Hal Leonard Moves Shawnee Press from Nashville to Milwaukee
MILWAUKEE - In June of 2009, Hal Leonard Corporation purchased Shawnee Press, Inc., one of the premier publishers of choral and instrumental music. Today Hal Leonard Chairman and CEO Keith Mardak announced that the Nashville offices of Shawnee will be closing, and its staff relocating to Milwaukee.
From 1989 to 2009, Shawnee had been operating as an independent subsidiary of Music Sales Corporation, the US publishing arm of the Music Sales Group. Shawnee had been headquartered on Nashville's Music Row since 2005. The influx of Shawnee employees will beef up the Hal Leonard choral editorial department.
Emily Crocker, vice president of choral publications for Hal Leonard, comments, "The Milwaukee and Nashville staff have been working very closely together since the acquisition. Having everyone under one roof will be fantastic, and further streamline our publishing operations." Shawnee also employs several exclusive composers across the country who will continue to work remotely.
The history of Shawnee Press dates back to the late 1930s, when renowned bandleader and choral master Fred Waring and some of his friends from their famous singing group, The Pennsylvanians, formed the music publishing company Words and Music, Inc. in New York. As the group's radio popularity grew, choir directors began requesting copies of Waring's unique arrangements. The first choral arrangement became available in 1939.
In 1947, Waring relocated the company near his home in Shawnee-on-Delaware, PA, and renamed it Shawnee Press. Waring succumbed to a stroke in 1984, and his widow directed the company until 1989, when she sold it to the Music Sales Group, a global music publishing company based in London.
Waring's philosophy and choral techniques still pervade the company he founded, as does his commitment to excellence. Shawnee Press is well respected today for both the quality and variety of sacred and secular music it produces for schools and churches. Its divisions include Concert Works Unlimited, GlorySound, Harold Flammer Music, Margun Music, Mark Foster Music, and Wide World Music. Among the company's many talented writers and arrangers are Joseph Martin, Greg Gilpin, Jill and Michael Gallina, Don Besig and Nancy Price.
For more information about Shawnee Press, please visit www.shawneepress.com.
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