JAVS Fall 2022

Feature Article

The Viola Research Society

pedagogy. Currently, it is estimated that we need another $10,000 to sustain the DDRC’s viability far into the future.

Tomeet our goal, we have organized a DDRCGiving Circl e . A Giving Circle is akin to the mutual aid societies of yore. A group of individuals join together to support a common project or cause. To join the DDRC Giving Circle you need only to send a check or make an online donation in the amount of $50 or more per year . Joining the DDRC Giving Circle supports youthful scholars! Prior to this publication, $600 has already been pledged. So, we’re on our way! We’ll keep track of DDRC members by the calendar year. Member names will be posted in this column— The Development Corner —until we reach our goal. Periodically, we will announce the total raised so we can, as members of the DDRC Giving Circle, take a measure of pride in our effort! I ask you to join with me by donating $50 or more to the DDRC. • To donate online please go to the American Viola Society “Home” page and, at the upper right, you will find “Donate.” Click and scroll down to the David Dalton Fund or the Dalton Harmony Prize and follow the prompts. • Or, send a check in any amount of $50 or more to the American Viola Society, please note the DDRC on the memo line, and send to:

In 1972, our organization was founded as the Viola Research Society with an emphasis on research. In 1978, we changed our name to the American Viola Society, with research remaining a core principle. The AVS initiated the David Dalton Research Competition (DDRC) in 1999 in a move meant to formalize “research.” The title celebrates the extraordinary contributions of David Dalton as a long time Editor of the Journal of the American Viola Society ( JAVS ) and arguably one of our instrument’s leading figures in scholarship. The aim of the DDRC is to encourage and support youthful efforts in viola research. By all measures, the competition has been hugely successful. It has awarded over twenty prizes and provided multiple opportunities for publication in JAVS . Edward Klorman, the 2001 DDRC winner, said: “Participating in the DDRC was a pivotal step for me. It led to my first publication, which gave me the confidence to think more seriously about a dual career with research and writing alongside performing as a violist.” 1 And Andrew Filmer, our 2008 DDRC winner, said of his participation, “…The DDRC became a springboard to my career at a point when I was having doubts …” 2 In an effort to solidify funding for the DDRC, an Endowment was established, and a large fundraising effort took place in 2013-2014. Currently, the DDRC Endowment holds an impressive $24,000. However, that amount is not sufficient to maintain the DDRC and pay out the now $800 annual prize support: $400 1 st prize, $200 2 nd prize, and a Harmony Prize of $200 awarded for research focusing on non-canonic, underrepresented, and marginalized composers, their music, and/or performers and

American Viola Society 14070 Proton Rd Suite 100 Dallas, TX 75244

Thank you!

— Tom Tatton

Footnotes 1 Edward Klorman, Associate Professor, Music Theory, McGill University, Author of: Mozart’s Music of friends: Social Interplay in the Chamber Works. 2 Andrew Filmer, former JAVS Editor and Associate Professor of Music at Sunway University in Malaysia.

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Journal of the American Viola Society / Vol. 38, No. 2, Fall 2022