The William Ralston Listening Library at Sewanee

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The William Ralston Listening Library at Sewanee

Sewanee's recorded music library and audiophile-quality listening spaces are unique in the academic world. Email us to arrange a visit.
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At the time of his death in May of 2003, the Rev. William Ralston had assembled one of the nation's most comprehensive private collections of classical music. In his will, Father Ralston expressed his desire that a fitting space be created at Sewanee, The University of the South, to house this collection and provide both serious students of music and casual listeners a place to fully appreciate re

corded music. Sewanee is pleased to honor Father Ralston's wishes through the creation of The William Ralston Music Listening Library and Archive. This state-of-the-art facility in duPont Library offers an unparalleled teaching and learning resource. The heart of the Ralston Listening Library is an elegant cherry-paneled loudspeaker listening room equipped with the world's finest audio and video components. This listening room holds over 10,000 records as well as rare scores and books about music. An adjacent room with high-density storage provides access to nearly 10,000 compact discs, with additional space to expand the collection. The University's circulating collection of 5,000 audio recordings is located next door to the loudspeaker listening room in the gallery, a formal entrance that includes headphone listening stations and display areas for art and music-related materials. A separate headphone listening room with turntables, CD players, and digital music storage allows students to listen to uncompressed music on high-quality equipment. A 3,000 square foot reading room containing duPont Library's music books and scores completes The Ralston Listening Library. With a music collection of over 25,000 pristine recordings, thousands of other rare recordings located in University Archives and Special Collections, a headphone listening room with world-class equipment, and a nationally acclaimed acoustically designed loudspeaker listening room that can reproduce the full impact of concert music without strain or distortion, The William Ralston Music Listening Library and Archive has been described by experts as "unique in the United States and perhaps the world," certainly the finest facility of its kind at any college or university in America.

10/09/2024

The New Criterion recently published a review written by our Associate Director, Nathan C. Stewart, C'16, T'20, as part of its online "Dispatch" series. Nathan will be in Dallas reviewing a concert Ring Cycle next week.

Nathan C. Stewart on the opening night concert of the newly renovated Jacobs Music Center in San Diego.

10/04/2024

Our first Metropolitan Opera Live in HD of the season will be featured tomorrow, Saturday, October 5, beginning at 12:00 noon. There are still a few seats remaining. Tickets available at showpass.com.

10/04/2024

From Chris Carlson: "Tam and I were so pleased to receive this note from prospective student Nick Bailey in 2019. Then we were even more delighted when he and his father came to visit during Family Weekend in 2021. We so enjoyed visiting with them. Nick graduated in 2023."

10/04/2024

We had a wonderful Family Weekend Open House with 217 guests.

Thanks to all of our visiting students and families and to our hosts Cole Teague, C'27, pictured here with his father; Gabriel Rice, C'24; Ava Bowron, C'27; Evan Cook, C'27, and Max Sligh, C'25.

We had a full house almost the entire time, with guests enjoying their favorite music and new custom Thomas Moser chairs, a gift from Holland, C'75, and Debbie West.

This was our first Family Weekend without founder and director Tam Carlson present to host. He loved this event and visiting with the families, many of whom come year after year. Our next open house is on Alumni Weekend, and we encourage one and all to come. Details to follow.

Chris Carlson, C'83

09/28/2024

Thanks to all 110 students and families who stopped by yesterday!!! We’re open from 9 to noon today. Please come, bring family and friends, and listen to your favorite songs or let us surprise you with a favorite of ours.

