James H. Hall Papers

James Husst Hall was born on February 3, 1890, in Cohoes, New York, the son of James Marvin Hall (1853-1917) and Mary A. "Mollie" Husst (1852-1912). He had two sisters: Ethel Minera (1884-1952) and Grace Elizabeth (1888-1889). While studying, first at Oberlin College and then at the Conservatory, he worked as an assistant in the Theory Department (1913-14; 1914-15). He earned the AB degree from the college in 1914 and a B Mus from the conservatory in 1915.

James Hall began his teaching career at the College of Wooster where he was an instructor in piano for two years (1915-17) and an assistant professor for four (1917-1921). He spent the final years of World War I as an ensign in the United States Navy (1918-19). In 1922, after receiving the AM degree from the Oberlin Conservatory, he joined its faculty and taught there until his retirement in 1955. In 1917, he was named Professor of the History and Criticism of Music, succeeding Edward Dickinson (1853-1946) to the earliest established chair in that discipline in the United States. As a teacher, Professor Hall was dedicated and exacting, holding students to the highest standards, the same that he maintained for himself. He possessed a fine sense of justice, yet he was unfailingly gentle and friendly. His course in music appreciation, one often considered “a refuge for dilettantes,” was rigorous and demanding. Students who persevered achieved a real sense of accomplishment.

Professor Hall extended both his studies and his musical activities beyond the Oberlin campus. In 1926-27, he studied at the Schola Cantorum in Paris, France; in 1917, at Godowsky in Chicago, Illinois; and later at the University of Edinburgh, Scotland. He was organist and choir director at several Cleveland, Ohio churches and for many years at First Congregational Church in Oberlin, Ohio, where he was a member. For eighteen years, he served as music director at Camp Pemigewassett, a summer camp for boys in Wentworth, New Hampshire. A contributor to professional journals, he was also a critic for the Oberlin Artists Series, and a member of the American Guild of Organists. His best-known work, his book, The Art Song, (Norman: The University of Oklahoma Press, 1953) has been hailed for its simplicity, solid knowledge, and felicitous phrasing (Murphy).

In 1919, James Hall married Florence Belle Jenney (1878-l975; Mus B, 1907) who taught voice in the Oberlin Conservatory (1907-08; 1909-13; 1922-44). Their only child, James Truman Hall, (1920-1943; AB 1942) was killed in 1943 during a flight over the Pacific while serving as a Marine Dive Bomber.

James Husst Hall died in Oberlin on August 12, 1967. He left over 250 books and 500 scores plus an antiphon to the Conservatory. Family and friends established a memorial fund in his name, the income to be used by the Music History Department to acquire books and other special needs.

SOURCES CONSULTED:

Funeral will be today for James H. Hall, 77. Oberlin, Ohio News-Tribune. August 17, 1967.

“James H. Hall Memorial.” Progress. Fall, 1969.

James H. Hall: “Memorial Minute.” Oberlin Alumni Magazine. December 1967.

“James Husst Hall.” Typescript biography. 4 pages.

Oberlin College Biographical Form. October 1930.

“Professor James Hall of Oberlin Dies at 77.” Lorain, Ohio Journal. August 14, 1967.

“Rites Today in Oberlin for Prof. J. H. Hall.” Cleveland, Ohio, Plain Dealer. August 17, 1967.

Note written by Elizabeth Brinkman.