Lyrecrest is the national headquarters facility of Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia Fraternity, located on the northern outskirts of Evansville, Indiana. The facility’s address is 10600 Old State Road, which coincidentally corresponds to October 6, 1900, on which date the Fraternity became a national organization. The property was acquired in 1970, at a purchase price of $51,250. The property is bordered to the north by a horse farm, to the east and south by a residential area, and to the west by Clearcrest Pines Golf Course. Several miles to the north is Vanderburgh County 4-H Fairgrounds. Less than four miles from the Evansville Regional Airport, Lyrecrest is just over three hours from Indianapolis and two and a half hours from St. Louis by car.
The headquarters of the Fraternity had moved from Murray, Kentucky to Evansville in 1967 upon the death of National Secretary-Treasurer Price Doyle. For many years, the Fraternity's headquarters had simply been wherever the National Secretary-Treasurer lived. Initially, the Fraternity occupied office facilities in downtown Evansville, in anticipation of a Fraternity-supported American Music Museum that never materialized.
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Boston (1898-1914?) For many years, the headquarters of the Fraternity was essentially wherever the national secretary-treasurer made his home and office. In the earliest days of the Fraternity, Boston and the New England Conservatory served as a "de facto" headquarters.
Philadelphia (c. 1914) As of 1914, The Phi Mu Alpha Annual was edited by Harry D. Kaiser, who was also listed as business manager, with an address at 1645 East Passyunk Avenue in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (Phi Mu Alpha Annual, October 15, 1914).
Chicago (1919?-1967?) As of 1937-1939, the Fraternity was based at the Lyon & Healy Building at 64 East Jackson Boulevard in Chicago, Illinois (also the headquarters of Lutton Music Personnel Service and for a time the Music Educators National Conference), less than eight blocks east of the present site of the Sears Tower and about two blocks west of Lake Michigan. It is likely that the headquarters had been in Chicago as early as 1919, when Charles E. Lutton became supreme-secretary treasurer. As of the 1922 national convention held in Chicago, the national office was located at the Lyon and Healy Building in Chicago, which is now a part of the DePaul Univeresity campus. In 1930, the national office of the Music Supervisors National Conference (now known as the Music Educators National Conference) moved to the same building, another indicator of a close association between the two organizations during that time period.
Murray, Kentucky (1949-1967) From 1949 to 1967 (a total of eighteen years), the headquarters was based in Murray, Kentucky (approximately one-hundred-forty miles southwest of Evansville), the home of Price Doyle and Murray State University.
In 1964, the executive committees of the Fraternity and what was then known as the Sinfonia Foundation voted to accept an offer by the City of Evansville to locate its offices in a facility known as America's Music Hall of Fame. This project was part of the work of two urban renewal groups: Evansville's Future, Inc. and the Central Evansville Improvement Corporation. The plan was for the Fraternity and foundation to occupy the entire lower level, and the Hall of Fame to occupy the entire ground floor level. The building was to be located next to the Civic Auditorium under construction at that time. According to the March 1964 issue of the Sinfonian, hotels, shops, and recreational facilities were also to be included in the comprehensive civic center.
One of the rationales given for the move to Evansville was that at that time, with a population of 220,000, it was the largest city nearest the population center of the United States[1].
LeRoy P. Offerman, a 1937 initiate of the Gamma Delta chapter at Murray State University and an Evansville community leader, was appointed Director of Development for the proposed hall of fame.
Plans for the hall of fame never materialized, but the Fraternity moved to Evansville anyway in 1967. The Fraternity was based from 1967 to 1970 in the Southern Securities Building, with Alan E. Adams serving as Executive Secretary. The Fraternity occupied Lyrecrest itself in 1970. Some years later, in 1997, the Fraternity discussed partnering with a proposed Classical Music Hall of Fame in Cincinnati, Ohio.
The name "Lyrecrest" is derived from the "lyre" and the fact that the home sits on the "crest" of a hill.
