Department of Music program and publicity files, 1966-2007 (RSS 1220)

The University of California, San Diego Department of Music is internationally recognized as a premiere center for education and innovation in music. The Department was established in 1965 to function as an experimental music center with a focus on novel research and theory. The Department focused its initial hiring efforts on appointing individuals with broad and experimental musical interests who would aim to cultivate collaboration between disciplines. John Stewart, the founding Provost of Muir College, consulted with modernist composer Ernst Krenek and recruited several of Krenek's former pupils as founding faculty members, including Robert Erickson, Thomas Nee, Will Ogdon, and Pauline Oliveros.

Classes commenced in 1967, just as John Muir College welcomed its first students. Instruction was initially conducted out of repurposed Camp Matthews buildings located on the site of John Muir College. As campus development and enrollment increased, the Department's footprint required expansion. The Mandeville Center for the Performing Arts was constructed in 1975 and served as the primary site for the Department's instruction and performances for the next three decades. The Conrad Prebys Music Center and Concert Hall was opened in 2009 and serves as performance space for faculty, students, and other musicians and artists.

Early undergraduate courses included collaborative studies of music, dance, theater, and art. The 1972 establishment of the Center for Music Experiment was significant; it led to the development of several laboratories, studios, and ensembles including the Computer Audio Research Laboratory (CARL), the Studio for Extended Performance, the Extended Vocal Techniques Ensemble (EVTE), and the KIVA Ensemble. In 1977, CME Director Pauline Oliveros secured additional funding for an official computer music facility that would allow the integration of technological research at the graduate and undergraduate levels.

The CME was a prominent facet of the Department of Music for decades. In 1993, CME became the Center for Research in Computing and the Arts (CRCA) and went on to provide support to a variety of interdisciplinary projects. On July 1, 2012, the CRCA lost its status as an Organized Research Unit, and its functions and facilities were integrated into the Institute for Telecommunications and Information Technologies (Calit2). The Department continues to offer courses in Computer Music and to collaborate with the CRCA.

Over the years, Department of Music faculty and students have been recognized with Pulitzer Prizes, MacArthur "Genius" Awards, Guggenheim Fellowships, Grawemeyer Awards, and Grammy Awards. The department explores and supports experimental and diverse performance, composition, and research, and offers courses in Composition, Computer Music, Ethnomusicology, Integrative Studies, and Performance. It remains an important facet of the UC San Diego community and a contributor to global music scholarship.

Department Chairs have included: Will Ogdon (Founding Chair, 1965-1971), Thomas Nee (1971-1978), Bernard Rands (1979), Roger Reynolds (1979-1981), Jean-Charles Francois (1982-1984), Peter Farrell (1984-1985), Edwin Harkins (1986-1987), Cecil Lytle (1987-1988), Peter Farrell (1989-1991), Carol Plantamura (1991-1993), Rand Steiger (1993-1996), Richard Moore (1996-2000), John Fonville (2000-2007), Rand Steiger (2007-2012), Miller Puckette (Interim Chair, 2013), Aleck Karis (Interim Chair, 2014), Lei Liang (Interim Chair, 2015-2016), Rand Steiger (2016-2018), David Borgo (2018-2020), and Anthony Burr (2020-present).