Our nation is in the midst of commemorating one of the single most significant days in our history, the March on Washington of August 28, 1963. That momentous occasion has shaped generations of Americans, from activists to community leaders and the President of the United States to the singer-songwriter performing original songs in an eclectic …
Many of us who are lucky enough to work here at the Library of Congress get to experience giddiness frequently. We are surrounded by amazing treasures of all types and forms day-in and day-out. Every day leads to a new discovery in the collections. One of the topics that makes us particularly …
The following is a guest post by Stephanie A. Hall, American Folklife Center. World Mosquito Day, August 20th, commemorates the day in 1897 when Dr. Ronald Ross of Great Britain discovered that female mosquitoes transmit malaria. Many items in the Music Division of the Library of Congress and other performing arts materials throughout the Library …
Every six months the Performing Arts Reading Room looks forward to the installation of a new exhibit in the reading room’s foyer. Over the years staff and readers have learned about the riches of the Music Division’s collections by exploring exhibits on topics ranging from the Ballets Russes, to Music and Animation, to the Federal …
Check out our newly released 2013-2014 Concerts from the Library of Congress Season Brochure. Join us for an exciting season of stellar concerts—classical pop, country, jazz, Americana, rock, bluegrass and musical theater. Plus, you will have the opportunity to be a part of unique experiences only available at the world’s largest music library. The season …
The following is a guest post from Senior Music Reference Specialist Robin Rausch. A recent visit to a friend in Indiana took me to the quaint little town of Crawfordsville, Indiana, home of General Lew Wallace, author of the eternal classic Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ, a book that has not been out of …
The following blog post was adapted from an essay by Senior Music Specialist Ray White and Digital Conversion Specialist James Wolf. This week the Music Division launches a new online collection of Yiddish American Sheet Music. The Library’s holdings of Yiddish American popular songs include the Irene Heskes Collection of Yiddish American sheet music as well …
Summer is a vibrant time of year for the arts. Performance offerings shift from more-traditional settings in the regular season (Autumn-Spring) to an array of different urban, suburban and rural venues. Music festivals, summer stock theater and dance festivals are back in session, as training grounds for the next generation of leading performers and second …
This past Sunday, July 7, 2013 marked the 153rd birthday of composer and conductor Gustav Mahler (1860-1911). The weekend was filled with performances of Mahler’s greatest works around the world, including his third symphony at Tanglewood with the Boston Symphony (Rafael Frühbeck de Burgos, conductor) and fourth symphony at the Castleton Festival (Lorin Maazel, conductor) …