Lyrecrest currently includes three major buildings: the original Lyrecrest home (occupied by the Fraternity in 1970 as an office facility); the Robert H. Bray Cottage (dedicated as a dormitory-style bunkhouse or guesthouse in 1992); and “Lyrecrest North”, a home on several acres to the north that was acquired in 1998, and which currently houses the Fraternity’s archival exhibits. Lyrecrest North also provides housing for a Fraternity staff member, as well as short-term housing for Lyrecrest visitors.
The top level (second floor) of the main house has two rooms previously used as bedrooms, with two full bathrooms (both of which are located on the west side of the building) that are directly accessible from the two main rooms. The north room currently serves as the office of the Fraternity's chief operating officer, Jeremy Evans (having previously served as the office of Ryan Ripperton). In the 1990s, the room was used to house the Fraternity’s archival exhibits. For a short time in the same period, the north room also served as the conference room.
The south room on the second floor currently serves as both the office of the Fraternity's executive assistant, Debra Celuch, and a reading room. Included in the room’s collection are bound copies of the early Sinfonia Yearbooks, along with books by authors that were known to influence Fraternity founder Ossian E. Mills. In the 1980s and 1990s, this room was known as the Price Doyle Memorial Conference Room, in recognition of Doyle’s desire to establish a permanent headquarters facility for the Fraternity. For a short time in the 1990s, this room also served as the archival exhibit room. The furnishings in this room are dedicated to the memory of Henry Charles, Alpha Lambda.
During the early 1990s, the walls lining the stairway to the second floor displayed photographs of then current national officers. The autographed photos of famous Sinfonians were later relocated here following their removal from the entrance foyer on the ground level.
On the main level (first floor) are a main entrance room or lobby area (which has from time to time served as an office for secretaries and/or receptionists), two former bedrooms currently used as staff offices, a work room (probably a former kitchen), an additional room that has been used as an office (probably a former dining room), and a sunroom (which has been used as an office).
Upon entering by the front door, and turning to the right into the main room, visitors will find a preserved laurel wreath on display that was used at the 1998 Founder's Day Ceremony and memorial service for Ossian E. Mills in Thompson, Connecticut. Over the fireplace is a reproduction of a black and white portrait of Mills. On the west wall of this room hang photographs of each of the Charles E. Lutton Man of Music Award winners. During the 1990s, a fraternity coat-of-arms (donated by Robert H. Bray) hung over the fireplace, and in the 1970s, art deco style “Phi”, “Mu”, and “Alpha” letters hung there. They were in place as early as 1970, as evidenced by a photograph of Aaron Copland visiting the property. As of 2003, these letters had been relocated to the wall of the front sitting room of the Bray cottage.
The main “club” room on the main part of the ground floor (basement) is the primary meeting area of the main building. Along the east wall are portraits of each of the Fraternity's National Presidents, and on the west wall are portraits of each current member of the National Executive Committee. The room has been known to hold several dozen people for events such as the CPR Convocation, Province Governors' Convocation, and smaller meetings of the National Executive Committee, the Commission on Standards, and various Fraternity committees. A wet bar was located in the northwest corner of the club room until it was sold by auction in the spring of 2004. The bar was removed following a 1997 ban on alcohol consumption at Lyrecrest and an increasing need to maximize the room's space as a meeting facility. However, on the walls surrounding where the bar previously was, many mugs and steins hang, representing colleges and universities with Sinfonia chapters, along with a map of the United States with pins indicating active chapters across the nation. This room also features a piano donated by the Delta Iota chapter at Western Michigan University. This room also houses an oil painting of Ossian E. Mills that was first unveiled and presented at the Sinfonia Foundation banquet at the 1991 National Convention in New Orleans, Louisiana. The portrait previously hung in the entrance room on the main floor. The painting was relocated to the club room when a reproduction of a black-and-white photograph of Mills (the original of which had been in the possession of the Mills family) was hung in its place over the fireplace mantle. There is also a portrait of Price Doyle, and his membership shingle hangs adjacent to it. The main part of the ground floor has a kitchen and large utility room which previously had been used to store Fraternity merchandise.
