Tri-M

Maine Music Masters In 1930, Charles Himmel, principal of Maine Township High School (now Maine Township High School East) in Park Ridge, Illinois tasked the school's new music department chairman and band director, Alexander M. Harley, with turning the high school into the music center for the community. Harley established student vocal and instrumental ensembles to perform free concerts for community churches, civic clubs, and schools. The society was operated from the Harley's home. Tri-M Music Honor Society On August 1, 1983, the Modern Music Masters officially became a program of the Music Educators National Conference (now the National Association for Music Education) and changed its name to Tri-M Music Honor Society. Tri-M continues to recognize students for their academic and musical achievements and provides leadership and service opportunities to young musicians. In 1986, Tri-M became an approved program of the National Association of Secondary School Principals. == Symbols ==

The society's original emblem was an octagonal key, featuring a five-line music staff with a lyre and scroll on the staff. The five-lines of the staff represented the society's selection criteria of music, scholarship, character, leadership, and service. The lyre and scroll symbolized proficiency and service to music. Above the staff was a musical triplet in the shape of the letter M, an abbreviation of Maine Music Masters. Tri-M's song is "Music Masters, Hail to Thee". ==Membership==

Membership in Tri-M is open to students in grades six through twelve. To be eligible for membership, a student must maintain an A average in their music classes, a B average in all of their academic courses, be presently enrolled in a music course at their school or belong to a school-sponsored ensemble, and be recommended for membership by their school's music faculty. In addition to its student (active) members, Tri-M also has alumni members who have graduated from high school, and honorary members. ==Chapters==

Tri-M has more than 2,100 chapters in public, private, and parochial schools. Chapters are located in Canada, Chile, China, Egypt, Japan, Mexico, Pakistan, Peru, the Philippines, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Chapters are divided by grade into senior chapters for grades 10 through 12 and junior chapters for grades 6 through eight; grade 9 can be either senior or junior, depending on the school's structure. ==Notable members==

• Arthur Fiedler (honorary), conductor • Howard Hanson (honorary), composer and music theorist • Bobby McFerrin (honorary), singer and conductor • Georg Solti (honorary), conductor • Shinichi Suzuki (honorary), violinist and pioneer in musical pedagogy • Fred Waring (honorary), musician, bandleader, choral director, and radio and television personality • Meredith Wilson (honorary), composer, conductor, musical arranger, and bandleader ==References==