At this extraordinary joint meeting of three regional chapters of scholarly societies, one international festival, and a symposium, the Southeast-Caribbean Chapter of the Society for Ethnomusicology, known today as SEMSEC, is celebrating its 21st anniversary, counting from its first annual meeting in May 1981. In the next few minutes, I would like to share some of its early history with you.
The structural guidelines for setting up chapters in the Society for Ethnomusicology perhaps differs from practices in other societies. In The College Music Society, for example, the Board of Directors initially determined the geographic boundaries of and established its chapters. In the Society for Ethnomusicology, however, members of particular areas have proposed their own chapters and basically determined their own boundaries. The present Southeast-Caribbean Chapter of SEM, for example, was originally envisioned by four SEM members (Martha Ellen Davis, Doris Dyen, Ronald Riddle, and myself) during the 1980 annual meeting of SEM, held at Indiana University. Present at the "founding breakfast" in Bloomington on November 22, 1980, were Willie Collins from Tuskegee Institute, Martha Ellen Davis from the Dominican Republic, Doris Dyen from the Bureau of Florida Folklife, Ashenafi Kebede from FSU, Kari Noran and Ronald Riddle from New College in Sarasota, Gertrude Rivers Robinson from Los Angeles, Darius Thieme from Vanderbilt, Patricia Waterman from the University of South Florida, Gloria Ziolkowski, a student from FSU, and myself. Willie Collins functioned as secretary and I acted as chair of the meeting. Initially we proposed to include the insular Caribbean because of Martha Ellen Davis' place of employment and residence in the Dominican Republic, and the southeastern US states of Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee. Virginia and West Virginia were thrown in when I asked the national office for mailing labels. SEM-SECC was officially recognized by the national SEM Board of Directors at its fall board meeting, immediately following the 1980 Annual Meeting, as stated by then SEM president Gerard Behague in this letter to me of January 7, 1981:In response to your and other people's request that SEM recognize the formation of a Southeast-Caribbean Chapter, I am glad to inform you that the Board of Directors has given its approval to this request. The Board asks that you please include Texas with the identified states as Texas is not a part of the Southwest Chapter (whose meetings have been held in Utah!) and that you be urged to contact Caribbean Caribbeanists so that they can be involved in the organizational planning. I would suggest at least contacting Héctor Campo-Parsi and Donald Thompson in Puerto Rico, Martha Davis in the República Dominicana and Olive Lewin in Jamaica.
With the inclusion of Texas, the SEM-SECC chapter was geographically the largest SEM chapter, encompassing all land and sea within a huge triangular area between El Paso, Texas in the west, Trinidad and Tobago in the south, and Arlington, Virginia in the north.
The first Annual Meeting of the Southeast-Caribbean Chapter was held at the School of Music, Florida State University, from May 15 through 17, 1981. I hold in my hand a copy of the first program. Among the distinguished attendees was former Wesleyan professor, Theodore C. Grame, one of original founders of the national Society for Ethnomusicology who has retired in Tarpon Springs. He wrote me the following letter: "Pat Waterman tells me that you have put together a vast new chapter of the SEM and that you plan an inaugural meeting for 16-17 May. You may be interested to know that I organized the first SEM chapter: it was then known as the New York New England Chapter. Anyway, it seems like a good idea, and Kathy and I will plan to be there."
Also in attendance at that historic meeting was Peggy Bulger, currently the director of the American Folklife Center of the Library of Congress, and formerly president of the American Folklore Society. Warren Steel from the University of Mississippi also attended, as did Patricia Waterman from Tampa, the mother of Chris Waterman and wife of the late Richard Waterman. Seven SEM members presented papers, and the four founders organized a panel discussion entitled "Ethnomusicology Research in Florida, the Southeast, and the Caribbean." One of the most memorable papers was presented by two FSU students, Deborah Adelson (now Deborah Olander) and Melissa Hampton, entitled "Jump, Henry, Jump!—The Chanting Wakulla Boatman." In her presentation, Debby played a recording of the glass bottom boatman's chant to make Henry, a mullet, jump over or swim around a log.
The first Annual Meeting also included a noon concert in the Sellers Amphitheater by Pueblo Latino, FSU's first salsa orchestra, with a lunch catered by Lucy Ho in the patio space just outside KMU lounge (I still have a number of tickets left); an evening concert of Latin American music in the Dohnanyi Recital Hall by Aconcagua, FSU's oldest world music ensemble; and a Sunday lunch at the Wakulla Springs Hotel, followed by a glass bottom boat ride on the Wakulla River that featured a live performance by Hawk, the chanting Wakulla boatman, and a fine act by Henry, the jumping mullet.
During the first business meeting of the new chapter, over which I presided, it was determined that the person who issued the invitation for each meeting and functioned as local arrangements chair would be the Secretary-Treasurer of the chapter for that year. The following year he or she would become the Chairperson of the chapter. Therefore, I became the first Chairperson (later called President) of the Southeast-Caribbean Chapter of the Society for Ethnomusicology.
The second Annual Meeting of the Southeast-Caribbean Chapter of SEM was held at the University of Mississippi, hosted by Warren Steel. Since then, meetings have been held almost every year throughout the southeastern United States, some jointly with the Florida Folklore Society, the southern chapter of American Musicological Society, the southern chapter of The College Music Society, the national Sonneck Society (now the Society for American Music), and other organizations. Some of the locations have included the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa; Columbus, Georgia; Louisiana State University in Lafayette; the University of Florida; the University of South Florida; New College in Sarasota; North Carolina Central University; a YMCA camp near Ocala; the University of Tennessee in Knoxville; the University of Eastern Carolina; and, of course, the Florida State University many times.
By-Laws of the Southeast/Caribbean Chapter of the Society for Ethnomusicology were drawn up and approved on May 8, 1982. The By-Laws Committee members included Doris Dyen, Ron Riddle, John Christian Vincent, and Dale A. Olsen. Item four of the By-Laws states the following: "The continental geographical membership of the Southeast/Caribbean Chapter shall include Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, Alabama, Arkansas, Tennessee, South Carolina, North Carolina, and Louisiana. These states have been selected because they constitute a geographical unit, according to maps of the southeastern United States. Participation from neighboring states is encouraged; however, their desire for inclusion must be demonstrated by a request in writing to the Chapter Chairperson, by acknowledging official correspondence, and by attendance at annual Chapter meetings as much as possible. If, after two consecutive years, the neighboring states in question have not demonstrated their interest as outlined above, no further mailings will be sent to them and they will no longer be considered to be a part of the Southeast/Caribbean area."
A SECC Newsletter of our SEM chapter was published by Janet Sturman for several years at the Louisiana Scholars' College at Northwestern State University. The first issue came out in November 1989, and it was discontinued when Janet accepted a position at the University of Arizona.
An annual meeting of SEMSEC has never been held in the Caribbean, and it is perhaps time to consider such a meeting. I would suggest that during the national 2003 Annual Meeting of SEM in Miami, which will be a joint conference with The College Music Society, an effort be made to establish a Caribbean connection so that SEMSEC can truly live up to its name. It is my dream to have an annual meeting in Cuba before the demise of its current government.
Thank you very much for allowing me to share some of the history of our organization with you.
Dale A. Olsen, Ph.D.
Distinguished Research Professor of Ethnomusicology
Florida State University