07/24/2024

It is with great sadness that we report the death of longtime Professor of English Thomas M. (Tam) Carlson, C’63. A graduate of the University, Carlson returned to Sewanee in 1968 as an editorial assistant to his mentor and lifelong friend Andrew Lytle, editor of the Sewanee Review. He joined the Sewanee faculty as an instructor of English in 1969, rose through the ranks to professor in 1984, and served on the faculty until his death. He taught a wide range of courses in English and American literature. Among his favorite and most popular classes were honors seminars on American writers, including Melville, Welty, O’Connor, Faulkner, Percy, and McCarthy. In addition to being an inspired and brilliant teacher and a dedicated scholar, Carlson was a deeply loyal and always caring friend to colleagues, community members, and University alumni. He epitomized the development of lifelong relationships between students and faculty at the core of the Sewanee experience, and his legacy of hospitality, witnessed by generations of alumni who made the pilgrimage to the Carlsons’ home, year after year, will remain unmatched. Carlson’s legacy also lives on in the William Ralston Listening Library and Archive, one of the acoustically finest listening spaces in the world. As a tribute to Sewanee alumnus and professor Fr. William Raulston, C’51, Carlson not only conceived the idea for the facility, but he and his wife, Chris, spent countless hours researching equipment, furnishings, and fixtures; developing and overseeing programming for the space; and connecting with alumni and friends of the University to secure the financial support needed for establishing this unique treasure aimed at spreading appreciation for great music and audio. His legacy will also remain at the University Archives, the former home of the Kappa Sigma fraternity for which he served as president in 1962. Along with close friend and benefactor William (Bill) Laurie, C’52, Carlson led an effort to build a new and comprehensive center for the University’s historical artifacts. A funeral service will be held at All Saints’ Chapel at 2 p.m. on July 27, followed by a reception at the William Ralston Listening Library and Archive at duPont Library.

05/18/2024

04/29/2024

The talented students of MUSC 255: Workshop for the Singing Actor present an evening of musical theatre scenes and solos! Featuring excerpts from Little Women, Guys and Dolls, The Mad Ones, A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder, The Bridges of Madison County, and [Title of Show].

Monday, April 29 at 7:00 p.m.
Guerry Auditorium stage
Free and open to the public!

04/11/2024

We are proud to announce that curatorial assistant Gabriel Rice, C'24, was chosen by the Friends of the Library as a 2024 recipient of the Derek Waller Award on the basis of his exemplary dedication as a student worker in the Ralston Library. In addition to his work with us, Gabriel is a Musical Performance (Vocal) and Biology (Ecology and Biodiversity) double major and a member of both the University Choir and the School of Theology's Schola Cantorum. After graduation, Gabriel will be a choral scholar at St. David's Cathedral in Wales.

03/21/2024

This weekend in the Listening Room, see Gounod's Roméo et Juliette live from the Metropolitan Opera in New York. Ticketing information below. Student discounts available.

About the Performance On March 23, two singers at the height of their powers—radiant soprano Nadine Sierra and tenor sensati...

03/21/2024

Our Associate Director, Nathan C. Stewart, C'16, T'20, recently reviewed a concert by the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Osmo Vänskä for The New Criterion's "Dispatch" series. (Former Head Curator Isaac Sligh, C'18, is an Associate Editor of the publication.)

Nathan C. Stewart on a concert by the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Osmo Vänskä.

02/07/2024

Nashville Opera presents: Opera OUT LOUD!

Monday, February 12, 4:30pm
Guerry Auditorium
Free and open to the p***c

Nashville Opera presents Opera OUT LOUD, a light and lively 30-minute recital introducing the great operatic repertoire. Enjoy meeting four emerging professional opera singers as they bring to life the art form they love, right at the University of the South! After the performance, the Nashville Opera Artists will take questions from the audience and unpack what the life of an opera singer is like. We hope to see you there!

01/23/2024

Join us for a Met Live production of Bizet's "Carmen." The Washington Post calls it a "daring new production." The New York Times counters that it's "a staging that lacks passion, wit, depth, and variety." You be the judge. Aigul Akhmetshina stars in the title role.

Saturday tickets (11:55am) available at www.tickettailor.com/events/sewaneesummermusicfestival/992830. Tickets for the remaining operas in the season here: www.tickettailor.com/events/sewaneesummermusicfestival

01/15/2024

As Sewanee prepares to welcome students back, we are excited to share that Wilson Audio's Peter McGrath, David Ellington, and Tyler Hall spent several days in Sewanee last week exchanging our XLFs for new Chronosonic XVX loudspeakers.

Photo provided by Peter McGrath.

Address

178 Georgia Avenue
Sewanee, TN
37375

Website

https://new.sewanee.edu/ralstonlisteninglibrary/

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