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Posted by: Melissa Wertheimer
Dance Archivist Libby Smigel and I are excited to present a Saturday Research Orientation for dance on October 20! Whether you’re a seasoned dance researcher, a first-time Library visitor, local dance educator, or student currently studying dance, we can’t wait to meet you and share our resources with you. Please register for this free event …
Posted by: Melissa Wertheimer
The following is a guest post from Hallie Chametzky, one of the Music Division’s Fellows from this past summer. Dance Archivist Libby Smigel introduces her. Meet Hallie Chametzky, a senior in dance at Virginia Commonwealth University. Selected this past summer as a Junior Fellow working on the Martha Graham Legacy Project, Hallie chose to …
Posted in: Dance, Guest bloggers
Posted by: Cait Miller
The following is a guest post from Music Reference Specialist James Wintle. There is many an old familiar song running through the collective memory of the Western world that will occasionally cause one to sit back with a puzzled look and wonder: “Do I actually understand what I’m saying right now?” Foremost among these is …
Posted in: Guest bloggers, Holidays, Sheet Music, Special Collections
Posted by: David Plylar
The following is a guest post from Anne McLean of the Music Division. On Wednesday, December 12 tickets for the spectacular spring season of Concerts from the Library of Congress will be available via Eventbrite. Tickets will be released at 10:00 am (ET), for all events for the second half of the season: January 10 …
Posted in: Composers, Concerts and Events, Jazz, Musicians
Posted by: Melissa Wertheimer
The following is a guest post by Hallie Chametzky. Dance Archivist Libby Smigel introduces Hallie: Hallie Chametzky completed her summer Junior Fellowship with the Music Division in early August. Working with the papers of choreographer and Martha Graham Dance Company member Sophie Maslow, she discovered a wealth of documentation on a significant performance event, the …
Posted in: Dance, Guest bloggers, Holidays, Jewish American History, Women in Dance
Posted by: Larry Appelbaum
In January of 2017, I traveled to a suburb outside of Phoenix, Arizona to meet Dr. Gregory Morris and family. Morris is the nephew of Billy Strayhorn and Executor of the Billy Strayhorn Estate. Dr. Morris, a retired educator originally from Pittsburgh, kept the collection in safe hands for nearly five decades. The papers, including …
Posted in: African American History, Interviews, Jazz, New Acquisitions, Special Collections
Posted by: Paul Sommerfeld
Ever since I was little, one of the joys of Thanksgiving has been the leftovers in the days that follow. Who doesn’t like a Cajun turkey sandwich with some stuffing and mashed potatoes on the side? Some leftovers even get better with age, as the flavors become richer. Over this past Thanksgiving, I started thinking …
Posted in: Holidays, Special Collections
Posted by: Paul Sommerfeld
In 1979, the corps de ballet of the American Ballet Theatre (ABT) went on strike in a wage dispute. The newest members of the corps, the lowest-ranking dancers in the company, only made $235 a week—$869 in 2018 dollars. Many principal and solo dancers in the ABT supported the corps. In an article for People …
Posted in: Food, Special Collections
Posted by: Paul Sommerfeld
Over the past several months, I’ve been sifting through the thousands of pieces that are part of the silent film music accompaniment anthologies in the Music Division’s collection. These volumes, with titles such as the Capitol Photoplay Series, The Synchronizer Suite, or Sam Fox Photoplay Edition: A Looseleaf Collection of High Class Dramatic and Descriptive …
Posted in: Film Music, Sheet Music