Ralph L. Baldwin: His Influence on American Music Education through Teaching,Publication,and Service

Baldwin’s Early Years

Ralph Lyman Baldwin was born on March 27, 1872, in Easthampton, Massachusetts, to Lyman Norwood Baldwin and Harriet Parson Miner. His parents were musical, as his father had a “very good tenor voice” ⁸ and his mother was a singing school–trained soprano and self-taught pianist. His mother taught him to read music with solfege syllables at a young age and taught him piano as well. He later learned to play the violin from his brother. ⁹ Baldwin studied composition with several influential New England musicians, was a church organist, and was a recognized conductor of church choirs and male glee clubs. He first made his mark in the field of music education as the music supervisor in Northampton, Massachusetts, beginning in 1899 and later as music supervisor in Hartford, Connecticut, beginning in 1904. ¹⁰

Baldwin assumed the position of a well-respected music educator in Hartford. Baldwin’s predecessor in the Hartford Public Schools was Irving Emerson. Emerson was also a known organist, piano teacher, author, and choral conductor in the area. He taught in communities around Hartford beginning in 1869 while his work in the Hartford Public Schools officially began in 1872. He first taught in the grammar schools, later adding the high school and middle schools to his assignment, where he taught until 1902. ¹¹

Emerson had a successful program in place for the Hartford Public Schools. High-quality performances were the standard in the district, which was a reason that the district was careful to select an appropriate replacement for Emerson. The local newspaper, The Hartford Courant, noted the process to which the school administration would choose a new teacher: “the successor of Professor Irving Emerson as teacher of music will not be named at once, but time will be taken to look over the field.” ¹² Following Emerson’s death in May 1903, ¹³ Ralph Baldwin accepted the job in Hartford in December 1903. ¹⁴

Ralph Baldwin was highly respected and received notoriety for his work in the Hartford Public Schools. Numerous newspaper articles chronicled his teaching and performances with the students in Hartford throughout his career. One editor of the Hartford Courant made note of an upcoming performance that Baldwin was to undertake with a men’s choir in New York the following day. Through the editor’s observation of the choral rehearsal, he reflected on the work of Baldwin by stating,

This particular article isn’t designed as a report on Mr. Baldwin’s many musical activities in Hartford in the last quarter of a century. That he has brought up a whole generation of singers and players in our high schools is known to everybody; that he has directed the Choral Club’s admirable destinies throughout its existence cannot be forgotten; that he is known, wherever American choral music is known, as conductor, composer, indefatigable exponent of the best in music is a source of pride to Hartford. ¹⁵

Baldwin biographer, Sister Avelina Flaherty, further described Baldwin’s career and impact on public school music by stating,

He possessed a rare ability to foster musical understanding. Realizing his powers in this direction he placed himself under the tutelage of Sterrie Weaver in Westfield, Mass. In September, 1899, as newly-appointed Supervisor of Music in Northampton, he introduced Weaver’s methods in the schools. His enthusiasm and progressiveness were rewarded with outstanding success and in a short time he had attracted the attention of the members of the School Board in Hartford, Conn. He accepted the post offered to him in that city and left Northampton in 1904.

Ralph Baldwin dedicated forty years of his life to public school music in the capacity of music supervisor. Moreover, for thirty summers he devoted his time to the preparation of music teachers and supervisors as director of the Institute of Music Pedagogy in Northampton. Closely allied to this work, also, was the leading part he took in 1899 in forming the Society of American School Supervisors, in which he served as the first secretary. His interest in teaching led him to compile and edit much song literature for use in the classroom. ¹⁶

Baldwin had an influence on music education at a national level through his involvement in professional organizations. He was elected as the first vice president of the newly formed Eastern Music Supervisors’ Conference in 1917 ¹⁷ and served as the organization’s president during the 1918–1919 term. ¹⁸ Baldwin was also highly active in the Music Teachers’ National Association (MTNA) from 1906 through 1923. He held the positions of Secretary and Treasurer during most years between 1906 and 1915 and served on the subcommittee on Public School Music from 1916 to 1923. ¹⁹

Baldwin retired from public school teaching in 1939. After retirement, he made his summer home in Canaan, New Hampshire, and his winter home in Orlando, Florida. During this time, he continued to write music education texts and choral compositions. Baldwin died on September 30, 1943, in Canaan, New Hampshire. ²⁰

