University at Buffalo Libraries

Finding Aid for the Pamela Gearhart Collection of Photographs, circa 1955-1983

Mus. Arc. 33.1

State University of New York at Buffalo. Music Library

Finding aid prepared by John Bewley.
Finding aid encoded in EAD by John Bewley June 2012.
Finding aid written in English.
Finding aid prepared using DACS ( Describing Archives: A Content Standard ).

© 2012. State University of New York at Buffalo. All rights reserved.

Collection Overview

Administrative Information

[Specified item], Pamela Gearhart Collection of Photographs, circa 1955-1983, Music Library, The State University of New York at Buffalo.

Gift of Pamela Gearhart 2007.

Materials can be examined by qualified researchers in the Music Library during hours of operation during which Music Librarians are present. In order to insure access, researchers are advised to contact the Music Library in advance of visits.

Copyright for the materials in the collection does not reside with the Music Library. Therefore, patrons wishing to publish any item, or part of an item from this collection for any purpose, are responsible for securing requisite permissions.

Entire collection digitized and available in University at Buffalo Libraries Digital Collections .

Processed by Gabrielle A. Carlo 2012.

No further accruals are expected to this collection.

Biographical Note

Pamela Gearhart (née Gerhart) was born July 21, 1934 in Altoona, Pennsylvania. She began her musical training with her father, violinist and conductor, Russell Gerhart. Russell Gerhart studied violin with Ralph Lewando, Carl Malcherek, Elias Breeskin, and Mischa Mischakoff. He studied conducting with Serge Koussevitsky at the Berkshire Music Center. Gerhart and his wife Martha formed the Gerhart String Ensemble in Altoona, Pennsylvania, which grew into the Altoona Symphony Orchestra. He also served as conductor of the Saint Louis Philharmonic and Huntsville (Alabama) Civic Symphony.

When Pamela Gearhart was fifteen she began five years of study at the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia. Her violin teachers before and after her years at Curtis were Mischa Mischakoff, Joseph Knitzer, Ivan Galamian and Efrem Zimbalist. While at Curtis she performed in the Curtis Orchestra under conductors Alexander Hilsberg and William Smith, and studied chamber music performance with Karen Tuttle and Marcel Tabuteau.

Gearhart was appointed faculty member in the University of Buffalo Music Department in 1957. Initially she was hired as a part-time instructor in violin but eventually assumed other duties, including conducting the university's orchestra and directing the program in chamber music performance. She continued to work at the University at Buffalo until 1975.

While in Buffalo Gearhart also served as conductor of the Community Music School of Buffalo's youth orchestra 1959-1977. The membership in the orchestra grew from ten to more than one hundred while she was conductor. Her credentials as a music educator also include work on the faculty at Villa Maria Institute of Music (Buffalo) 1963-1965, serving for six years as Alexander Schneider's assistant for the University at Buffalo's String Institute, numerous positions as guest conductor and judge at music festivals, and director of the Youth Makes Music String Workshop (Huntsville, Alabama). After leaving the University at Buffalo she joined the faculty at Ithaca College where she taught 1975-1993. In 1980 she founded the Ithaca Youth Orchestra. She continued as its conductor until her retirement from Ithaca College.

Pamela Gearhart married fellow University at Buffalo music faculty member Livingston Gearhart in 1955. They were frequent collaborators on programs and projects. Livingston wrote many musical arrangements geared specifically to the pedagogical needs of Pamela's ensembles. Many of these arrangements and compositions survive in the Livingston Gearhart Score Collection.

Scope and Content Note

The Pamela Gearhart Collection of Photographs contains thirty photographs, including images of Pamela Gearhart and casual snapshots of other musicians, including her husband Livingston Gearhart, Budapest String Quartet members Alexander and Mischa Schneider, and conductor Skitch Henderson.

Arrangement

The collection is arranged in rough chronological order.

Search Terms

The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the Library's online catalog.

Subjects

Genres