A ground floor level “south wing” was built on to the main building at some point prior to the purchase of the property by the Fraternity. It is believed that this wing was built to house pipe organ equipment for a previous owner. A room in the wing area facing the front of the property (just south of the main “club” room) was used as the office of Scott B. Sanders in the early 1990s, and later by Executive Director Jamie Morris. It is today part of the shipping area. The rear entrance foyer for several years housed the Sinfonia Wall of Fame, which consisted of numerous autographed photos of well-known Sinfonians. These photographs were eventually relocated due to the damaging effect that sunlight had on many of the photos. A room on the south end of the building accessible only from the outside served as a remote archival storage facility as of 2003.
The Robert H. Bray Cottage was a caretaker's house and attached garage prior to the purchase of the property by the Fraternity. It was dedicated on January 1, 1991 as a sixteen bed guesthouse for brothers visiting Lyrecrest, particularly for the CPR Convocation. Bray was an initiate of the Beta Mu chapter at Central Methodist College in Fayette, Missouri. The naming of the cottage in his honor was partly to recognize his many tangible gifts to the Lyrecrest property over the years (particularly during the early 1990s). The cottage can provide sleeping accommodations for 22, and features a large room with bunk beds, a smaller bedroom in the rear, and an entrance room that may be used as a sitting room or for overflow sleeping areas. When the building was first dedicated, a large St. Louis, Missouri poster (which was the designated host city of the upcoming national convention in 1994) graced the walls, along with matching sets of red, black, and gold bath towels and washcloths. Currently, the walls of the cottage are adorned with t-shirts from chapters who've visited the cottage - a tradition initiated during the Collegiate Province Representative Convocation in December 2003. The cottage also features a 1942 (video game) console.
During the late 1990s, a grant from the Sinfonia Foundation provided for comprehensive renovations of several areas of the main house and adjacent grounds. The sterile institutional feel of the main and upper levels gave way to a more home-like atmosphere.
Acquired in 1998, the “Lyrecrest North” property serves two purposes, to house the Fraternity’s archives as well as provide housing for staff members. The building has two levels, a main floor and a basement. The front main room on the main floor and a bedroom facing the front of the building contain rotating Fraternity exhibits. One of the unique artifacts kept in this room is the stained glass figure of the word “Sinfonia” which originally was set over the door of the Alpha Chapter room at the New England Conservatory. The stained glass was obtained by the Fraternity through special arrangements with the Conservatory circa 1995. The back room contains files and shelving to house the Fraternity’s main historical archives (specific chapter related archival material is kept in the main building). Prior to the consolidation of the Fraternity’s historical archives in this area, materials were scattered throughout the property in odd places, some of which were even kept in damp conditions in a dilapidated barn. In addition, safes in this building provide for storage of the Fraternity’s most valued archival material to prevent loss due to fire or other natural disasters. Other rooms in the building are dedicated to staff housing and overflow housing for Lyrecrest events.
In addition to the above named buildings, there are three garage facilities.
In the rear of the property is a small pond or lake (which has been described as resembling an upside down piano), an oil well (which predates the fraternity’s purchase of the property), and several acres of undeveloped land (approximately 30-40% of the property on the western side of the estate, which borders the Clearcrest Golf Course, is forest area). A storage building was razed around 1999 behind the main building to provide additional parking. Wild coyotes have been reported to roam the wooded areas of the property.
When in season, chrysanthemums (the official Fraternity flower) are planted in front of the main building. In recent months, significant steps have been taken to upgrade the condition of the grounds. Expansion of a patio, installation of flower and vegetable gardens, border trees, and enhanced landscaping are among the endeavours.
