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Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia Biography & Facts

Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia (legally Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia Fraternity of America, colloquially known as Phi Mu Alpha, PMA, or simply Sinfonia) (ΦΜΑ) is an American collegiate social fraternity for men with a special interest in music. The fraternity is open to men "who, through a love for music, can assist in the fulfillment of [its] object and ideals either by adopting music as a profession or by working to advance the cause of music in America." Phi Mu Alpha has initiated more than 260,000 members, known as Sinfonians, and the fraternity currently has over 7,000 active collegiate members in 249 collegiate chapters throughout the United States. Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia was founded as the Sinfonia Club at the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston, Massachusetts on October 6, 1898, by Ossian Everett Mills, bursar of the conservatory. Two years later, on October 6, 1900, a delegation of members from the Sinfonia Club visited the Broad Street Conservatory of Music in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and a group of students there successfully petitioned to form a chapter of the club, thus establishing the organization as a national fraternity. By 1901, two additional chapters were chartered, and the 1st National Convention was held in Boston to establish a national constitution. On the national level, Phi Mu Alpha operates independently from any of the major governing councils for collegiate fraternities in the United States, such as the North American Interfraternity Conference (IFC), though it is a member of other interfraternal organizations such as the Association of Fraternity Advisors, the Fraternity Communications Association, and the National Interfraternity Music Council. Individual chapters may participate in campus-level IFC governance if required by the institution. The organization's national headquarters are located at Lyrecrest, an estate on the northern outskirts of Evansville, Indiana. The fraternity has local, regional, and national levels of governance. The most fundamental local unit is the collegiate chapter chartered at a college or university. Phi Mu Alpha also charters local alumni associations in a particular geographic area. Chapters and alumni associations are grouped into provinces. A National Executive Committee, elected by a National Assembly at each triennial National Convention, governs the national organization. History Founding Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia was founded as the Sinfonia Club by Ossian Everett Mills, the bursar of the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston, Massachusetts. Mills was profoundly interested in the physical, mental, moral, and spiritual development of the conservatory's students and had a tradition of hosting devotional meetings going back as far as 1886. Mills sought to encourage the personal development of the young men at the conservatory through wholesome social interaction among them, leading him to suggest that the older students of the conservatory invite the newer students to a social reception on September 22, 1898. Several men who attended the reception began to discuss the possibility of organizing a more permanent social club, and a meeting was planned for October 6, 1898, for that purpose. The fraternity attributes the name "Sinfonia" to prominent American composer George W. Chadwick, then director of the conservatory. Chadwick was elected as the second honorary member of the club after Ossian Mills, and suggested the name "Sinfonia" from a student organization to which he had belonged in Leipzig, Germany. Before 1947, the legal corporate name of the fraternity was Sinfonia Fraternity of America, though the Greek letters Phi, Mu, and Alpha had been associated with the fraternity since at least 1904. The delegates to the 29th National Convention in 1946 approved changing the corporate name to Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia Fraternity of America, which it remains today. Expansion The Sinfonia Club became a national fraternity on October 6th, 1900, with the admission of a group of men at the Broad Street Conservatory of Music in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, under the direction of Gilbert Raynolds Combs. The traditional date given in fraternity resources for the founding of the Beta chapter at Broad Street Conservatory is October 6, 1900. However, while the petitioning letter submitted by the men from Philadelphia is dated October 6, a notation made by Ralph Howard Pendleton, secretary of Alpha chapter at the New England Conservatory, at the bottom of the letter indicates that the petition was not approved until October 8. For the next two decades, Phi Mu Alpha grew and emphasized developing high character among male musicians. Percy Jewett Burrell, sixth Supreme President (1907–1914), was influential during its formative years because of his long tenure in office and extensive writings. Burrell wrote many articles calling for members to develop within themselves the noble virtues espoused by the fraternity's exoteric and esoteric teachings. The professional period As the fraternity grew in both the number of members and chapters, so did its emphasis on the advancement of music. In 1927, the original Object statement was altered so that "to advance the cause of music in America" was put in a place of prominence. After the American victory in World War II, the young men who returned from battle to re-enter the nation's universities through the benefits of the G.I. Bill were less interested in an organization devoted to upholding noble ideals—ideals that seemed naive given the men's wartime experiences—than they were in the practical matter of finding civilian employment. This, combined with the fact that many of Phi Mu Alpha's national leaders at the time were heavily involved in state and local music educators' professional organizations, led the fraternity to become increasingly concerned with the advancement of its members in the music profession (especially in music education) in addition to the advancement of music in general. The professional period of the fraternity's history culminated in 1970 when its leaders began marketing it as "The Professional Fraternity for Men in Music" and when a new statement of purpose was adopted that began, "The primary purpose of this Fraternity shall be to encourage and actively promote the highest standards of creativity, performance, education, and research in music in America." Title IX and coed membership Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, enacted on June 23, 1972, prohibits discrimination based on gender in educational programs receiving federal funding. This prohibition extends to professional societies for students enrolled at universities that receive federal funds for student financial aid or other programs. However, social organizations, such as social fraternities and sororities, are specifically exempted. Phi Mu Alpha's initial response to Title IX was to allow chapters, beginning in 1976, to initiate women on a case-by-case basis as universities began q.... Discover the Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia popular books. Find the top 100 most popular Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia books.