Legendary blues singer Bessie Smith was born on this day in 1894 in Chattanooga, Tennessee. Portions of this blog post were taken from the online exhibit, American Treasures of the Library of Congress. Bessie Smith gained immediate success in 1923 with her first recording “Down Hearted Blues”/”Gulf Coast Blues.” Her renditions of Negro life in …
This week’s featured image is a charming collage assembled to honor today’s birthday celebrant. Russian Composer Sergei Rachmaninoff was born on this day in 1873. This hand-made birthday invitation was donated by Oxana Siloti, a relative of the maestro. The Music Division is home to the Sergei Rachmaninoff Archive, forty-two feet of shelf space which includes …
In the Muse rings in the new season with our foray into territories forged by our colleagues at In Custodia Legis and Inside Adams, who have both established Pic of the Week features. We inaugurate the Music Division’s unique iteration of this feature with an image from a collection which has been the subject of …
The following is a guest post by Senior Music Specialist Ray White. Victor Herbert’s 152nd birthday is this month. If you recognize his name, you might recall that he composed operettas. Perhaps Babes in Toyland comes to mind. Its best-known number, “Toyland, Toyland, little girl and boy land…,” recorded by Doris Day, Johnny Mathis, the …
There’s a big game on this Sunday, and while In the Muse does not have a dog in this fight, we can provide music for a victory dance should the Green Bay Packers emerge victorious. Should the Pittsburgh Steelers snack on the opposition, they can celebrate their renewed dynasty with “The Age of Steel,” from …
The following post is by Daniel Walshaw, Music Division. Today is the birthday of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, one of the greatest composers to ever put pen to paper, and what exactly does that mean? I never quite understand our fascination with celebrating the birthdays of our favorite minds that are long gone. Does it make …
On this Feast of Three Kings, celebrate the recent birthdays of a pair of musical kings: bandleader Xavier Cugat and rock and roll icon Elvis Presley. Francesc d’Asís Xavier Cugat Mingall de Bru i Deulofeu was born in Spain on January 1st, 1900. Cugat, was dubbed “The Mambo King” in the 1995 Walt Disney feature A Goofy …
