Spring 2005 Meeting
General Information / Call for Papers / Program
/ Accommodations / Registration
Travel /
Driving / Conference Sessions / Maps / Events & Attractions / Iowa City


General Information

Date: 1–3 April
Location: The University of Iowa, School of Music
Local Arrangements: Timothy J. Dickey <timothy-dickey@uiowa.edu>

Registration
As always, registration for Chapter meetings is free to members in good standing--just fill out a registration form and pick up a nametag at the registration table outside the meeting room. You may join or renew your membership by paying annual dues to the Chapter treasurer at this time as well. Visit our membership and dues pages for more information.

Accommodations
We have reserved a block of rooms at the Iowa House Hotel, conveniently located in the Iowa Memorial Union, a 10 minute walk from the School of Music.  These rooms are at a conference rate of $49/night, but must be reserved by March 1.  Call (319) 335-3513.  There is a food court and a pastry shop located in the Union building; Friday evening meals will also be available in the River Room cafeteria.  The Union is also located just a few blocks from the center of town, where many eating and shopping options are available.  Visit http://iowahousehotel.com for more information.  Parking is free to guests.

Those who desire a higher level of hotel service may reserve rooms at the Sheraton Downtown Iowa City, 220 S. Dubuque St., phone (319) 337-4058. 

Nearby Coralville (c.5 minute drive) contains a number of budget hotel options, including a Days Inn at 205 2nd St. SW (1.25 miles south of I-80, turn right at the major intersection with 2nd street), (319) 354-4400, and a Holiday Inn just off the highway, 1220 First Ave, (319) 351-5049. 

Travel
By Air
By plane, fly to the Cedar Rapids Municipal Airport (CID); the most likely airlines are Northwest, US Air (if they are still solvent), and Delta.  All major car rental agencies are available at the airport.  Alternatively, we will be providing conference shuttle service during the hours of 1pm-8pm on Friday, and 11am-5pm on Sunday.  To arrange for a pickup, please contact Timothy Dickey (timothy-dickey@uiowa.edu, 319-335-1627) or Nicole Biamonte (nicole-biamonte@uiowa.edu). 

The drive to the University will be roughly 30 minutes.  Leaving the terminal, take a left and then a right onto Wright Brothers Boulevard.  After 1 mile, take the entrance ramp onto I-380 South for Iowa City.  13 miles south on the highway, take exit 0B for I-80 East (Iowa City and Coralville).  Follow the directions below to your hotel or the University. 

By Train (Amtrak)
There is no passenger rail service to Iowa City.

Driving Directions
From the West and Southwest, take I-80 East from Des Moines (c.2 hours) to Iowa City and follow the directions below.  From the North and Northwest, take I-35 South to Des Moines, proceed on I-80 East to Iowa City (you may, if you prefer, take the Mason City, Iowa exit east, drive c.25 miles to US-218 South, connect with I-380 South in Waterloo, to I-80 East.)  From all points East, take I-80 West and follow the directions below. 

From I-80 to The University of Iowa School of Music, take exit 244 (Dubuque Street) and turn South onto Dubuque St.  Travel South for 1-1.25 miles to the first traffic light (Park Road).  Turn right onto Park Road.  Just across the Iowa river, take your first left towards Hancher Auditorium; CAUTION, this road is divided by a median.  Proceed into the parking lot, which is free for parking after 4:30pm on Friday, and all day Saturday and Sunday.  The Voxman Music Building is attached to the Auditorium. 

From I-80 to the Iowa Memorial Union (Iowa House Hotel), take exit 244 (Dubuque Street) and turn South onto Dubuque St.  Travel South for just over 1.5 miles to the intersection of Dubuque and Market Street.  Turn right onto Market Street (one-way).  Three blocks later, after going downhill, turn left onto Madison Street at the dead-end.  (The Union is now directly ahead of you.)  You may park in the IMU Ramp, entrance on your left on this block; parking will be free for those staying at the Iowa House.  To enter the Iowa House hotel, take a left on Madison, and a right on the street at the end of this block; the hotel entrance is the last one on your right.  (There also is metered parking along this street, if you need to unload baggage and check in.) 

From I-80 to the Sheraton, take exit 244 (Dubuque Street) and turn South onto Dubuque St.  Travel South for just over 1.5 miles to the intersection of Dubuque and Market Street.  Turn right onto Market Street (one-way).  Take the next left onto Clinton St.  Proceed five blocks South on Clinton, past the Old Capitol, the Old Capitol Mall, and turn left at the traffic light at the intersection of Burlington St.  The entrance to the Sheraton is .5 blocks on your right. 

From I-80 to the Coralville hotels, take exit 242 (First Avenue, Coralville), and drive South on 1st Ave. 

Parking
Parking is free to guests at Iowa House and free on the Iowa campus after 4:30 pm on Friday and all day Saturday and Sunday.

Local Transportation
The local public bus system (75¢/ride, not available on Sundays) covers the town well, and the campus shuttle runs every 15-30 minutes between downtown and the School of Music. 

