Selling Musical Taste in Early Twentieth-Century America

Abstract

Frances Elliot Clark (1860–1958) lived through a transitional time for music education and the music industry in the United States, and she influenced American culture by bringing these two communities together. She brought her background in school and community music education along with strong ties within music education communities to the position of director of the Education Division at the Victor Talking Machine Company. As Victor’s spokesperson and a national leader in the music appreciation movement, she convinced educators to overcome their distrust of the recording industry and view Victor machines and records as modern pedagogical tools. By aligning the cause of music appreciation with contemporary social reform efforts, Clark heightened the social relevance of school and community music education and she modernized nineteenth-century notions of taste, self-improvement, and cultural progress. She even taught Victor salespeople to use the discourse of music appreciation that resonated with educators and community volunteers and helped them sell to women. Stemming from the study of Clark’s Collected Papers in the Special Collections of the University of Maryland Libraries, this article demonstrates how Clark persuaded educators, school administrators, community volunteers, and Victor employees to spread the ideologies of music appreciation.