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Posted by: Cait Miller
The Library of Congress celebrates the opening of the Henry Mancini Archive with a special concert featuring Monica Mancini and husband Gregg Field, and the Henry Mancini Institute Orchestra of the Frost School of Music at the University Of Miami, conducted by Scott Flavin.
Posted in: Concerts and Events, Special Collections
Posted by: Nicholas A. Brown-Cáceres
Learn about six new collection finding aids that have been published by the Library's Music Division. These finding aids provide bibliographic access to the Irwin Bazelon Papers, Harry Chapin Collection, Ann Murphy Collection on the Rockettes and Radio City Music Hall, Alfred Newman Film Music Manuscripts, Park Avenue Synagogue Commissioning Project Correspondence and Hans Spialek Papers.
Posted in: Commissions, Composers, Conductors, Curators, Dance, Film Music, Guest bloggers, LGBTQ+, Musicians, New Acquisitions, New finding aid, New Music, Sacred music, Sheet Music, Special Collections, Women in Dance
Posted by: Nicholas A. Brown-Cáceres
In a guest blog, Andrew Northrop of the Slade School of Fine Art at University College London discusses a recent effort to restore the Library's Buchla 100 synthesizer. This early electronic music instrument belonged to composer Morton Subotnick (b.1933), who purchased it in 1966 for his studio on Bleecker Street in New York City. Hear a demo of the synthesizer, learn about its history, and experience the process of bringing a unique instrument back to life.
Posted in: Composers, Conservation, Curators, Electronic Music, Guest bloggers, Musical Instruments, Musicians, Special Collections
Posted by: Cait Miller
Nearly 16,000 pages of material from the Library of Congress Leonard Bernstein Collection have been transcribed and reviewed via our "By the People" crowdsourced transcription campaign. Transcriptions will ultimately be made available in loc.gov, and the Leonard Bernstein Digital Collection will soon be keyword searchable.
Posted in: By the People transcription campaigns, Composers, Conductors, Curators, Digital Collections, Musical Theater, Outreach, Special Collections
Posted by: Nicholas A. Brown-Cáceres
The Library of Congress Music Division and Koussevitzky Music Foundation commemorate Serge Koussevitzky's 150th birthday with new commissions, the launch of a digital collection, a collaboration with the Boston Symphony Orchestra and more. Learn about this legendary composer and conductor who is responsible for commissioning and premiering many 20th century masterworks, including music by Leonard Bernstein, Béla Bartók, Benjamin Britten, and more.
Posted in: Birthdays, Commissions, Composers, Conductors, Curators, Digital Collections, Exhibitions, Musicians, Special Collections
Posted by: Libby Smigel
Rockettes dancer Ann Murphy (born in Lynn, Massachusetts, in 1942) danced with the precision tap dance company from the 1960s through the 1970s. Now her photographs, programs, and other Radio City Music Hall memorabilia are available to the public in the Library of Congress Performing Arts Reading Room, thanks to Murphy's generous gift of her legacy materials.
Posted in: Dance, New finding aid, Special Collections, Women in Dance
Posted by: Nicholas A. Brown-Cáceres
The 2023-2024 season of Concerts from the Library of Congress came to a rousing conclusion on June 20 with a performance by New Orleans-based band Cha Wa. As final preparations are made for the 2024-2025 season announcement, the Music Division is pleased to share a multitude of concert and event videos that have been released …
Posted in: African American History, Commissions, Composers, Concerts and Events, Conductors, Curators, Dance, Instrumentalists, Interviews, Jazz, Musical Instruments, Musicians, New Music, Special Collections, Staff, Webcasts, Women in Dance
Posted by: Libby Smigel
Choreographer Michio Itō had a profound impact on the development of modern dance in the United States, with collaborations and friendships with Martha Graham, Lester Horton, and Ted Shawn, among many others. Selected images from a recent gift of materials documenting Itō’s career in the United States are shown here alongside other images available in the Library of Congress to highlight the Japanese-born artist’s legacy during Asian American and Pacific Islanders Heritage Month.
Posted in: Asian American History, Dance, New Acquisitions, Pacific Islander History, Special Collections, World War I, World War II
Posted by: Claudia Morales
On May 9, 2024, composer/pianist Vijay Iyer and violinist Curtis Stewart of PUBLIQuartet performed the world premiere of Iyer’s What Isn’t Hard to See at the Library of Congress. The work was commissioned by the McKim Fund at the Library of Congress, which supports the performance and commissioning of works for violin and piano by …
Posted in: Commissions, Composers, Concerts and Events, Instrumentalists, Interviews, Jazz, Musicians, Special Collections, Staff Interviews