Juanita K. Hammons Hall for the Performing Arts

Juanita K. Hammons Hall for the Performing Arts, located on the Missouri State campus near the Walnut Street Historic District, is a 2220-seat performing arts center presenting an annual season featuring touring Broadway shows, children's productions, a classical recital series, and a wide variety of individual performances including jazz, dance, classical, and theatrical artists. Hammons Hall also hosts the Springfield Symphony, Missouri State music and theatre department performances, and touring pop, rock, and comedy shows. This showcase facility is named in honor of Mrs. Juanita K. Hammons, an enthusiastic supporter of the arts and wife of Springfieldian John Q. Hammons, worldwide developer and philanthropist.







Ellis Hall

Ellis Hall is a four-story structure that serves as the Music Department's home. On the first level are faculty studios, practice rooms, a rehearsal room, and a 17-station class piano lab. The second floor contains the administrative offices, more faculty studios, the Fite Family Computer Assisted Instruction Classroom, the Missouri State Music Library, and a 250-seat recital hall with a 40-rank Canadian-built Casavant pipe organ that was installed when Ellis Hall was constructed. All concerts/recitals since 1988 have been archived on DAT in the recital hall's recording facility. The third floor contains the Music Library's Listening Lab, which features student access to all types of audio media and Macintosh PowerPC computers with instructional, notational, printing, and MIDI capabilities.





Wehr Band Hall

The Wehr Band Hall is a two-story structure containing approximately 35,130 sq. feet. The structure's style is similar to Hammons Student Center: pre-engineered steel frame with a metal wall panel exterior skin. Concrete masonry block, aluminum, and glass windows are located along the public entrances into the administrative office area. The first level includes the office area: private offices, a reception area, work rooms, and a library. Also on the first level are three large rehearsal rooms to accommodate all of the bands, including the Pride Marching Band, a percussion ensemble rehearsal space plus six percussion practice rooms, an area for lockers, two graduate studios, five additional practice rooms, and band storage. The second level includes 12 practice rooms, two graduate offices, a student lounge, and a recording studio. An elevator connects the two floors, and there are restrooms on both levels.
"We very much appreciate the generosity and vision of Bob and Jim Wehr," said Dr. John Keiser, president of Missouri State. "Their investment in the band program will benefit musically- talented young people well into the 21st century."




Electronic Music Studio

The Electronic Music Studio, located in Hammons Hall for the Performing Arts serves as a fully-operational recording studio and hands-on classroom for music majors and non-majors alike. It can play host to many different applications for music production. One can easily go from excellent acoustic recording to advanced computer-generated music, or combine the two. Several classes give students the opportunity to learn how to master all of the equipment with their own projects, as well as produce materials for other campus organizations. Mastering with digital audio editing can also be done at the studio with Sound Designer II. This program also allows students to produce audio CDs for use in commercial CD players. Most of the equipment was purchased through the Wyrick Fund in 1994 and the inventory has been growing ever since. Advanced sequencing, digital audio editing, and multi-track recording can all be done within the studio.





CAI Classroom

The Fite Family Computer Assisted Instruction Classroom is located in 201 Ellis Hall, and was made possible through a generous gift from Mr. Leslie R. Fite, a 1933 graduate of Missouri State. This state-of-the-art multimedia classroom is used by virtually every discipline within the Department. Courses in music theory, aural skills, music history, choral/instrumental arranging, counterpoint, and music education are all taught in this wonderful facility. With the advanced hardware and software at their disposal, students can work on eartraining/sightsinging, drill music theory concepts, notate and print music, perform MIDI and sequencing operations, and view instructional CD-ROMS. All of the equipment in this room is protected by an infra-red and motion detector security system.