Influence of Sterrie A. Weaver

In numerous articles written by Baldwin, he regularly addresses the topic of music literacy. Baldwin assumes the role of “music education historian” in a 1923 article found in the Music Supervisors’ Journal, where he gives an account of the rise of school music and mentions all of the prominent people and publications in the discipline from the 1860s to 1900. He addresses the importance of music literacy when he states, “From the very beginning, however, the chief purpose of public school music was to teach music reading to children.” ²¹

He also reiterates the need for resources with which to teach this when he says, “Music teachers were seriously hampered in the early years by having no proper music material for use in schools.” ²² Later in the same article, Baldwin references the influential music educators that came before him and how they taught music reading, raised performance standards, and pushed for the standardization of music teaching. ²³

Rote song teaching had been introduced in the late 1800s and was common in American classrooms during that period. Baldwin advocated teaching sight reading or the “language” of music to balance out the rote singing methods being used. ²⁴ He blended the rote and note philosophies much like his predecessor Sterrie A. Weaver. Weaver was an important music educator who taught in Westfield, Massachusetts, at the turn of the twentieth century. He was known for his innovative approach to teaching music reading. To effectively present the rhythmic concepts in a methodical fashion, Weaver used a system of his own invention called Time Motions (Figure 1). These were a sequential presentation of commonly occurring rhythmic patterns that could be used to teach sight-singing. In addition, Weaver required that all his students sing individually so the teacher could hear each one. ²⁵ In fact, Baldwin’s teaching closely resembled that of Weaver’s in that he used the same method of teaching rhythm that Weaver developed.

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Figure 1.

Sterrie Weaver Time Motions.

Ralph Baldwin could also be called a disciple of Weaver. He promoted the Weaver method throughout his career. Writing in the School Music Monthly in 1902, Baldwin said, “So far as I know there is but one complete system of individual instruction in music designed for public school use in the world, and that is the system devised by Sterrie A. Weaver of Westfield, Massachusetts . . . and in my experience it produces admirable results if properly used.” ²⁶ Baldwin praised Weaver for the thoroughness of his work, both with children and with teachers, and acknowledged Weaver’s innovative approach to teaching rhythmic concepts. Baldwin states, “The influence of Mr. Weaver’s work was so strong as to practically revolutionize educational methods for the teaching of school music.” ²⁷ Baldwin summarized Sterrie Weaver’s contributions to music education by saying,

Mr. Weaver was a born teacher, a man of very strong personality, forceful and aggressive. He was a thorough student of everything that pertained to school music and at one time studied with Mr. Holt of Boston. His greatest contribution to school music methods was the introduction of individual singing in the graded school classes. This innovation met very serious opposition. He was a firm believer in the purpose of teaching music reading and his zeal in securing results in this work led him to experiment with individual recitations in his school work in the belief that this practice would make the children more independent in their work. ²⁸

Ralph Baldwin used the Weaver method in the Northampton, Massachusetts, schools beginning in 1899 and even gave public demonstrations of the method’s results from his classes in 1901 at the Center Grammar School in Northampton. ²⁹ He later used the Weaver system in the Hartford, Connecticut, schools as well. ³⁰

There is no way to determine the date that Ralph Baldwin first met Sterrie Weaver. However, it is safe to assume that Baldwin knew of Weaver on a professional level when Baldwin assumed the music position in Northampton, Massachusetts, as Westfield, Massachusetts (Weaver’s teaching position at the time), was a little more than twenty miles away. Baldwin was enthusiastic enough about Weaver’s teaching during this period that he attended the first Sterrie Weaver Summer School, held in Westfield, in July 1900. ³¹ Baldwin’s name is the first listed on a letter addressed to Sterrie Weaver, praising Weaver for his work. The letter, co-signed by the other students who attended, including renowned music educator George Oscar Bowen, commended Weaver by saying,

The music supervisors and grade teachers in attendance are united in the belief that the methods of presenting school music which have been expounded are the best; that they have been thoroughly demonstrated by actual classroom work with children of all grades, and that all the results claimed for this method of music instruction can be accomplished; that the system will develop individual sight-reading, including an intimate and actual knowledge of all the fundamental principles of music; that it will teach musical history and the elementary principles of harmony and theory, bringing them within easy reach of the public school pupil. ³²

