Mu Beta Psi National Honorary Musical Fraternity (ΜΒΨ) is a service and music fraternity founded at North Carolina State University in 1925.[1]
Although an honorary fraternity, Mu Beta Psi views itself as primarily a music service group. The national fraternity and several chapters run scholarship programs[2][3] and pride themselves on providing service to their music departments.[4]
Any member of the fraternity is referred to as a brother without regard to the member's sex. This practice comes from the fraternity's beginnings and is used in context as a designation of membership, not of gender.[5]
History
Founding and early years
Mu Beta Psi National Honorary Musical Fraternity was founded on November 5, 1925, at North Carolina State College (now North Carolina State University) by music director Percy W. "Daddy" Price and a group of twelve men from the class of 1926 who were involved in campus music organizations.[1] The purposes of the fraternity were to promote music in its proper place as an educational subject, foster a fellowship among musicians, and stimulate interest in music across the college campus. Over the next few years, Price determined that the fraternity was different from the other music groups on campus and decided to expand it into a national fraternity.[1]
Beta chapter was established at Davidson College in early 1929. The two chapters met in late 1929 and early 1930, resulting in the adoption of the fraternity's constitution. The national organization was founded on April 26, 1930, accompanied by the elections of the first national officers. Price pushed hard for the fraternity's expansion. Some of the earliest prospects included Wake Forest and the College of William & Mary.[1]
Price died in 1933 and was succeeded by Christian D. Kutschinski as music director.[1] Kutschinski became National Executive Secretary in the mid-1930s and sought to expand the fraternity.[1] Despite the challenges of the Great Depression and the Beta chapter going inactive, Delta chapter was established at Clemson University in 1937.
World War II and the 1950s
World War II brought about new challenges for Mu Beta Psi. As many students entered the armed forces, chapter activity was limited. With the war's conclusion, Kutschinski helped the Delta chapter reorganize. Alpha and Delta chapters met for a National Convention in 1949. During the 1950s, the majority of activities took place on the local level, with minimal collaboration between the chapters. The first post-war National Convention was held in 1957.
1960s
At the 1961 National Convention, Mu Beta Psi amended its constitution to allow membership to women. Additionally, a national publication, The Clef, was established. New expansion efforts were also put into place.
Kutschinski stepped down as National Executive Secretary in 1962. Three years later, Ralph W. Daniel was elected to the position and served for the next eighteen years. Two new chapters were installed: the Epsilon chapter at Washington & Lee University in 1965 and the Zeta chapter at Michigan Technological University in 1967. The latter was the result of a merger with Tri-Beta Honorary Band Fraternity.[6] In 1967, "Hail the Spirit," written by Milton C. Bliss, was adopted as the fraternity's song.
1970s and 1980s
The Mu Beta Psi Alumni Association was formally established in early 1970, providing college graduates with a chapter to continue participating in the fraternity's activities. The short-lived Eta chapter was installed at Virginia Military Institute in mid-1970. Theta chapter was established at Saint Augustine's College in 1973 and remained active for thirteen years. Iota chapter was established at Duke University in 1981 and went inactive three years later. Kappa chapter was established at Wofford College in 1989. In the mid-1980s, the fraternity created its Permanent Board of Trustees to ensure the organization's stability. The first members of the Permanent Board included Wallace DesChamps, Charlie Emki, David Wilson, and Bryan Reamer.
1990s
In the early 1990s, the national organization underwent a reorganization with the creation of new national offices, including the vice president of chapter maintenance, vice president of expansion, national treasurer, and national historian. The National Constitution was revised and approved in 1996. Lambda chapter was established at Anderson University in 1991, only to go inactive a year later. Mu chapter was established in 1993 at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and would remain active for nineteen years. The fraternity extended northward with the establishment of the Nu chapter at SUNY Oswego in 1994 and Xi chapter at Saint Vincent College in 1996.
2000s
Five new chapters were established in the 2000s. Omicron chapter was established at Roanoke College in 2001. In 2007, the brothers of Mu Upsilon Alpha at Rutgers University merged with Mu Beta Psi to establish Pi chapter.[7]Rho chapter was established at Northern Michigan University in 2008. A year later, Mu Beta Psi crossed the Mississippi River for the first time with the establishment of Sigma chapter at Saint Louis University in 2009; although, it would quickly go inactive.
2010s
During the 2010s, Mu Beta Psi officially established a national scholarship that is open to college students at the locations where it maintains active chapters. In 2011, the Tau chapter was established at American University in Washington, D.C. The position of chief financial officer was added to the Permanent Board. At the 2018 Convention, all national policies were amended with gender neutral language, as the organization accepts members without regard to their gender identity.[8] A new fraternal life and conduct policy was also adopted "to achieve the safest environment possible for our members, pledges, and guests."[9]
Purpose
Mu Beta Psi concentrates its efforts in support of the following four purposes:[10]
To honor those outstanding individuals who have devoted their time and efforts to the musical organizations at the educational institutions of the respective chapters.
