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Creator:

Jerome and Dorothy Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation.  Search this

Extent:

7.5 Cubic feet (15 boxes )

Type:

Collection descriptions

Archival materials

Videotapes

Date:

1996 November 11-16

Summary:

This week-long event explored the intersection of technology and music in the 20th century; it included oral and video histories, exhibitions, concerts, and a symposium discussing the cultural significance of the electric guitar as instrument, technology, and symbol.

Scope and Contents:

The collection contains original, master, and reference videos in several formats: BetaCam SP, 3⁄4" U-matic, 1⁄2" VHS, digital audio tape (DAT), and compact disks (CD). The collection documents Electrified, Amplified, and Deified: The Electric Guitar, Its Makers, and Its Players, as part of the Lemelson Center's series of New Perspectives. Through a series of public events, the Lemelson Center explored the intersection of technology and music in the 20th century. The week-long event included oral and video histories, exhibitions, concerts, and a symposium discussing the cultural significance of the electric guitar as instrument, technology, and symbol and an electronic fieldtrip for school age children.

The collection is arranged into four series: Series 1, Oral Histories, 1996; Series 2, Symposium and Other Programs, 1996; Series 3, Innovative Lives and Electronic Fieldtrip Presentation, 1996; and Series 4, Miscellaneous, 1996, undated. Each series is further divided into subseries arranged by format—BetaCam SP, digital audio tape (DAT), 3⁄4" U-Matic, and 1⁄2" VHS. The symposium footage has multiple camera angles resulting in Camera A and Camera B.

The oral histories contain interviews with some of the best known electric guitar manufacturers, luthiers, and accessory makers discussing major twentieth-century technological and cultural trends. The interviews were conduct by Reuben Jackson, Marge Oustrushko, Robert Santelli and Matt Watson. The interviewees include: Junior Brown; John Ingram; Duke Kramer; Ted McCarty; Pat Metheny; Les Paul; G.E. Smith; Paul Reed Smith; Joe Louis Walker; and Tom Wheeler.

Les Paul was interviewed as part of the Lemelson Center's series Portraits of Invention. Legendary guitarist and innovator Les Paul discusses his work with Marc Pachter, Counselor to the Secretary of the Smithsonian. Additionally, Les Paul discusses his work with Matt Watson.

The Acoustic Guitar Concert held at NMAH's Hall of Musical Instruments on November 14, 1996, included a performance by Howard Aldin, guitarist. Martha Morris, Deputy Director, NMAH; Art Molella, Director, Lemelson Center; and James Weaver, Curator, NMAH provided opening remarks.

The symposium, New Sounds, and other programs explored events surrounding the invention of the electric guitar, past and present technological innovations, and contributions made by early pioneers of guitar making. Two evening concerts included performances by some of the country's finest electric guitarists—Howard Aldin, Jim Hall, Junior Brown, Joe Louis Walker, and The Ventures.

New Sounds explores the intersection of technology and music in the 20th century, focusing on the invention and diffusion of the electric guitar. The symposium brings together inventors, historians, and musicians for a day of conversation and inquiry.

The morning sessions addressed Inventing and Popularizing the Electric Guitar with National Museum of American (NMAH) Curator, Charles McGovern, and Innovators and Entrepreneurs Panel Discussion with participants Ted McCarty, Duke Kramer, John Hall, Richard R. Smith, and moderator Tom Wheeler.

The afternoon sessions addressed The Electric Guitar in Context with an introduction by NMAH archivist, Reuben Jackson, and historians, Susan Horning, James Kraft, and Rebecca McSwain discussing relationships among invention, economics, labor, race, and technological enthusiasm. After the session the panelists fielded audience questions.

The Innovative Lives Presentation and Electronic Fieldtrip were presented in cooperation with the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum in Cleveland, OH. Robert Santelli, Director of Education at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum, along with Paul Reed Smith and G.E. Smith, described the invention of the electric guitar, demonstrated the different types of music played on a variety of guitars, and answered student questions about musical innovation and the electric guitar. Student's participation included: Kenmore Middle School (Arlington, VA); Robert Frost Middle School (Rockville, MD); Paul Junior High School (Washington, D.C.); Elkhart Community Schools (Indiana); and Cleveland, OH area middle schools.

