Biography of Violet Archer

Violet Archer

Violet Archer was born Violet Balestreri in Montreal on April 24, 1913, the third of four children, to native Italian parents. Her family chose to anglicize their name to Archer from Balestreri (Archer is the English translation of the Italian name). Ms. Archer began her musical training as a pianist, and by 17 years of age had become a professional accompanist. In 1934, she completed the requirements for the Teacher's Licentiate in piano at the McGill Conservatory and in 1936 received her Bachelor of Music in composition and piano, also from McGill University. Two years later, she obtained the Associate Diploma of the Royal Canadian College of Organists, studying organ with John Weatherseed. Throughout her years in Montreal, Archer was an active soloist, accompanist, and private music teacher as well as a percussionist with the Montreal Women's Symphony under the direction of Ethel Stark. From 1939 to 1947, she was deputy organist for several Montreal churches.

After finishing her Bachelor of Music degree, Archer continued her studies at McGill, receiving four scholarships to study composition with Canadian composer Claude Champagne and with McGill's Dean of Music, Douglas Clarke. In 1940, the Montreal Symphony Orchestra premiered her composition, Scherzo Sinfonica. Her first published work was Three Scenes for Piano (Habitant Sketches) by Mercury Music in 1946. She spent one summer in New York (1942) where she studied composition with Bela Bartok. In 1947, Ms. Archer won the Bradley Keeler Memorial Scholarship to attend the Yale School of Music where she was able to pursue graduate studies with Paul Hindemith. She was awarded additional scholarships from the province of Quebec, and in 1949 was awarded her Master's degree in composition from the Yale School of Music, receiving the Woods Chandler Prize for composition for her thesis The Bell.

Upon graduation, Archer used her savings to finance a musical tour of post-war Europe. She had hoped to find a teaching position in London, but was unsuccessful in this pursuit. Returning to Canada, she taught at McGill Conservatory and then found employment at three U.S. schools: North Texas State College, where she was Composer-in-Residence from 1950 to 1953, Cornell University, and the University of Oklahoma, where she was appointed professor of composition. During her eight year stay in Oklahoma, Archer received two grants for composition: one to compose at the MacDowell Colony during the summer of 1956, and the other a grant from the Canada Council for a year's leave to compose in 1958-9. Violet Archer hosted both a radio program and a television program while in Oklahoma, providing a platform for discussions of 20th century music. During this time, she was also involved with sponsoring the student chapter of Sigma Alpha Iota, and as she had in Texas, starting regional composers' forums for students.

In the summer of 1961, Violet Archer began studies toward a doctorate at the University of Toronto, but was forced to put this aside in order to nurse her seriously ill mother. In 1962, Richard Eaton, a fellow student from McGill Conservatory, offered Archer a position with the University of Alberta's Department of Music in Edmonton. Violet Archer was familiar with the University, as she was a summer school instructor there in 1948 and 1949. In 1962, the Department had a three-year program in music and four faculty members in the department. By 1967, the four-year Bachelor of Music degree had been instituted, and in 1971, the first master's degree student was admitted. Violet Archer headed the theory and composition department and by the time of her retirement from the University of Alberta in 1978, the music faculty had grown to over thirty. Other professional activities included work on behalf of the Canadian Folk Music Society, the Canadian Association of University Schools of Music, and several years service as the Western Canadian representative of the Canadian League of Composers. She established composers' forums for her students; maintained a full schedule of teaching and composing duties, and formed associations with other musicians who regularly performed her pieces. Her works were frequently broadcast on CBC programming, and she had numerous offers for commissions of her works. Archer's early compositions were orchestral, and she later produced chamber and vocal works. She believed strongly that poetry inspired music and established a relationship with several poets that involved setting their poetry to music. Her 335 works also include compositions for choir, organ, and solo piano. She wrote two operas, over 90 children's works, the film scores to two Canadian documentaries, and an electronic piece called Episodes. Her last commissioned composition, completed in 1999, was a work for classical accordion and orchestra.

Dr. Archer was the recipient of countless honors and awards in recognition of her outstanding achievements. She was awarded an honorary Doctorate of Music from McGill University in 1971; and received honorary degrees from the University of Windsor and Mount Allison University in New Brunswick. She was appointed an Officer of the Order of Canada in 1983; received the Canadian Music Council's Composer of the Year award in 1984; and in 1987 had the Canadian Music Centre Prairie Region library at the University of Calgary named after her. Other honors included being inducted into the Cultural Hall of Fame in Edmonton, and receiving the Sir Frederick Haultain prize for her contribution to music in 1987. A small ornamental park in Edmonton bears her name, and a three-day music festival was held in her honor in 1985. Violet Archer's 80th birthday was celebrated with a gala concert and celebration in 1993, and her departure from Edmonton in 1998 was also marked with honoring events and a farewell concert.

In May 1998, Violet Archer moved to Ottawa to be closer to her family. She passed away there on February 21, 2000 at the age of 86.

