pm–10:00pm
Friday: 11:30am–12:30pm
Saturday: 12:00pm–5:00pm