The Jerome and Dorothy Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation was founded in 1995 at the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of American History through a generous gift from the Lemelson Foundation. The Center's mission is: to document, interpret, and disseminate information about invention and innovation; to encourage inventive creativity in young people; and to foster an appreciation for the central role invention and innovation play in the history of the United States. The Innovative Lives series brings together Museum visitors and especially, school age children, and American inventors to discuss inventions and the creative process and to experiment and play with hands-on activities related to each inventor's product. This collection was recorded by the Jerome and Dorothy Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation.

Arrangement:

The collection is arranged into four series.

Series 1, Oral Histories, 1996

Subseries 1, BetaCam SP, 1969 (originals) Subseries 2, BetaCam SP, 1996 (masters) Subseries 3, Digital Audio Tape (DAT), 1996 (originals) Subseries 4, 1⁄2" VHS, 1996 (reference copies) Subseries 5, CD-ROMs, 1996 (reference copies)

Series 2, Symposium and Other Programs, 1996

Subseries 1, BetaCam SP, 1996 (originals)

Subseries 2, BetaCam SP, 1996 (masters)

Subseries 3, 3⁄4" U-matic SP, 1996 (masters)

Subseries 4, 1⁄2" VHS, 1996 (reference copies)

Series 3, Innovative Lives and Electronic Fieldtrip Presentation, 1996

Subseries 1, BetaCam SP, 1996 (original)

Subseries 2, BetaCam SP, 1996 (masters)

Subseries 3, 1⁄2" VHS, 1996 (reference copies)

Series 4, Miscellaneous, 1996, undated

Subseries 1, BetaCam SP, undated (originals)

Subseries 2, BetaCam SP, undated (masters)

Subseries 3, Digital Audio Tape (DAT), 1996 (originals)

Subseries 4, 1⁄2" VHS, undated

Subseries 5, CD-ROM (reference copy), 1996

Biographical / Historical:

Just the words "electric guitar" can conjure up images in our minds. Jimi Hendrix playing "The Star-Spangled Banner." The neighbor's kid whose band practices in the garage. Leather jackets, motorcycles, and slicked-back hair. A Fender Stratocaster. Or a Gibson Flying V or Les Paul. Music that is, depending on your generation, either too loud or not quite loud enough. Rock and roll. Jazz. Blues. Country. The sound of an electric guitar is familiar to most of us. How did that happen? Why has the work of the people who invented, designed, and popularized this instrument become so much a part of everyday life?

These questions and others were raised during Electrified, Amplified, and Deified: The Electric Guitar, Its Makers, and Its Players, the second in the Lemelson Center's annual series on New Perspectives on Invention and Innovation. From November 9-16, 1996, the Center, in cooperation with the National Museum of American History Division of Cultural History, sponsored concerts, movies, interviews, makers' displays, an exhibit, and a symposium, all spotlighting those inventors and players who plugged in and forever changed the sound of American music.

Provenance:

This collection was created by the Lemelson Center and NMAH staff from the Division of Music, Sports and Entertainment in November of 1996.

Restrictions:

Collection is open for research butthe original videos are stored off-site and special arrangements must be made to work with it. Series 1, Oral Histories, the Les Paul oral history interviews are restricted Contact the Archives Center for information at archivescenter@si.edu or 202-633-3270.

Rights:

Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning intellectual property rights. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.

Topic:

Musical instruments industry -- 20th century  Search this

Music -- 20th century  Search this

Musicians  Search this

Musical instruments -- 20th century  Search this

Guitar -- 20th century  Search this

Electric Guitar -- 1920-2000  Search this

Genre/Form:

Videotapes -- 1990-2000

Citation:

Electric Guitar Video Documentation, 1996 November, Archives Center, National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution.

Identifier:

NMAH.AC.0610

See more items in:

Electric Guitar Video Documentation

Archival Repository:

Archives Center, National Museum of American History

GUID:

https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep889eac379-42e1-4156-b5ed-df7b41e6829f

EDAN-URL:

ead_collection:sova-nmah-ac-0610

Creator:

Thieme, Art, 1941-2015  Search this

Extent:

459 Slides

0.3 Cubic feet (1 box)

Type:

Collection descriptions

Archival materials

Slides

Photographs

Chromogenic processes

Slides (photographs)

Date:

circa 1960s-1990

Summary:

Art Thieme was a noted folk singer who recorded many traditional ballads and folk songs from midwestern states. This collection is a series of 459 color slides documenting folk musicians and folk music, in both concert settings and informal portraiture, all taken by the donor.

