Summary University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire Department of Music and Theatre Arts Records, ranging from 1928-2023. Clara Mae Ward became Eau Claire State Normal School’s music teacher during the 1923-1924 school year. She initiated the school’s first orchestra and helped revitalize vocal music groups. Robert Gantner was hired during the 1940s and there was much growth in the music department. The Department of Communication and Theatre Arts was formed in 1983, and was preceded by the Department of...