Baldwin had an interest in improving music instruction, standards, and outcomes in public schools. He often gave presentations, participated in discussions on this topic, and participated in committee work at national meetings. Sterrie Weaver had previously worked with Baldwin’s predecessor, Irving Emerson, on various committees of the Association of the Connecticut Public School Music Teachers. Weaver and Emerson were on the founding committee of the organization and served as president and treasurer, respectively. ³³ Sterrie Weaver and Ralph Baldwin worked together as officers of the Society of American School Music Supervisors in 1900, where Weaver served as president and Baldwin as secretary. ³⁴ This was the first organization of public school music supervisors in the country, which was founded almost eight years before the Music Supervisors’ National Conference (MSNC, later MENC and NAfME) was founded in Keokuk, Iowa, in April 1907. The two educators were also on the program for the October 16, 1903, meeting of the Music Section of the Connecticut State Teachers Association. ³⁵

One of the more chronicled professional music education meetings of the early 1900s involved Sterrie Weaver and Ralph Baldwin as well. Both were on the program of the N.E.A. Department of Music Education meeting held in Boston in July 1903. ³⁶ Baldwin, along with Philip C. Hayden and other music supervisors, was a member of the committee that provided the music and arranged the test for Weaver’s class sight singing demonstration. This successful sight singing demonstration proved to be a pivotal and inspirational moment in the careers of many of the music supervisors and teachers who were present, including Baldwin and Hayden. ³⁷

Baldwin’s Teaching Philosophy and Methods

Baldwin’s teaching was highly respected by both students and other educators. His teaching style was very gentle, and he fostered a good relationship with the students, often relying on storytelling to connect with them. He also included the parents in the learning process by providing more opportunities to witness the students’ progress. Evidence of his excellent teaching was in his high school choral groups’ performances and from recognition from other well-respected music educators. ³⁸ Many accounts of his teaching focused on high-quality performance, which could be attributed in part to the adherence of the Weaver method. Numerous music supervisors visited the Hartford district to observe his classes and methods being used. ³⁹ A report of a successful performance from Baldwin’s students appeared in the March 1907 edition of the Journal of Education. The article stated that the success “was not the result of outside tedious rehearsals, but that it was an accumulation of every-day results in the regular school work.” ⁴⁰ However, Baldwin did not see his role as an educator solely in high-quality performance. He wanted to impact students’ lives with the love and appreciation of music that they would carry into their adult years. He even inspired many of his students to continue in music as performers and teachers. ⁴¹

Aside from his work with students, Ralph Baldwin was also known as a teacher of teachers. He assumed the leadership position of the Sterrie Weaver Summer School upon Weaver’s death in 1904. The School moved to Northampton in 1907 and its name changed to the Institute of Music Pedagogy. The Institute moved [again] to Skidmore College in Saratoga Springs, New York, in 1929, with Baldwin retiring from this position after the summer session of 1930. ⁴² Since music teacher education programs had not yet been established in the universities, the Institute served a vital purpose. Flaherty writes,

In its thirty years of existence the Institute of Music Pedagogy served in no small degree the cause of music education. It offered an opportunity for teachers and supervisors of music in New England and surrounding states to obtain sound, practical training—at that time a rare opportunity, since little, if any, such work was being done in most of the educational institutions in [the] Eastern United States in the early part of the twentieth century. . . .

But long before such courses became available, the Institute of Music Pedagogy in Northampton had been established “on a sound educational basis, with regular courses of study and a high standard of requirement.” Practicality was the governing principle in the organization and operation of the annual summer sessions. The aim was to prepare teachers and supervisors to introduce into schools a system which was “founded on the doctrine that the formal and constructive side of the subject must be mastered before the higher aesthetic and artistic appreciation can be secured.” ⁴³

The Weaver method remained a major part of the courses at the Institute throughout its existence, with a continued emphasis on music reading and the study of music fundamentals. ⁴⁴

Baldwin’s Publications and Teaching Materials

Numerous music educators in the early 1900s sought to improve their teaching through research of established methods, participation in professional organizations, and even trial and error of instructional strategies. In addition, the need for satisfactory teaching materials continued during this time. Ralph Baldwin was among many notable music educators of this era to write quality music education books.