Scope and Contents:

459 35mm color slides documenting folk musicians and folk music, in both concert settings and informal portraiture, all taken by the donor, Art Thieme, a noted folksinger. Subjects include such well-known performers as Stephen Wade, the New Lost City Ramblers, Mike Seeger, Pete Seeger, Peggy Seeger, Jack Elliott, Ike Everly, B.B. King, Dave Edmonson, Ray Harris, Kenny Baker, Tom Paxton, John Hammond, Bill Monroe, Justin Bishop, Steve Goodman, Cathy Fink, Wes Asbury, Ron F. Kirkpatrick, Doc Watson, Jim Kweskin, and Lightnin' Hopkins, and other notables such as oral historian Studs Terkel. The collection also contains a CD with Thieme's recordings and a folder of newspaper clippings, a program, and a map of local folk singers across the country. The slides are unarranged, but most slides have names, places, and dates.

Arrangement:

The collection is arranged into one series.

Biographical / Historical:

Art Thieme was born on July 9, 1941 in Chicago, Illinois. He becamea noted folk singer. He launched his career at a Hyde Park, Chicago club, the Limelight, in 1959 and went on to perform for many years at a coffeehouse called No Exit, also in Chicago. Touring all over the country, he photographed and recorded many folk singers and concerts, documented in this collection. At the end of his career, he performed on the steamboats Julia Belle Swain, Twilight on the Mississippi, and Illinois Rivers. He has recorded traditional folk songs rendered by himself for Folk Legacy Records. Thieme died on May 26, 2015.

Provenance:

The collection was donated by Art Thieme in 2012.

Restrictions:

The collection is open for research. Gloves must be worn when handling unprotected photographs and negatives.

Rights:

Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.

Topic:

Musical instruments -- 20th century  Search this

Concerts  Search this

Folk music -- United States  Search this

Folk musicians  Search this

Folk songs -- United States  Search this

Folk music -- Appalachian Region, Southern  Search this

Folk festivals  Search this

Folk music  Search this

Musicians -- 1950-2000  Search this

Genre/Form:

Photographs -- Color transparencies -- 1950-2000

Chromogenic processes

Slides (photographs) -- 1950-2000

Citation:

Art Theime Folk Music Slides, circa 1960s-1990, Archives Center, National Museum of American History. Gift of Michael Cuscuna.

Identifier:

NMAH.AC.1239

See more items in:

Art Thieme Folk Music Slides

Archival Repository:

Archives Center, National Museum of American History

GUID:

https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep82fb05868-03bf-4f06-a610-3c077c5b5acf

EDAN-URL:

ead_collection:sova-nmah-ac-1239

Photographer:

Smithsonian Institution. Office of Printing and Photographic Services  Search this

Collection Creator:

Ellington, Duke, 1899-1974  Search this

Extent:

1 Item (Silver gelatin on paper., 10" x 8".)

Type:

Archival materials

Photographs

Scope and Contents:

This photograph is not a collection item. It is a photograph showing artifacts from the Musical History collection, as well as music manuscripts and other items from the Archives Center collection: Music stand with Duke Ellington signature; domestic and foreign concert programs and magazine articles; caricature; Presidential Medal of Freedom; vintage photos; parts from "Mood Indigo."

Local Numbers:

AC0301-0000067 (AC Scan No.)

88-8249 (SI photo no.)

Series Restrictions:

Unrestricted research access on site by appointment. Unprotected photographs must be handled with gloves.

Collection Rights:

Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.

Copyright restrictions. Consult the Archives Center at archivescenter@si.edu or 202-633-3270.

Paul Ellington, executor, is represented by:

Richard J.J. Scarola, Scarola Ellis LLP, 888 Seventh Avenue, 45th Floor, New York, New York 10106. Telephone (212) 757-0007 x 235; Fax (212) 757-0469; email: rjjs@selaw.com; www.selaw.com; www.ourlawfirm.com.

