Sylvia Smith at Darmstad festival, Darmstadt, Germany 1990

"The creation and maintenance of Smith Publications is my contribution and partial solution to the problem of creating a healthy and receptive environment for new musical ideas"

"I publish music, always working for a culture worth saving."

   Sylvia Smith (b.1948) founded Smith Publications (ASCAP) and Sonic Art Editions (BMI) in 1974. She began by publishing fourteen compositions; now she has a catalog of over five hundred compositions. She publishes music by composers who have asked radical questions concerning the nature and purpose of music. Her publications are recognized throughout the world not only for their high level of artistic integrity but also for their beautiful editing and printing. She has received six Paul Revere Awards for graphic excellence in music publishing.

   In 1988, and again in 1990, Dr. Smith was a guest lecturer at Darmstadt Musikinstitut in Germany. She has spoken numerous times on her publishing philosophy and esthetics and how she chooses music to publish.

   In 1988, Dr. Smith was awarded the American Music Center's Letter of Distinction. This award is given once a year to a person or institution who has made an outstanding contribution to American Music.

   In 1992 The Sylvia Smith Archives was established in the Bierce Library on the campus of the University of Akron in Akron Ohio. The Archives contain thousands of documents - manuscripts, letters, recordings, photographs - having to do with her work as a publisher and the composers she publishes. In recognition of Sylvia Smith's contribution to music and American culture, the University of Akron awarded her an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters in 1995.

   In addition to being a full-time publisher, Dr. Smith has been active as a writer. Over the years she has given numerous readings of her poetry, stories, and a novel.

Resume

Date of Birth: August 2, 1948

Education:
1981 B.A. magna cum laude, University of Maryland, Baltimore County. Major: American Studies, with emphasis on art and censorship.

1987 M.A., University of Maryland, College Park. American Studies, research in contemporary American arts and literature.

Professional Experience:
1974 - present - owner and editor of Smith Publications/Sonic Art Editions, publishing houses specializing in American music of the twentieth century. Smith Publications is recognized internationally as the single most important source of advanced American music. It is known not only for the quality of the compositions it selects, but also for its high level of visual beauty and good taste in the production and presentation of the musical scores. Among the more than 400 publications are the works of Milton Babbitt, Ben Johnston, Robert Erickson, Conlon Nancarrow, James Tenney, and Herbert Brün.

1986 American consultant to British Arts Council exhibit of contemporary music notations, entitled "Eye Music". The exhibit toured Great Britain and continental Europe for 1 year.

Awards:
1981 Phi Beta Kappa Association Writing Prize, awarded to one graduate each year who demonstrates the highest levels of scholarly writing and creative thought.

1986 Presser Grant awarded to Smith Publications for the publication of a distinguished American music composition, a string quartet composed by Ben Johnston in a microtonal tuning system.

1987 Presser Grant awarded to Smith Publications for the publication of a distinguished American music composition, a major orchestral score by Robert Erickson.

1987 Paul Revere Award for Graphic Excellence, for the presentation of music of unusual complexity.

1987 Paul Revere Award for Graphic Excellence, for excellence in printing.

1987 Paul Revere Award for Graphic Excellence, for excellence in production.

1987 Paul Revere Award for Graphic Excellence, for outstanding overall presentation .

1988 Honorary faculty member of Darmstadt Internationales Musikinstitut, in recognition of Smith Publications' position as a leader in contemporary American musical thought.

1988 American Music Center Letter of Distinction awarded to Smith Publications and Sylvia Smith at the American Music Center's annual banquet at Lincoln Center. This is the highest award given by the American Music Center for outstanding contributions to American music and American culture. Usually given to distinguished composers and performers, Sylvia Smith is one of the only music publishers to ever receive this honor. Other recipients have been Aaron Copland, Leonard Bernstein, Elliot Carter, and John Cage.

1989 Percussive Arts Society Service Award, for scholarly research and organizational work in the area of research and notation.

Articles and Books:
1981 "Visual Music," Perspectives of New Music, Vol. 20, Number 1.

1984 "Eye Music, " Ear Magazine, Summer issue, 1984.

1985 "Scribing Sound, " Percussive Notes, Research Edition, Vol. 23, Number 3, March, 1985.

1988 Scribing Sound: Music Notation Since 1952, Excelsior Music Publishing Co., New York, NY (forthcoming).