One of Baldwin’s first books was Studies in Written Work in Music for Elementary Schools, published in 1906 by Stanhope Press. This book is a guide to help students learn music literacy, ear training, form, music appreciation, and music history. It even mentions the time motions of Sterrie Weaver specifically. ⁴⁵ In the text, Baldwin states,

[I]t is the purpose to lead from the study of the simplest form of melody in two and four measure phrases, with correct use of scale and chromatic tones, and the simpler rhythms, to the writing of simple melodies in song form and the older dance forms which are the foundations of all the greater forms in music. ⁴⁶

The students began in grade 1 by copying “a four-measure exercise with quarter, half, dotted half or whole notes.” ⁴⁷ Students in grades 2–6 were required to write rhythmic dictation using appropriate time motions for the grade level. Starting in grade 5, students were asked to describe the time motions that they know, and later, “rewrite the time motions with various units” ⁴⁸ as the beat.

Another of Baldwin’s books, published in 1910 by Ginn and Company, is titled Progressive Melodies for Sight Singing. It contains melodies for students in the second or third grades who are learning to read music. The preface gives basic instructions for how the book is laid out and covers some basic assumptions that a student should know, which includes the use of the beat as the unit of time (as opposed to the measure). It is divided into two sections. Part I has five chapters using the first and second time motions. Chapters 1 and 2 use the first time motion, chapter 3 uses the second time motion, and chapters 4 and 5 use the first and second time motions in combination. The entirety of Part I does not require the reader to know key signatures. Instead, the tonic pitch is indicated by an “x” placed on the staff. Part II introduces key signatures and the third time motion, which is later used in combination with the first two time motions. ⁴⁹

Two other publications by Baldwin are intended for high school music students. One is Standard Song Classics: For High Schools, Academies, and Choruses of Mixed Voices published in 1913 by Ginn and Company. This is an assortment of standard, advanced vocal repertoire for singers collected by Baldwin and E.W. Newton. It includes composer biographies and descriptions of each song. ⁵⁰ Another text for music study is titled Harmony Simplified, published by M.W. & Sons. It is designed to succinctly teach harmonic concepts through the study of intervals, chord structure, chord qualities, and chord function. It also includes exercises to apply learned harmonic elements to given melodic lines. ⁵¹

Music Education Series

Perhaps his most famous set of publications is in the Music Education Series, published between 1923 and 1934 by Ginn and Company. The assortment of songs, and the later supplemental texts, were co-written and co-collected by Baldwin, Thaddeus P. Giddings, Will Earhart, and Earl L. Baker, and edited by Elbridge W. Newton. Thaddeus P. Giddings was a teacher and music supervisor in the public schools of Minnesota and Illinois. During the time that the Music Education Series was published, Giddings was the Director of School Music in Minneapolis. ⁵² Will Earhart, a former president of MSNC, was known for his vibrant music education program in Pittsburgh, his work in advancing school and community orchestras, and for his stance on the importance of aesthetic education in music. ⁵³ Earl L. Baker appears as an author/editor in only one of the series texts, Adventures in Music. He held school music positions in Moline, Illinois, Minneapolis, and in Appleton, Wisconsin, at the time of the publication of Adventures in Music. ⁵⁴ Elbridge Newton was an author and educator in Boston, who was also known for his editorial work at Ginn and Company publishers. ⁵⁵

The Music Education Series is carefully designed and sequenced using the highest quality songs the authors could compile. (A general description of the eight student books in the series can be found in Table 1. Information on the composers and origins of the songs found in the student books can be found in Table 2.) The series displays a clear sequence of musical elements to be learned, as melodic, rhythmic, and harmonic elements are systematically introduced through each of the graded texts. Although Ralph Baldwin was a believer in the Sterrie Weaver method, Baldwin and the other authors do not directly refer to the rhythmic elements in the series as time motions. However, the rhythmic elements and groupings, as they exist in the Weaver time motions, are found in the texts of the Music Education Series.

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Table 1.

