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Posted by: Neely Tucker
Ned Rorem could never stop thinking. Or writing, composing or socializing. He kept datebooks, scrapbooks and diaries, the last of which went for thousands of pages over decades. He composed more than 500 art songs, three symphonies, four piano concertos, more than half a dozen operas and on and on. These fill volumes and folders …
Posted in: LGBTQ, Music, Performing Arts, Songwriters, Writers
Posted by: Neely Tucker
Legendary ragtime composer Scott Joplin died in poverty at age 48 in 1917 and left few personal artifacts behind; only three photographs of him are known to exist. The song that made him famous was the spirited "Maple Leaf Rag" in 1899. So 125 years later, when the Library's music staff pulls the two copies of "Maple Leaf Rag" sheet music that Joplin and his music publisher mailed in for copyright registration, it can produce an audible gasp.
Posted in: African American History, Music, National Recording Registry, Performing Arts, Songwriters, Washington DC
Posted by: Neely Tucker
Burt Bacharach, one of the most popular songwriters and composers in American history, was awarded the Gershwin Prize in 2012. He wrote or cowrote dozens of pop standards -- "Walk on By," "Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head," "The Look of Love," "I Say a Little Prayer," "(They Long to Be) Close to You" -- mostly with lyricist Hal David. He also composed, arranged, conducted the band or orchestras for the recording sessions and recorded his own albums. His songs have been recorded by hundreds of artists around the world. His papers are now at the Library.
Posted in: Gershwin Prize for Popular Song, LCM, Library Work and Employees, Music, National Recording Registry, Performing Arts, Songwriters