Topic:

Musical instruments -- 20th century  Search this

Genre/Form:

Photographs -- by OIPP

Collection Citation:

Duke Ellington Collection, Archives Center, National Museum of American History

Sponsor:

Processing and encoding partially funded by a grant from the Council on Library and Information Resources.

See more items in:

Duke Ellington Collection

Duke Ellington Collection / Series 7: Photographs, Duke Ellington Collection

Archival Repository:

Archives Center, National Museum of American History

GUID:

https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep8d88944b8-0504-4cc1-b337-d6143d4cc35e

EDAN-URL:

ead_component:sova-nmah-ac-0301-ref53285

Creator:

Northlight of Colorado, Inc.  Search this

Jacobson, Jake  Search this

Extent:

8 Framed print

3.42 Cubic feet (2 boxes, 1 map-folder)

Type:

Collection descriptions

Archival materials

Framed print

Photographs

Sound recordings

Inkjet prints

Iris prints

Ink jet printing

Compact discs

Digital images

Cd-roms

Color prints (photographs)

Date:

1996-2000

Summary:

Collection consists of photoprints and other materials created by Jacob Jacobson for the "Heart & Hands: Musical Instrument Makers of America" exhibition circulated by the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service (SITES), from April 2000 to early 2004.

Scope and Contents:

The collection consists of photoprints and other materials created by Jacob Jacobson for the "Heart & Hands: Musical Instrument Makers of America" exhibition circulated by the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service (SITES), from April 2000 to early 2004. The materials are arranged into two series.

Series 1: Iris (Inkjet) Digital Photoprints, dates, consists of eighty six color Iris (inkjet) items. The subjects are primarily individual musicians and craftsmen, although several instrument companies are included, notably the venerable Selmer Company of Elkhart, Indiana, which has manufactured band instruments for many decades. These digital prints were made from Jacobson's 35mm color transparencies (although print number one is monochrome, rather than full color). The prints are from a limited edition of 350, and are signed by the photographer in the lower right beneath the image, and numbered on the lower left. Some prints bears Northlight Atelier blind stamp in the margin and an identifying label with the print number and subject's name is affixed to each print on the verso at the bottom. Most of the prints have an image size of 20" in the long dimension and from approximately 13-1/4" to 14-1/4" on the short side; on heavy, textured archival paper, ranging in size from about 16"x 23" to 19"x 24". Eight larger prints, with image sizes of approximately 21-22" x 31-32" in size, were received matted and in 28" x 40" frames. Some representative image and print sizes are included. Most prints are in one large flat box; prints in the "folder" are stored separately because the paper is slightly too large for the box. The large framed prints are necessarily stored separately and are less accessible.

Series 2: Other Materials, dates, includes a loose-leaf notebook containing inventory of the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Services (SITES) exhibit prints with titles and thumbnail images for identification (except item 55, which is omitted), plus a CD-ROM containing the images in pocket. Note that the images for numbers 81 and 85 in the notebook are reversed. There is also a compact disk in plastic jewel case of the same name ("Heart & Hands: Musical Instrument Makers of America"), which contains sixty tracks of instrument makers playing their instruments and interviews with some of them. Compact disk in plastic jewel case, "Heart & Hands: Musical Instrument Makers of America; Music and Interviews Recorded Live; Taken from the Book..." (produced by Northlight). Containing music and selected interviews with instrument makers, produced for commercial distribution by Northlight Atelier; 60 tracks. Compact disk in plastic jewel case, "Heart & Hands: Musical Instrument Makers of America; Music and Interviews Recorded Live; Taken from the Book..." (produced by Northlight). Containing music and selected interviews with instrument makers, produced for commercial distribution by Northlight Atelier; 60 tracks.

Arrangement:

The collection is divided into two series.

Series 1, Iris (Inkjet) Digital Photoprints

Series 2, Other Materials

Biographical / Historical:

"Heart & Hands: Musical Instrument Makers of America" was an exhibition of photographs by Jake Jacobson, circulated by the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service (SITES), from April 2000 to early 2004 to at least fourteen venues. The first site was April 8, 2000, at the Georgia Mountains History Museum, and the last venue for the show was the Elkhart County Historical Museum, Bristol, Indiana, ending April 6, 2004. Selections from the exhibition were on view from June 4 to 8, 2001, in the Rotunda of the Russell Senate Office Building, and it was shown in the Smithsonian's Arts and Industries building, March 2-April 28, 2002.

