Our Future Looks Bright!
Waco Hall East and Waco Hall exteriors.
Dunn Center Relocates to Historic Harris House on Baylor’s Campus
The Dunn Center for Christian Music Studies (DCCMS) has a new home on Baylor's campus. Following exciting expansions in the School of Music, Harris House will now operate as an additional hub for the School, specifically for Church Music.
The move brings together DCCMS staff, Church Music faculty and student workers from their former locations throughout Waco Hall East. Baylor Church Music faculty now officing in Harris House include Drs. Bradley, Ingalls, Laube and Monteiro, as well as The Lev H. Prichard III Chair in the Study of Black Worship Dr. Stephen Newby, and Postdoctoral Fellow Dr. Shannan Baker. Staff of the Dunn Center, including Chason Disheroon, Elizabeth Laube, and Meg Burleson, also are officed at Harris House.
Harris House was built as a residential home in 1880. The building’s namesake, Judge Nathaniel Harris, purchased the home in 1914. Already located among a line of faculty homes, Judge Harris’s family home subsequently became a meeting space for Baylor students and faculty. The Harris family sold the home to Baylor in 1944, where it was converted to a home economics workshop. The building housed its first University department when Aerospace Studies and Air Force ROTC began operating from it in 1978. More recently, Harris House was home to University Ministries in the early 2000s and most recently to External Affairs and Institutional Events.
“The Church Music program is thrilled to begin a new chapter in the storied history of Harris House,” said Randall Bradley, D.M.A., The Ben H. Williams Professor of Church Music, professor of Church Music, and director of the Church Music Program and the Dunn Center for Christian Music Studies. “By joining the faculty, staff, and student offices into one location there is greater potential for research and collaborations that resource Baylor students and the local church.”
Make plans to stop by and visit the new home of the Dunn Center for Christian Music Studies!
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Our Baylor Opera Theatre has expanded its rehearsals into the Wiethorn Visitor’s Center and will share the newly renovated space with Theatre Arts. This center was the prior location of undergraduate admissions and the first stop for all prospective students wanting to tour the Baylor campus. With the opening of the Mark and Paula Hurd Welcome Center, the Wiethorn Visitor’s Center became available for Baylor Opera Theatre and Theatre Arts to expand their facilities footprint.
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The School of Music is excited to add a new Klop Continuo organ to its growing collection of performance instruments. This easy-to-transport chamber organ will be a crucial additio n to performances with Baylor University’s choirs and ensembles, but also for chamber music. Keyboard students will gain vital experiences in all areas of early music thanks to this uniquely versatile organ with its delicate touch and beautiful split stops.
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Board of Advocates
The Baylor University School of Music Board of Advocates is composed of alumni and business and professional leaders who are committed to the vitality of the School of Music. The Board helps the School to strengthen its educational, creative, research and outreach programs; improve its facilities; expand its base of support; and serve its alumni.
The 2023-24 Board of Advocates included Wolfgang Draving, Jane Abbott Kirk and Roger Abbott-Kirk, Dr. D.M. Edwards, Charles Fuller, Ben Gatzke, Giancarlo Guerrero, Carey and Stacie Hendrickson, Trammell Kelly, Scott and Cheryl Livesay, Carole Lyons, Melissa Mesloh, Cheryl Murff, Patrick and Beth Musgrave, Lyndon Olson, Jr., Brittany Peterson, Katie Salvatore, Nathan and Michal Taylor, Mason E. Tennery, James Williams and Betty Wilson.
Concert Connections
To view the schedule and access more details about upcoming events, visit our calendar. Most concert performances by Baylor’s major ensembles are presented via streaming, as are many of our student recitals. Visit our streaming schedule to access our livestreamed events. (NOTE: Baylor does not archive its streamed performances.)
Let’s Hear Your Voices
We want to share your good news! Send your news to Jenny LaPoint, marketing and communications manager, at Jenny_LaPoint@baylor.edu. We also want to share your news on our social media pages! Please email your copy to MusicSocialMedia@baylor.edu.