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Posted by: Paul Sommerfeld
Every year when December arrives, I find the urge to re-watch the classic animated film, How the Grinch Stole Christmas. Its themes centered in kindness and giving have always resonated with me most each holiday season. Originally written by Theodor “Dr. Seuss” Geisel and published in 1957, the 1966 special features a narration by Boris …
Posted in: Composers, Film Music, Holidays
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: Paul Sommerfeld
Renowned pianist Artur Schnabel is best known for his recordings of a complete cycle of Ludwig van Beethoven’s piano sonatas, which he recorded from 1932-1935. His recording, the first ever made of the complete cycle of Beethoven’s 32 sonatas, to this day places him at the forefront of interpreting the composer’s piano works. Schnabel’s son …
Posted in: Composers, Concerts and Events, Musicians, Special Collections
Posted by: Melissa Wertheimer
November 5th is National Love Your Red Hair Day! The Music Division salutes some of music’s great redheads in our own collections: Vivaldi, Berlioz, Lucille Ball, Beverly Sills, and Ariel the Little Mermaid.
Posted in: Composers, Exhibitions, Musical Theater, Musicians, Special Collections
Posted by: Cait Miller
The following is a guest post from Gershwin Archivist Janet McKinney. It seems there is something utterly compelling about the core story of A Star is Born, as it is now being told in theaters for the fourth time. Originally a 1937 drama starring Janet Gaynor and Fredric March, it told the story of a …
Posted in: Composers, Film Music, Guest bloggers, Special Collections
Posted by: Cait Miller
The following is a guest post from Senior Music Specialist Ray White. Composer George Gershwin was born 120 years ago, on September 26, 1898. For most of his adult life, he was a youthful celebrity, indeed a rock star of his time, and his mystique is only enhanced by his tragic death from a brain …
Posted in: Birthdays, Composers, Guest bloggers, Special Collections
Posted by: Cait Miller
The following is a guest post from Robin Rausch, Head of Reader Services in the Music Division. For three days in September, in 1918, the musical elite gathered in Pittsfield, Massachusetts, for what was billed as the first chamber music festival ever given in America. It took place September 16-18, two months before the November …
Posted in: Composers, Guest bloggers, Musicians, Special Collections, World War I
Posted by: Cait Miller
Any other Clara Schumann fanatics out there? I’ve been a personal devotee of Clara the composer ever since I first listened in college to Barbara Bonney and Vladimir Ashkenazy’s recording, Robert & Clara Schumann Lieder. I was a Music major and voice student exploring new repertoire for upcoming recitals; while I already loved Robert Schumann’s …
Posted in: Birthdays, Composers, Special Collections, Women in Music
Posted by: Cait Miller
The following is a guest post from Jennifer Ashley Tepper, Creative & Programming Director at Feinstein’s/54 Below and author of The Untold Stories of Broadway book series. She is the producer of the musical Be More Chill and the creator of The Jonathan Larson Project, which will premiere this fall. She is also the historian …
Posted in: Composers, Guest bloggers, Musical Theater, Special Collections