The field work for the project was begun in 1996, culminating in 1998. "Traveling coast to coast, in an extensive two-year journey across the United States, Jake Jacobson and research collaborator Trisja Malisoff recorded the images, words, and music of over 300 contemporary musical instrument makers. Documenting the diversity of American music, Jacobson's photographs reveal a complex, living tradition-a heritage that draws upon Latin, Native American, European, African and Asian music influences."

Following this project, Jacobson engaged in a related photographic documentation, "Heart & Hands: Musical Instrument Makers of China." He has established a "Heart & Hands Foundation." Music has been an important part of Jacobson's life throughout his career as a photographer, printmaker, and jazz musician. During the mid-1960s he operated a backyard print shop, producing rock concert posters. As an advertising and editorial photographer, he pioneered new techniques for special effects and printmaking. His continuing passion for photographing musical artists is evident in the portraits in the "Heart & Hands" project.

A graduate of Brooks Institute of Photography, Jacobson has taught photography at UCLA and Cypress College in Orange County. A longtime practitioner and teacher of Yoga, he is the owner of the Center for Yoga in Los Angeles. He operated a "state-of-the-art" photography, printmaking, and video production studio, Northlight of Colorado, in the mountains near Telluride, Colorado, before relocating the Northlight Atelier to Santa Barbara, California, in 2003.

Another project of Jacobson's is entitled, "Oh, Baby--Celebrating Birth Rites around the World."

Provenance:

Collection donated by Mr. Jacobson.

Restrictions:

The collection is open for research use.

Physical Access: Researchers must handle unprotected photographs with gloves.

Technical Access: Do not use original

Rights:

Jake Jocobson retains copyright. Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.

Topic:

Musical instruments -- 20th century  Search this

Musical instrument makers  Search this

Genre/Form:

Photographs -- Inkjet prints -- 1990-2000

Sound recordings -- Compact disks

Inkjet prints

Photographs -- Digital prints -- 20th century

Iris prints

Ink jet printing

Compact discs

Digital images

CD-ROMs

Color prints (photographs)

Citation:

Jake Jacobson "Heart & Hands" Color Iris Photoprints, Archives Center, National Museum of American History,

Identifier:

NMAH.AC.0866

See more items in:

Jake Jacobson "Heart & Hands" Color Iris Photoprints

Archival Repository:

Archives Center, National Museum of American History

GUID:

https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep8e49666db-ef2c-40a1-ad9a-ee43e0d5f3e7

EDAN-URL:

ead_collection:sova-nmah-ac-0866

Photographer:

Singer, Jonathan, Dr.  Search this

Donor:

Singer, Jonathan, Dr.  Search this

Collection Donor:

Singer, Jonathan, Dr.  Search this

Extent:

1 Item

Type:

Archival materials

Digital images

Still lifes

Date:

[2011]

Local Numbers:

AC1243-0000001.tif (AC Scan No.)

Exhibitions Note:

Displayed in Archives Center exhibition, "Gift of the Artist: Photographers as Donors," November 11, 2011-Feb. 29, 2012. David Haberstich, curator.

Collection Restrictions:

Collection is open for research but is stored off-site and special arrangements must be made to work with it. Contact the Archives Center for information at archivescenter@si.edu or 202-633-3270.

Collection Rights:

Jonathan Singer retains copyright. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.

Topic:

Guitars  Search this

Musical instruments -- 20th century  Search this

Genre/Form:

Digital images

Still lifes

Collection Citation:

Photograph by Jonathan Singer, 2011, Archives Center, National Museum of American History. Gift of the artist.

See more items in:

Jonathan Singer Photographs:,digital photographic prints

Archival Repository:

Archives Center, National Museum of American History

GUID:

https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep83ae24b76-d1c3-4b0c-8ebd-bf558d53fff1

EDAN-URL:

ead_component:sova-nmah-ac-1243-ref515