Music Education Series Student Books General Descriptions. ⁵⁶

Title	Melodic Components	Rhythmic Components	Highlights
Songs of Childhood	Simple	Taught by rote	Students would compare songs they knew from this collection to songs on the accompanying phonograph recordings
Introductory Music	Simple	Use the first and second time motions, with occasional songs using the third and fifth time motions	The first in the series to be read by the students with some songs designated to be taught by rote
Juvenile Music	Monophonic melodies in major and minor keys	Progresses through the third time motion	Uses third time motion in combination with the first and second time motions
Elementary Music	Single-melody songs with two-part singing introduced toward the end, introduces altered tones such as sharp 4, sharp 2, sharp 6, and flat 7 scale degrees	Progresses through the third time motion	Divided into two sections, test and measurement of music-reading ability administered at the beginning of each section of the book
Two-Part Music	Major and minor tonalities and chromaticism	Applications through the third time motion and use varied meters	Simple harmonies written primarily in thirds and sixths
Intermediate Music	Part I contains single melodies and two-part singing while Part II contains single melodies, two- and three-part singing	Progresses through the seventh time motion	Divided into two sections, includes a “Terms of Expression,” with definitions of Italian musical terms and “Signs of Expression,” with definitions of other terms and musical symbols
Three-Part Music	Major and minor tonalities and chromaticism	Applications of all the time motions and varied meters	“Additional song material on the third plateau of music study” 57
Junior Music	Major and minor tonalities and chromaticism	Applications of all the time motions and varied meters	Voicings of the repertoire include three-part for unchanged voices; three-part for soprano, alto, and alto-tenor; four-part for soprano, alto, alto-tenor, and bass, and four-part for soprano, alto, alto-tenor, and baritone

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Table 2.

Music Education Series Student Books Containing Song Materials.

Title	Year Published	Number of Songs	Composers or Origin of Songs
Songs of Childhood a,b	1923	130	Lesser-known composers, the authors (Baldwin, Earhart, and Newton), and includes some folk tunes
Introductory Music a,b	1923	182	Lesser-known composers, the authors (Baldwin, Earhart, and Newton), and includes some folk tunes
Juvenile Music b	1923	158	Lesser-known composers, the authors (Baldwin, Earhart, and Newton), and includes some folk tunes
Elementary Music a,b	1923	207	Lesser-known composers, the authors (Baldwin, Earhart, and Newton), and includes some folk tunes
Two-Part Music b	1927	153	Well-known composers (Rimsky-Korsakov, Handel, Mozart, Beethoven, Verdi, Wagner, Mendelssohn, Schumann, Dvořák, Haydn, Tschaikowsky [sic], and Schubert), lesser-known composers, the authors (Baldwin, Earhart, and Newton), and includes some folk tunes
Intermediate Music a,b	1924	235	Well-known composers, lesser-known composers, the authors (Baldwin, Earhart, and Newton), and includes some folk tunes
Three-Part Music b	1925	153	Well-known composers (Handel, Mozart, Schubert, J.S. Bach, Chopin, Haydn, Verdi, Mendelssohn, Tschaikowsky [sic], Schumann, Dvořák, Saint-Saëns, Franck, and Beethoven), lesser-known composers, the authors (Baldwin, Earhart, and Newton), and includes some folk tunes
Junior Music a,b	1924	164	Well-known composers (Schubert, Mendelssohn, Schumann, Beethoven, Gluck, Grieg, Verdi, J.S. Bach, Dalcroze, Brahms, Handel, Franck, Gounod, von Weber, Rimsky-Korsakov, Mozart, and Dvořák), lesser-known composers, the authors (Baldwin and Earhart), and includes some folk tunes
Adventures in Music c	1931	248	Well-known composers, lesser-known composers, the authors (Baldwin, Earhart, and Newton), folk tunes from European countries and Russia, and familiar patriotic and popular songs of the period
The Magic of Song c	1934	150	Well-known composers, lesser-known composers, and includes many folk songs and folk tunes of various nationalities

a.

Texts included in the five-book course.

b.

Texts included in the eight-book course.

c.

Supplemental texts.

