The Bruce Springsteen Archives and Center for American Music (BSACAM) will be hosting a conference in February to commemorate the year 1964 and its importance to the Beatles. While the Springsteen Archives are hosting this symposium, there will be an opportunity for MU students to display their efforts with their own conference held the day before the main event.
This mini-conference is open for all MU students to participate in, regardless of major. The call for papers is officially open, but is a bit unique in the potential criteria for presenters. While traditional paper presentations are more than welcome, this conference is also open for musicians to display their talents in honoring the Beatles musical accomplishments of 1964.
This conference will allow students to present—solo or in a group—their Beatles-dedicated research, appreciation, and perspectives. This will also mark the first instance of a student-run Beatles conference here at Monmouth. The Beatles don’t only appeal to one age demographic, as they cover various generations. Those who are first- and second-generation fans tend to fill other Beatles conferences or symposiums, and the time has come for younger fans and scholars to take the stage and give their piece of the Beatles’ ever-growing story.
The Beatles have contributed more than sixty years worth of music and history, and this spring marks a very special anniversary for the band: it will be the 60th anniversary of the Beatles coming to America. 1964 was a monumental year for the group spanning much farther than their momentous touchdown at the newly christened JFK International Airport on Feb. 7.
This year also granted fans two platinum albums, the groups first feature film “A Hard Day’s Night,” their first tour in the US, and most notably, their influential debut on the Ed Sullivan Show for 73 million viewers.
“The Lennon-McCartney team is one of the great songwriting teams of the 20th century, there’s plenty of reason to understand their music and to appreciate it more.” said Bob Santelli, BSACAM Executive Director. “1964 Beatles changed our pop-culture, it changed fashion, it changed hair style, it changed the importance of music in our lives, and most importantly it gives us hope.” Santelli also noted the growing appreciation for the Beatles across generations and how more and more young generations are turning to the Beatles. For some, it might be an emotional connection with their parents or grandparents who are fans, but for all it’s about exploration of the past and seeing the significance this band holds now, over 60 years since their debut.
Since the release of the “Get Back” series in 2021, more and more people have felt a spark of interest surrounding the Beatles. This series gave viewers a fly on the wall experience of witnessing how the group wrote their songs and perfected their craft inside the studio. And with the year 2023 kicking off the next round of decade anniversaries for Beatles and a new Beatles song debuting earlier this month, there has been an abundance of material published regarding the Beatles as well as dedicated Beatles events and celebrations.
The deadline for applications is Dec. 23, 2023, and all decisions will be communicated during winter break. For application information, please reach out to Carlee Migliorisi, s1307551@monmouth.edu.