To stimulate interest in the musical organizations at the educational institutions of the respective chapters.
To advance music to its proper place as an educational subject.
To actively promote fellowship among musicians everywhere.
Chapters
Following is a list of Mu Beta Psi chapters in charter order.[11][1] Active chapter names are indicated in bold; inactive chapter names are in italics.
^Gamma chapter was never formally designated; Percy W. Price died before a school could be finalized and a charter issued, and the effort was lost. Records indicate that Gamma chapter was to be established at The College of William and Mary, but colonization efforts were ultimately unsuccessful.
^Chapter resulted from a merger with the Tri-Beta Honorary Band Fraternity.
^Mu Beta Psi Alumni Association is a separate organization but is considered an active chapter. The Alumni Association is open to alumni of all Mu Beta Psi chapters, active or otherwise.
^Chapter formed by merging with Mu Upsilon Alpha, an honorary, co-educational service fraternity of the Rutgers University Bands.
National Presidents
The following is a list of the National Presidents of Mu Beta Psi since the establishment of the Fraternity's National Organization in 1929. The office was vacant on two separate occasions. The first was from 1932 through 1957, although Christian D. Kutschinski used the title National President interchangeably with National Executive Secretary during that time. The second instance was between 1958 when Wade Hicks resigned and the 1961 National Convention.
No.
Name
Chapter
Tenure
1
Joseph Carson Matthews Jr.
Alpha
1929–1930
2
Paul Brown Fry
Beta
1930–1931
3
John Perkins Rabb
Alpha
1931–1932
*
Office Vacant
N/A
1932–1957
4
Wade H. Hicks
Delta
1957–1958
*
Office Vacant
N/A
1958–1961
5
George M. "Buddy" O'Kelley
Delta
1961–1963
6
Ralph W. Daniel
Alpha
1963–1964
7
Horace E. Hudson
Delta
1964–1965
8
Thomas J. Tisdale
Delta
1965–1966
9
Robert B. Kirkpatrick
Delta
1966–1967
10
Owen Cordle
Alpha
1967–1968
11
James W. Chaney
Alpha
1968–1969
12
Jacob A. Houck
Alpha
1969–1971
13
William M. Agee
Epsilon
1971–1972
14
David A. Powers III
Epsilon
1972–1973
15
Thomas L. "Larry" Sloan
Delta
1973–1974
16
Timothy Lipsey
Delta
1974–1975
17
Tony R. Stapleton
Delta
1975–1976
18
Quentin Jackson
Theta
1976–1977
19
Jeff Paulson
Zeta
1977–1978
20
Kerney D. Smoak
Delta
1978–1979
21
Jeff Smith
Zeta
1979–1980
22
Richard D. Witt
Delta
1980–1981
23
Cindy Sharp
Alpha
1981–1982
24
Larry Perry
Alpha
1982–1983
25
Gayle E. "Charlie" Murray
Alpha
1983–1984
26
Mary A. Seabrook
Delta
1984–1985
27
Wallace P. DesChamps Jr.
Delta
1985–1987
28
Laura Rencontre
Zeta
1987–1988
29
Tamron L. "Tammy" Tant
Delta
1988–1989
30
Timothy S. Kudlock
Delta
1989–1991
31
James K. Brock
Alpha
1991–1992
32
Timothy "Tyler" Clark
Alpha
1992–1994
33
Jeffrey R. Bodway
Zeta
1994–1996
34
Allison Schwamberger
Alpha
1996–1997
35
Matthew Rushing
Alpha
1997–1998
36
Kelly Smith
Nu
1998–1999
37
Christopher D. Rodkey
Xi
1999–2001
38
Jonathon R. Fielbrandt
Zeta
2001–2002
39
Ryan R. Hauck
Delta
2002–2004
40
Phillip G. Staten
Omicron
2004–2007
41
Andrew J. Fleming
Zeta
2007–2009
42
Garrett Cooperman
Nu
2009–2011
43
Christopher Ciarlariello
Pi
2011–2013
44
Ariane Osterwald
Tau
2013–2014
45
Ian Schaefer
Rho
2014–2015
46
Sarah Feutz
Alpha
2015–2016
47
Chrissy L. Fleming
Mu
2016–2017
48
Ashley Ford
Alpha
2017–2019
49
Patrick Zazzaro
Pi
2019–2020
50
Tyler Jensen
Zeta
2020–2021
51
Em (Ethan) Mitchell
Nu
2021–2022
52
Nathan Booms
Zeta
2022–present
Notable alumni
Lachi (Mu) – Singer-songwriter, producer, author, and founder of the UNC Cadence
