Michigan Memories: University of Michigan's Hill Auditorium turns 100

Hill Auditorium turns 100 this academic year.
From Yo-Yo Ma and Joshua Bell to Bob Dylan and Ludacris,University of Michigan's Hill Auditorium has hosted some of the most famous names in the music industry since it opened a century ago.
The auditorium is an acoustic gem and this academic year it's celebrating its centennial, a 100-year milestone of countless concerts, graduations and famous keynotes.
Here's a look at Hill Auditorium over the past 100 years:

Ann Arbor News

Ann Arbor District Library archives

U-M Bentley Historical Library
Hill did not have a major renovation until 1949. Another major renovation began in 2002.
Hill housed the original Frieze Memorial Organ from 1913 to 1928, according to archives. When the organ was replaced, its name was retained. Today, the Frieze Memorial Organ remains one of the most valuable musical instruments on campus.

Photo from U-M Musical Society
In this undated photo Hill Auditorium receives a paint job.

Ann Arbor News Photo by Robert Chase
"This project preserves the best of the original, conserves the building for the future and brightens this jewel of our cultural assets," U-M President Mary Sue Coleman said at the time.

Ann Arbor News Photo by Leisa Thompson

Ann Arbor News Photo by Leisa Thompson
Kellie Woodhouse covers higher education for AnnArbor.com. Reach her at kelliewoodhouse@annarbor.com or 734-623-4602 and follow her on twitter.
Comments
rm1
Mon, Oct 1, 2012 : 4:01 p.m.
xmo asks: >> shouldn't this story have run on May 14 2013? "Hill Auditorium opened to its first audience in May 14, 1913" << Well, no. As the article states: "this academic year [Hill is] celebrating its centennial, a 100-year milestone of countless concerts, graduations and famous keynotes. That yearlong round of celebrations started with the Chicago Symphony last Thursday (memorializing that orchestra's first visit to Hill, on Hill's opening night). Those celebrations continue at 7:00 tonight with a talk on Hill's history, presented at the AA District Library, by Professor Mark Clague of the School of Music, Theatre & Dance: http://ums.org/performances/ums-night-school-100-years-of-ums-at-hill-auditorium-1
rm1
Mon, Oct 1, 2012 : 5:26 p.m.
I should have noted that the Chicago Symphony Orchestra's concerts last Thursday and at Hill's opening in 1913 (and more than 200 CSO concerts since its first visit to Ann Arbor in 1892), were all presented by the University Musical Society, as is Professor Clague's talk this evening at the AADL. In addition, most of the events celebrating Hill's centenary are sponsored by UMS.
Kellie Woodhouse
Mon, Oct 1, 2012 : 4:18 p.m.
Thanks for including that link!
T-bird
Mon, Oct 1, 2012 : 1:28 p.m.
Agreed, as someone who attended the 75th birthday of Hill celebration in conjunction with Leonard Bernstein's 70th Birthday, when he conducted the Vienna Philharmonic in Oct of 1988. Mighty confusing!
James Toy
Mon, Oct 1, 2012 : 7:33 p.m.
Was that the year when the 11:00 a.m. open rehearsal was canceled because, as we learned later, Mr. Bernstein allegedly had consumed too much alcohol the night before at the Rubaiyat - ? In any event, that evening he ran onto the stage, and gave the opening downbeat while jumping onto the podium.
xmo
Mon, Oct 1, 2012 : 1:06 p.m.
Great story but shouldn't this story have run on May 14 2013? "Hill Auditorium opened to its first audience in May 14, 1913" I didn't go to Michigan so my math is not that good but it looks like its not quite a Hundred Years.