The Teachers’ Book, published in 1925, was a guide for classroom teachers and music supervisors that outlines the use of the graded texts in the Music Education Series. The book covers numerous topics related to music teaching including music education philosophy, music theory, vocal technique, “General Practices” and tips for effective teaching, as well as an implied sequence of teaching rhythm, melody, part-singing, assessment, and music appreciation. The book also contains classifications of all song materials in the graded texts of the series and outlines the musical elements used in each. ⁵⁸ Despite Ralph Baldwin’s role as one of the authors/compilers/editors of the series, no special attention was given to rhythm as the basis for music learning and there is no mention of the Sterrie Weaver time motions. The authors addressed the teaching of rhythm concepts by stating, “It is a mistake, however, to assume that it is the most characteristic element in music, or that the greatest energy of instruction should be focused on it.” Instead, rhythm was to be taught with careful attention to tone production. ⁵⁹

The authors embedded a learning sequence throughout each text, as the entire series was designed to give students experience in rote singing before reading “familiar tonal expression.” ⁶⁰ The Teachers’ Book specified that the series was organized into three plateaus or sections for students. The first plateau was the Introductory Music text, the second was the Juvenile Music and Elementary Music texts, with the third plateau the Intermediate Music and Three-Part Music texts. ⁶¹ This categorization of the texts coincides with later assessments in “music-reading ability” to be administered at the end of Juvenile Music and Intermediate Music. ⁶²

Although The Teachers’ Book was part of the larger Music Education Series, the authors acknowledged that the methods could be applied on a wider scale. On the use of the book, they stated, “Its purpose is that of service. It presents educational principles which govern music teaching, as well as various modes of procedure, and therefore is a teacher’s book in the truest sense and is adaptable to any series of textbooks.” ⁶³ A new text in the series, Music Appreciation in the Schoolroom, was published in 1926.

In addition to singing, the authors advocate for listening to both vocal and instrumental music. This course would use the phonograph to play musical selections from the previous books in the series. “The selections included folk classics, children’s classics, juvenile classics, and many well-known great classics.” ⁶⁴ The New York Philharmonic, under the direction of Dr. Henry Hadley, and four “famous singers” recorded the musical selections for the series. Select songs from each of the books were recorded along with other instrumental and vocal songs under the various “Classics” headings, which were used for listening lessons. Directions are given on many topics such as the use of the phonograph, suggestions for teaching music appreciation, lesson planning, and listening strategies. The “Essentials in Music Appreciation” are addressed, which include rhythm, melody, form, harmony, program music, the orchestra, composers, and cultural effects. The authors also make connections to other subjects such as drawing, geography, history, and English. ⁶⁵

This text is the first in the series to include extensive instructions and details that the authors felt were essential for effective lessons. Included are the psychological foundations of the students, which are addressed in detail. The authors state: “Of much importance, then, is a familiarity with the physical, emotional, and intellectual condition of children from six to eight years old, children from nine to eleven years old, and young people from twelve to fifteen years old.” ⁶⁶ On understanding children from six to eight years old, one example given by psychologist Dr. Henry T. Moore is as follows:

The literature on child psychology abounds in illustrations of the rapid shifting of attention natural to the undeveloped child of this age. At one moment he will play affectionately with a stick of wood, caressing it as his dear baby, and at the next he may throw it into the fire to see it burn. ⁶⁷

With an understanding of the student’s mind, the authors believed that the rhythmic concepts are the easiest to understand. They write, “Simple rhythmic effects are first perceived through the familiar songs.” ⁶⁸ The melodic concepts are also taught through familiar songs.

The entire course of instruction for Music Appreciation in the Schoolroom started with rote teaching. The authors wrote, “Effective work in true music appreciation therefore begins with song-singing.” ⁶⁹ In the authors’ plans, this familiar repertoire of songs would naturally lead to listening, which is the focus of the course. Several lessons include rhythmic concepts that involve the students finding the steady beat of a listening example by using their hand to “mark the rhythm.” ⁷⁰ Furthermore, all lesson plans have an element of marking and/or identifying rhythmic characteristics in the listening examples. For example, students would be asked to recognize a waltz or march rhythm. However, rhythmic elements are rarely addressed in the lesson plans after Part I of the Elementary Music book other than to note specific rhythmic interest in listening examples.

A book that the authors wrote later in the series is titled Adventures in Music. Published in 1931, this is a collection of 248 songs. The organization of this book is unlike the rest of the music readers in the series. Each of the eight sections in the book is labeled as “Adventures.” Descriptions of the eight sections are as follows:

Adventure 1—“The Joy of Singing,” which includes single melodies in various keys, and simple rhythms using half, quarter, and eighth notes.

Adventure 2—“Learn to Do by Doing” is a continuation of Adventure 1 with similar musical characteristics.