Conference Sessions
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Expected Session Times (see program for details)

Saturday, April 2

Sunday, April 3

Cultural Attractions and Events

Events

Please join us for a pre-conference reception Friday evening at the house of Ed and Gloria Kottick, 502 Larch Lane in Iowa City, from 8-10pm.  The Kottick residence is in the Rochester Hills Condominium, a half mile east of First Avenue on Rochester Avenue.  Larch Lane is on the left, just past the Frist Presbyterian Church.  502 is the first house on the right. 

During the weekend of April 1-3, the main attraction will be the Martha Ellen Tye Opera Theater Company’s production of Benjamin Britten’s “Rape of Lucretia” directed by Gary Race.  We will have discounted tickets available ($15) to conference attendees for both Friday and Saturday evening’s performances.  You may reserve tickets at the discounted rate by printing out and mailing in
the advanced order form. For more information call (800) 426-2437 (800-HANCHER).  Friday’s performance is at 8pm, with a pre-concert lecture TBA at 6:30; Saturday is at 8pm. 

Sunday afternoon at 2pm in Harper auditorium (the same room in which the chapter will meet), the Iowa City Early Keyboard Society will present David Bellugi and Peter Kairoff, recorder and harpsichord duo.  Admission is free. 

Iowa City’s Riverside Theatre Company will be offering performance of “Big Love” (described as “Charles Mee’s explosive update of The Suppliant Women by Aeschylus … as much vaudeville as tragicomedy”), 213 N. Gilbert St.  For tickets, (319) 338-7672 or http://www.riversidetheatre.org.

The 2005 season of the Old Creamery Theatre in the nearby Amana Colonies will be announced in January; see http://www.oldcreamery.com for more information. 

Attractions

The University of Iowa campus is home to many attractions, including:

The Museum of Art, located in the building next to the School of Music; Friday noon-9pm, Sat./Sun. noon-5pm.  The Museum holds one of the country’s most important collections of African sculpture, and a permanent collection of 19th and 20th-century European art.  

The Old Capitol, at the center of the “Pentacrest,” was the original state capitol of Iowa, 1842-46, and the first building of the University.  The dome burned in 2002, and has recently been re-opened. 

The Museum of Natural History, also in the Pentacrest, is the oldest university museum West of the Missippi.  Sat. 10am-5pm, Sun. 1-5pm. 

You may visit The University of Iowa Vistor’s page for more information.

Maps of The University of Iowa may be found at http://www.uiowa.edu/homepage/hub/tours.html

Other attractions in Iowa City itself include:

City Park, the centerpiece of Iowa City’s public parks system, happens to lie just across the street from the School of Music (Park Road, along the Iowa river).  It features two pools, children’s carnival rides, tennis courts, other sports fields, and a bicycle path. 

The Heritage Museum of Johnson County, inside an 1876 brick schoolhouse.  310 5th St., Coralville. 

The “Pedestrian Mall” is at the center of town, just east of the “Pentacrest,” and features several blocks of unique shops, restaurants, and pubs, as well as the Iowa City Public Library.  Unfortunately, the Iowa City Jazz festival will not yet have arrived…

Plum Grove Historic Farm, an 1844 Greek revival home and the residence of Iowa’s first territorial governor—1030 Carroll St. 

Prairie Lights Books, 15 S. Dubuque St., is Iowa City’s best independent bookstore.  Coffee shop on premises, and frequent poetry readings, public radio broadcasts, etc. 

While in the Iowa City area, you also may enjoy visiting these unique historic sites:

The Amana Colonies, 25 miles norwest of Iowa City (8 miles north of I-80), are a series of seven villages and hundreds of historic sites and buildings.  Religious separatists (a pietist brethren) founded the colonies in the mid-19th century, and maintained their communal ownership of the lands and buildings until early in the 20th.  Vistors may see woodworking and blacksmithing demonstrations, visit museums of the colonial life, eat good German family-style food, and taste homemade Iowa sweet wines.  The Old Creamery Theater begins its season in late spring.  For more information, call (800) 579-2294, or visit http://www.amanacolonies.com.

The Herbert Hoover National Historic Site, c.25 miles East of Iowa City and just off I-80 in West Branch, includes Hoover’s birthplace and grave site, the Hoover Presidential Library-Museum, and several buildings restored to their late 19th century Quaker roots.  (319) 643-2541, See http://www.nps.gov/heho.

The Kalona Historical Village, an Amish community 17 miles southwest of Iowa City (off US-1), includes a restored historical Village, the Iowa Mennonite Museum and Archives, and a Quilt and Textile Museum. Call (319) 656-2519.

The National Czech and Slovak Museum and Library happens to be in Cedar Rapids, 20 miles north of Iowa City on I-380.  While there, stroll around Cedar Rapids’ “Czech Village,” a five-block piece of the old country that includes several Czech cuisine restaurants.  See http://www.ncsml.org.

Dining Information

Links
Visit the Iowa City/Coralville Convention and Visitor’s Bureau for more information about the community.

Weather
Expect unpredictable spring weather. Temperatures can range from freezing to warm.

Local Arrangements
Please extend our sincere thanks to Timothy Dickey for his excellent work for this meeting.

NOTE: Further details about the Spring meeting will be added as they become available.

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