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Bruce Springsteen Archives to expand at Monmouth University
Bruce Springsteen attends the Springsteen Archives expansion announcement at Monmouth University.
- The Bruce Springsteen Center for American Music will open on June 7 at Monmouth University.
- The new facility will feature exhibit spaces, archives, a soundstage, and a gift shop.
- The center will also feature a new documentary by Thom Zimny about Springsteen’s role in American music.
The new Bruce Springsteen Center for American Music will open June 7.
The new home, on the corner of Cedar and Norwood avenues on the campus of Monmouth University in Long Branch, will have multiple exhibit spaces, state-of-the-art archives, a 250-seat Dolby soundstage and a gift shop.
“The Springsteen Center provides a home for Bruce Springsteen’s archives and places him in the greater story of American music,” said Robert Santelli, founding executive director, in a statement released on Tuesday, March 10. “Popular music is one of America’s most enduring and respected cultural resources and Bruce Springsteen is one of its most important artists.”
Exhibits in the new center will chronicle Springsteen’s career and explore his creative process. Also, genre and thematic displays of American music, along with more than a dozen interactive experiences, will showcase the history and artistry of America’s rich musical legacy, according to the Springsteen Center.
A brand-new Thom Zimny documentary at the center will explore Springsteen’s role in American music.
“We are honored to host the Bruce Springsteen Center for American Music on our beautiful campus here at the Jersey Shore,” said Monmouth University President Patrick F. Leahy in a statement. “This center reminds us that music has always been one of the most powerful teachers in American life. We are proud to open this new destination to scholars, students, fans and neighbors as a place where American music in all of its forms can be preserved, studied and celebrated.”
The center, initially called the Bruce Springsteen Archives and Center for American Music, was established in 2017 on the campus of Monmouth University in West Long Branch. There are tens of thousands of items from more than 45 countries, ranging from books and concert memorabilia to articles and promotional materials. It serves the research and informational needs of music fans, scholars and authors from around the world.
Center programs range from the Move On Up Gospel Sing-Off and Celebration, featuring state choirs, to the American Music Honors awards, which brings the greats of U.S. music, including Smokey Robinson, John Fogerty, Mavis Staples, Jackson Browne and more, to the university’s Pollak Theatre.
A “Born to Run” 50th anniversary symposium reunited the ’70s-period E Street Band, including Springsteen, for talks and a performance at the Pollak in September.
Springsteen wasn’t a student there, but he does have roots at Monmouth University and the immediate area. He was born at Monmouth Medical Center in Long Branch, and he wrote the album “Born to Run” a few blocks away from campus in a bungalow at 7½ West End Court in the West End section of Long Branch.
He also performed at the school when it was called Monmouth College in the early ’70s.
Monmouth University estimates the museum will attract 40,000 to 50,000 visitors annually. The building was designed by Rick Cook of CookFox Architects based in New York City.
“The Bruce Springsteen Center for American Music will be a busy place,” said Santelli. “Not only will it enhance American music scholarship and add a new research dimension to Monmouth University, it will also be where Springsteen fans will be able to better understand his vast body of music and become more sophisticated listeners of it.”
Visit springsteencenter.org for more information. Advance ticket sales will begin online in April.
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Chris Jordan, a Jersey Shore native, covers entertainment and features for the USA Today Network New Jersey. Contact him at [email protected]
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