Scope and Content

The Violet Archer fonds span a period of over seventy years, and provide a valuable record of the composing, research, teaching and life experiences of a noted University professor and internationally recognized composer of music. The Violet Archer fonds is unusually complete, with intact records that illustrate both professional and personal facets of her life.

As noted in the introduction, the Archer records, except for her original compositions and scores, arrived at the University of Alberta Archives without much evidence of original order or organization. While her scores and musical compositions had been listed and numbered by James Whittle, Department of Music librarian at the University of Alberta, the remainder of her records was transferred in large boxes to the Archives from her home in Ottawa. Boxes were labeled as coming from her basement, piano bench, bookshelves, etc. but were pretty mixed in each box. A large volume of the textual records is comprised of correspondence, and while the correspondence tended to be boxed together, within any single box would be a range of letters spanning any number of years. Correspondence from the 1950's was interspersed with correspondence from the 1990's. Each letter appeared to be methodically opened with a letter opener, read, and returned to the envelope (even Christmas and birthday cards were returned to their envelopes). Other like records were often boxed together; teaching files in single boxes, and boxes containing books, others with sound recordings, etc., providing the only evidence of extant original order. The large volume of records received, however, essentially loose and unorganized, necessitated the imposing of order by the archivist. Two page series were determined, that of professional and personal papers, and several sub-series delineated within each of these two series.

Series One Professional and Career-related papers, are the largest of the two series and are organized into several sub-series. The sub-series designations are based on the contents of the records, and often chronological in terms of order within each sub-series. Within Series One are student records (Archer as student); teaching records, chronicling her years on faculty at North Texas State College, the University of Oklahoma, and the University of Alberta; correspondence files; composing records; and reference records. The sub-series are substantial in size, and provide a wealth of information about Archer's professional life. Within the correspondence files, there is outgoing and incoming chronologically arranged correspondence, letters with identified individuals, reference letters, correspondence with associations and organizations, and publishing project and music dealer correspondence. The composition and composing sub-series of records is further organized into performing rights organization records, music publishers contracts and correspondence, conference and workshop records, performances, honors and awards, and original Archer compositions. The sub-series of reference material is also extensive, and includes listings of the imprint, books, music by other composers, and a collection of sound recordings maintained by Archer. Of especial significance, are the files of original Archer scores and compositions. A significant number of her compositions are represented in these holdings, and provide evidence about the steps and processes involved in creating a piece of music from manuscript beginnings to a final published piece of music.

Series Two, Violet Archer's personal papers, while much smaller in extent than Series One, provide a fascinating glimpse of the person behind the public persona of professor and composer. Her personal correspondence files, particularly the incoming and outgoing correspondence with her younger sister Carolyn, document the emotions, struggles, triumphs and challenges she faces as a woman functioning in a very male-dominated field and time period. Carolyn is the one person that Violet freely confides in, and she shares thoughts, feelings, and philosophies with her sister that are only touched upon in the other records housed in the fonds. Rounding out the personal records in Series Two are other correspondence files, financial records, insurance records, artwork, and a large photographic sub-series.

The Violet Archer fonds provides numerous research opportunities. Students of music history, composition, and theory will find the records valuable, as well as individuals interested in researching a woman's career path in pre-and post-second world war North American society. There are records related to the music scene in both the U.S. and Canada, letters exchanged with well-known musicians, colleagues, writers and students; and many documents associated with the music publishing industry. The growth of the University of Alberta's music department is documented in the records, as is the growth of Canadian music organizations. The completeness, extent, and condition of the Violet Archer fonds ensure its strong informational and evidential research value.

Arrangement

The fonds contains 2 series:

Restrictions

Restrictions on Access

The records are open for research.

Restrictions on Use

The University of Alberta Archives holds copyright on most of the material in the Violet Archer fonds. Permission to reproduce, transmit, or distribute material from the Violet Archer fonds must be obtained from the University of Alberta Archives in writing. Certain documents in the Violet Archer fonds are subject to third-party licensing and distribution agreements. Researchers obtaining access to Violet Archer material for reproduction purposes are responsible to secure any third-party licensing or distribution rights.

Related Accessions

Administrative Information

Preferred Citation

Letter:

--Bela Bartok to Violet Archer, May 20, 1942, 2001-58, Box 31, File 17, Violet Archer Fonds, University of Alberta Archives.

Score:

--Violet Archer, "Scherzo and Andante, for string orchestra // Score of Scherzo," Score, August 1936, Group 1, Item 33.1, Work No. 17, Violet Archer Fonds, University of Alberta Archives.

Acquisition Information

Violet Archer's records were received at the University of Alberta as a bequest made by Violet Archer through her will. Ms. Archer had a friendship with Dr. James Whittle, Librarian, University of Alberta Department of Music and Dr. Whittle assisted Violet in creating a detailed listing of her compositions and scores. Compositions housed in her Edmonton home, her Ottawa home, and at the University of Calgary were included in the list prepared by Dr. Whittle. Upon Violet Archer's death in Ottawa in February of 2000, the music detailed in the Whittle list, as well as Violet Archer's extensive archives of textual, sound and photographic documents were forwarded to the University of Alberta Archives.