Prior to the purchase of the property of the house in 1970, a death occurred in the main building, offering an explanation for the tradition of a “Lyrecrest ghost” referred to as “Burr.”
Composer and honorary Sinfonian Aaron Copland visited Lyrecrest in 1970. American Idol winner Reuben Studdard visited the property in 2008.
An intruder broke into the main building of Lyrecrest in the early 1970s.
The National Conventions of 1976 and 1979 were held in Evansville, allowing convention attendees to visit the headquarters property; main activities of the convention were held on nearby university campuses.
Jylene Dewey Wright is the highest ranking female Sinfonian to have served on the Lyrecrest staff. For a period of time, she served as Director of Lyrecrest, and was initiated as an honorary member by the Lambda Kappa Chapter at Carthage College in Kenosha, Wisconsin. The Lambda Kappa chapter was expelled c. 1985 for not supporting the Fraternity's return to single gender status, and has since reorgnized as a local co-ed professional music fraternity on the Carthage campus.
Beginning in the mid-1980s, Lyrecrest was the site of the annual Collegiate Province Representative (CPR) convocation, typically held during the week between Christmas and New Years Day. For several years, a tradition of the attendees of the convocation was to “ring in” the New Year for each time zone in which the fraternity had an existing chapter. Work weekends were also begun in the late 1980s to allow fraternity members to spend a weekend at Lyrecrest assisting with landscaping and other labor needs.
In August 1992, the first Leadership Conclave was held on the campus of the University of Evansville. Although activities were not held at Lyrecrest, a welcoming cookout was held the first day of the conclave on the grounds at Lyrecrest, followed by a welcoming session by national president Robert L. Hause and Sinfonia Foundation president Doug Stewart.
For many years, the "Run for the Gold" was a Fraternity tradition, whereby chapters attempt to be the first to turn in their chapter reports. Beginning in the late 1990s, chapter retreats began to take place at Lyrecrest. These educational opportunities for chapter bonding and learning grew out of the more informal “road trips” taken by chapters to Lyrecrest in the past.
The belated thirtieth anniversary of the occupancy of Lyrecrest by the Fraternity was celebrated at the 2001 Conclave, held in Evansville.
In 2002, an earthquake struck Evansville, causing somewhat significant damage to the “south wing” area of the ground floor of the main building in an area that was used for the fraternity store, resulting in a collapsed floor. In the wake of the earthquake, the Fraternity was able to perform major enhancements to that area of the building, conducting renovations that made the area more conducive for shipping, mailing, and storage. A second earthquake struck the American midwest on April 18, 2008. However, in the immediate aftermath of the quake there was no noticeable damage to the Lyrecrest property.
In addition to serving as an office and retreat facility for the Fraternity, staff members have resided at Lyrecrest from time to time. During the 1990s, Scott B. Sanders, then serving as director of publications and alumni affairs, occupied a bedroom in the “south wing” area of the ground level behind the room that served as his office. Chapter consultants Roger White and Jim Johnson shared a room nearby to the rear of the wing (although both of whom spent a great deal of time on the road due to the nature of their work). Ryan Ripperton lived at Lyrecrest North when initially hired at Lyrecrest in 1999, followed by then-retreat coordinator Jeremy Evans in 2002. After Evans, his successor, Sean Leno, occupied the property from 2003 to 2005, followed by Jared Ivory (2005-2006), Matthew Downing (2006-2007), and Jared Madison (2007-2008). In addition, Barry Magee’s dog stayed on the property in the early 1990s.
The following is an incomplete chronological list of Sinfonians and non-Sinfonians (with their primary titles) who have served on the Lyrecrest staff since the facility opened in 1970. Those names appearing in italics served as chief administrator at one point or another. The longest serving staff member is Ryan Ripperton, who began serving the Fraternity in 1999, until his move to Virginia in 2010, for a total of eleven years.
1970s
1980s
1990s
2000s