Scott Schwartz

Biography

Scott Schwartz (Rho Chi Chapter – 1977) is the Director and Archivist for Music and Fine Arts for the Sousa Archives and Center for American Music at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.  Prior to his arrival to Illinois in September 2003, he worked as an archivist for the American music collections at the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of American History.  He earned his Bachelor of Music degree from SUNY at Fredonia in 1980, Masters of Music from Michigan State University in 1984, and completed three years of doctoral studies in ethnomusicology between 1984 and 1987 while at West Virginia University.

His primary areas of research focus on preserving America’s music heritage, American popular music, and the music and culture of the Appalachian serpent-handling communities of rural Kentucky.  In addition, he is the Associate Professor of Library Administration and teaches courses in archival administration through the University’s Graduate School for Library and Information Science.  Since his arrival at the University, he has played the lead role in the development of a research center for America’s music at the university and has been responsible for the re-energizing of a national celebration, American Music Month, that recognizes the contributions made by educators, archivists, librarians, and curators for the preservation of America’s cultural legacy.