Adventure 3—“New Rhythms Discovered” contains more complicated rhythms than the first two sections, including dotted quarter/eighth rhythms.

Adventure 4—“Exploring the Tune-Trail” introduces accidentals in the melodies.

Adventure 5—“In Double File” introduces two-part singing.

Adventure 6—“By-Paths on the Rhythm-Road” covers more complicated rhythms, including dotted-eighth/sixteenth, sixteenth notes, triplets, and compound meter.

Adventure 7—“Traveling Three Abreast” introduces three-part singing.

Adventure 8—“Meeting Old Friends” incorporates patriotic and popular songs of the period. ⁷¹

Each of the “Adventures” ends with a written section called “Key to the Treasure Chest.” This includes questions about the concepts covered in the section and specific questions about songs and composers. The end of the book includes a “Terms of Expression,” with definitions of Italian musical terms and “Signs of Expression,” with definitions of other terms and musical symbols. ⁷²

Supplementary texts in the Music Education Series, some printed at the time of the graded pupils’ texts and others printed later as new song collections, complete the series. The Home Edition is a collection of piano accompaniments to be used in conjunction with the pupils’ books. The purpose of the Home Edition was to make the songs in the pupils’ texts appropriate for performance. The authors stated, “It is natural, therefore, that there arises a desire to share this pleasurable experience with someone else, either through the medium of a school entertainment or in the less formal group of the family at home. In either case the value of piano accompaniments can readily be perceived.” ⁷³ Volume I of the Home Edition covers all the songs in Songs of Childhood, Introductory Music, and Juvenile Music, volume II corresponds with the Elementary Music and Two-Part Music, volume III accompanies Intermediate Music and Three-Part Music, while volume IV covers Junior Music. ⁷⁴

Baldwin, Giddings, and Earhart later produced a book intended to assist music teachers in the administration of the Music Education Series. Outlines (1930) is an additional book in the series that provided guidance in weekly and yearly planning. It offers plans for using the eight-book course (Songs of Childhood, Introductory Music, Juvenile Music, Elementary Music, Two-Part Music, Intermediate Music, Three-Part Music, and Junior Music), the five-book course (Songs of Childhood, Introductory Music, Elementary Music, Intermediate Music, and Junior Music), and for beginning music in all grades. ⁷⁵

Another supplemental book in the Music Education Series is The Magic of Song. Published in 1934, the songs are “intended for use in the intermediate grades, or in the junior high school where there are no boys’ changed voices.” ⁷⁶ It contains 150 songs and arrangements. The repertoire includes voicings in unison, two-parts, and three-parts, and accompaniments for use in performance. ⁷⁷ It is unknown if music teachers at the time were appealing for more song titles to use with the series or if the authors wanted to capitalize on the success of the series by selling an additional book. Nonetheless, The Magic of Song added to the vast collection of quality vocal literature found in the series.

The Music Education Series seemed to be well received among music teachers. Since the texts were written by known music educators and the series was published by one of the largest educational publishing companies at the time, music teachers were certainly aware of the series. The Director of Ginn and Company at the time Flaherty wrote the thesis on Baldwin said,

The Music Education Series, from the period of 1923 to 1933 . . . was used more widely throughout all parts of the United States than any other music series. It was adopted as the official text in many states where state adoption prevailed and was used also in cities and villages in every state in the Union. . . . The Various books of the Music Education Series sold in excess of five million copies over a period of thirty years. ⁷⁸

At the time of their publication, reviews of the series texts were printed in various academic journals. The reviews were overwhelmingly positive and often encouraged the reader to purchase the books for use. One such review of Juvenile Music gave a general summary of the book by saying, “‘Juvenile Music’ has songs of utmost simplicity and songs in which there is a gradual rhythmic development,—songs which the children will wish to sing over and over again. The subject matter correlates with the natural activities and interests of children of this age. As a book of verse it is charming.” ⁷⁹ Another review of The Teachers’ Book praised the authors as influential music educators. This particular book review highlighted the importance of music education in the general curriculum while emphasizing the importance of music appreciation. The reviewer stated, “One highly attractive feature of the Giddings, Earhart, Baldwin, Newton ‘Teachers’ Book’ is the explicit help for the work in every grade. There is at all times attention to the science of music and the art of appreciation and expression in music.” ⁸⁰

