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Posted by: Pat Padua
I recently toured the Archives of American Art’s new exhibit, “Six Degrees of Peggy Bacon. ” The exhibit riffs on the idea of “six degrees of separation” popularly associated with actor Kevin Bacon, and uses as its central figure New York artist Peggy Bacon, who is little remembered today but was a well-connected member of …
Posted in: Composers, Exhibitions, Special Collections
Posted by: Larry Appelbaum
(photo by Tom Marcello) Chuck Wayne [Charles Jagelka 1923-1997] was a guitarist and teacher who helped bridge the swing era with the modernist bebop revolution of the mid-1940s. Wayne worked along 52nd Street and took part in recording sessions with Coleman Hawkins, Lester Young, Dizzy Gillespie, Barney Bigard and many others. He was a member …
Posted in: African American History, Copyright Deposits, Jazz, New Acquisitions, Special Collections
Posted by: Cait Miller
Today we remember Richard Rodgers and his incredible contribution to musical theater and popular song on what would be his 110th birthday! Rodgers (1902-1979) wrote more than 900 songs and composed for 43 musicals and left an immeasurable impact on the American songbook, influencing arts from the worlds of pop, classical, jazz, and beyond. Rodgers’ …
Posted in: Birthdays, Composers, Special Collections
Posted by: Pat Padua
The Music Division regularly offers new and updated online finding aids to help guide the intrepid researcher through its vast collections. You can see an index of all the Music Division’s finding aids here. This month’s new additions include a guide to the papers of Edward Jablonski, author of Irving Berlin: American Troubadour and other composer biographies, as …
Posted in: Composers, Special Collections
Posted by: Pat Padua
The following post is by Music Cataloging intern Ruth Bright. While cataloging as an intern in the Music Division, I ran across this beautifully illustrated lithograph title page for a song tucked away inside an anonymous volume, one of approximately 290 volumes found at LC classification number M1.A15. This volume of miscellaneous melodies contains many …
Posted in: Guest bloggers, Newly Cataloged, Pic of the Week
Posted by: Cait Miller
Last Sunday, June 17, marked the 237th anniversary of the Battle of Bunker Hill, where on a hilltop just outside of Boston over 1000 members of the rebel army put up a valiant fight against two infantry charges by the highly organized (and significantly larger) British forces. Though the Americans were defeated by the third …
Posted in: Sheet Music of the Week
Posted by: Pat Padua
The following is a guest post by Dance Heritage Coalition Fellow Nicole Topich. Processing the Marge Champion Collection in the Music Division has been one of the most exciting archives jobs I have held. The collection is not very large, but almost every item I found was interesting or historically significant. Because the collection has …
Posted in: Dance, Guest bloggers, Pic of the Week, Special Collections
Posted by: Pat Padua
The children’s prayer that begins, “Now I lay me down to sleep” dates back to an 18th century New England primer, but its musical life has followed a surprising path over the more than two centuries since. From heavy metal (Metallica) to hip-hop (The Notorious B.I.G.) to indie rock (Liz Phair), the iconic words have …
Posted in: Composers, Sheet Music, Sheet Music of the Week, Special Collections
Posted by: Pat Padua
The following is a guest post by Senior Music Cataloger Sharon McKinley. The Library of Congress Chorale’s Spring concert is this Thursday, June 7. Cinema in Concert will be presented at noon in the JeffersonBuilding, Coolidge Auditorium. It is free to staff and the public, so if you’re in the neighborhood, stop on by! It’s …
Posted in: Composers, Concerts and Events, Guest bloggers, Special Collections