The success of the series was undoubtedly impacted by the publisher, Ginn and Company, from Boston, Massachusetts. Founded in 1867 by Edwin Ginn, Ginn and Company was a leading publisher of educational textbooks. The company published other music courses leading up to the Music Education Series, such as Luther Whiting Mason’s Educational Music Course and the New Educational Music Course, and Ginn publishing continued as a leader in the music textbook market when the Music Education Series was first published in 1920. ⁸¹ Mason’s series was first published by New England Conservatory, but Ginn bought the rights to the books after a “chance acquaintance with Luther Mason,” who was a supervisor of school music in Boston. ⁸² The acquisition of the Mason course proved to be a strategic and profitable move by Ginn. Thomas Bonaventure Lawler, an early historian on Ginn and Company, stated, “Though Mr. Ginn paid full devotion to the classics, he did not overlook elementary education. Probably no other single step ever taken by him from a financial point of view was as epochal as his acquirement of the Mason Music Course.” ⁸³

Ginn and Company continued to focus on music education with the publication of the Music Education Series. Lawler notes the time and effort undertaken by the authors to create the series.

Holding as it did the leading place in music in the schools of the nation, the house maintained its front rank by publishing in 1920 the Music Education Series. Under the direction of an outstanding genius in music, Elbridge W. Newton, the firm secured three of the leading musicians of the land—T.P. Giddings of Minneapolis, Will Earhart of Pittsburgh, and Ralph L. Baldwin of Hartford—to write and to launch the new series. Some idea of the intensive work required to produce a music series can be obtained by a reference to the words of Mr. Newton. . . . Speaking of its three authors, he tells us that they came to Boston periodically for three years, sat in consultation with psychologists, musicians, research workers, poets, and composers, and finally evolved a superior plan for music education. ⁸⁴

In addition to the quality song titles and instruction included in the series, Ginn and Company improved the visual aspects of the individual texts. Starting in 1923, new technology was used for enhancing the print quality in the detailed images of the music staff and other images used in the books.

A forward step in typography was taken by the house as early as 1923. In that year four titles had been issued in the Music Education Series, which continued the line of succession of the Mason system. In the pages of these books and also in others issued later in the series, there was an important typographic improvement. The plates of the books were made by the cerographic, or wax, process, a relief process used at that time in making the plates of colored maps and also the diagrams for scientific books. This method of making music plates had been suggested to an engraver a few years before by our technical department. It was first used in some issues of the Coda, a series of supplementary music pamphlets published by the company. After experimental issues in 1917 the process was found to be very successful.

The great advantage of this method over the typographic method, which had been employed for many years, lay in the fact that desirable features of lithographed music could be reproduced in an electrotype plate for relief-printing. The staff lines, the phrase marks, the extended cross-strokes, the ties, and the slurs—instead of being composed of small pieces as in typographic composition, a process which inevitably resulted in their showing breaks and wear after slight use—were now all continuous, unbroken lines, as when lithographed. Then, too, a much greater freedom was possible in the choice of shapes for the characters than when the typographic method was used. ⁸⁵

The upgraded images would have certainly been appealing to the students and further signified Ginn and Company’s intention of providing a quality educational product to the public. Attempts to obtain current sales statistics for the Music Education Series have been unsuccessful to this date.

Conclusions and Suggestions for Future Research

Ralph Baldwin positively impacted music education over his forty-year teaching career. His close association with Sterrie Weaver and administration of the Weaver Summer School place Baldwin in a similar class of influential music educators with Weaver or Philip Hayden. While Baldwin’s methods and publications are not necessarily used in American classrooms today, it is important to recognize the quality ideas and resources that he offered to music educators of that time. Baldwin’s publications are a good example of an effective instructional method, including materials, that directly preceded the adoption of current methods used by some music educators today, including the Kodály approach, the Orff approach, Dalcroze Eurhythmics, and Gordon’s Music Learning Theory. Future research could investigate the prevalence of Baldwin’s method in American classrooms of his time as well as shared characteristics with contemporary approaches to music education. American music education was undoubtedly moving in a positive direction with formalized teacher training and academic resources available during the early 20th century. Through the numerous positions and roles undertaken over his professional career, Ralph Baldwin played an integral part in the growth of American music education during this time.