Recording session logs, correspondence, newsclippings, photographs, and accounting sheets and ledger documenting Dorn's career as a producer for Atlantic Records.
Scope and Contents:
The Dorn Papers consist of correspondence, publicity files, and session reports. The correspondence includes letters, memoranda, contracts, lyrics, and demo records/tapes documenting the personal and business interactions between Dorn and the artists. The publicity files include press packets, black and white photos, and newspaper and magazine articles. The session reports include receipts for studio and equipment rental. Also included in the collection are the financial records, accounting ledgers, royalty statements, and bills from Dorn's two production companies, The Masked Announcer and Please and Thank You Music. The papers are arranged alphabetically by either the performers last name or the name of the music group. Oversized materials have been placed at the end of the collection but are listed alphabetically.
The papers document Joel Dorn's career as a producer between 1966 and 1982. During this period his work with several important artists stands out: Roberta Flack, Eddie Harris, Rahsaan Roland Kirk, Yusef Lateef, Les McCann, Bette Midler, Charlie Mingus, David "Fathead" Newman, Leon Redbone, and Max Roach.
Of special interest are Dorn's production files for the soundtrack to the film "Boardwalk" and for the play "The Me Nobody Knows". The Best of Series Notes contains song lists and memos regarding several "Best of..." albums, including Rahsaan Roland Kirk, David Newman, and Yusef Lateef. In addition there is the Commodore Series containing information on various compilations of classic artists on the Commodore label, and a catalog of Rahsaan Roland Kirk recordings that survived the Longbranch fire of 1979.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged into one series.
Biographical / Historical:
Joel Dorn began his career in 1961 as a disc jockey for WHAT FM, a Philadelphia jazz station. His tenure at WHAT FM lasted until 1967 when he joined Atlantic Records as an assistant for Nesuhi Ertegun, one of the founders of Atlantic. Dorn remained at Atlantic until 1974, eventually rising to the position of Vice President His accomplishments at Atlantic included the discovery and signing of Roberta Flack and Bette Midler, and the production of their early recordings. Dorn produced many other records for Atlantic, including recordings from notable artists such as Les McCann, Eddie Harris, Rahsaan Roland Kirk, Max Roach, Herbie Mann, Yusef Lateef, and David (Fathead) Newman.
Joel Dorn won four Grammy's while at Atlantic: two Records Of The Year for "First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" and "Killing Me Softly" by Roberta Flack, Jazz Record Of The Year for AKeith Jarrett and Gary Burton", and Best Original Cast Album for "The Me Nobody Knows." Dorn left Atlantic Records in 1974 and continued to produce recordings through his two production companies, The Masked Announcer and Please And Thank You Music. Over the next eight years Dorn produced recordings for Leon Redbone, Peter Allen, and the group Asleep At The Wheel. During this period Dorn was awarded Best Country and Western Instrumental for, "One O'clock Jump" by Asleep At The Wheel and two Gold albums for his Leon Redbone recordings.
In 1982 Dorn took a two-year sabbatical from the recording industry. After this sabbatical he briefly promoted music for the World Wrestling Federation. In 1986 Dorn began work on a compilation of unreleased live recordings from various American musicians. In 1989 he established Night Records, a label dedicated to live jazz, and released albums by Rahsaan Roland Kirk, Les McCann, and Eddie Harris. Dorn is currently a full time consultant for Rhino Records, and has been working on re-releasing the classic Atlantic Records jazz catalog. Dorn's other recent projects include: a seven CD history of John Coltrane's Atlantic years and a series devoted to Coltrane's live European performances, a series of five CD's and five videos from the Montreux Jazz Festival archives, a three CD history of classic performances at the Newport Jazz Festival, a four CD history of Ella Fitzgerald's Decca years, a new album by Charles Lloyd ,an album by Cuban guitarist Rene Toledo, and releases of rare performances by Horace Silver with Joe Henderson, and Mose Allison.
Provenance:
Mr. Joel Dorn, Gift, 9/8/1995.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.
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.
This collection documents the life and career of musician James Moody, and includes: Moody's compositions and arrangements, including parts for various instruments; correspondence, some personal, some business; business records such as contracts, copyright and royalty statements, and tour itineraries; photographs, some personal, and some documenting Moody's musical activities, some featuring other musicians, especially Dizzy Gillespie; programs from jazz shows in which Moody participated; awards; and numerous articles and clippings.
Arrangement:
Collection is arranged into one series.
Biographical / Historical:
James Moody was born in Savannah, Georgia, and grew up in Reading, Pennsylvania and Newark, New Jersey, where he learned to play the saxophone. He added the flute later in life. He served in the Air Force during World War II, where he belonged to a military band, and during this time he met Dizzy Gillespie, who was giving a performance at his base. He joined Gillespie's band for a couple of years after getting out of the service in 1946, and the two developed a strong friendship and working collaboration that lasted until Gillespie died in 1993. In addition to his frequent recording and tours with Gillespie, Moody had a series of jazz acts with whom he recorded and toured; he performed as a back-up act in Las Vegas, and worked with many notables, including Dinah Washington, Benny Golson, Tito Puente and Quincy Jones. His credits include over fifty albums, such as the highly acclaimed Henry Mancini tribute album "Moody Plays Mancini," and a small role in the 1997 film, "Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil." His honors include Grammy nominations (1985 and 1990) and a posthumous Grammy award in 2010, induction into the International Jazz Hall of Fame, and his selection as a 1998 NEA Jazz Master.
Provenance:
Donated by Linda Moody, 2016.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.
Rights:
Reproduction restricted due to copyright or trademark. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Papers and audiovisual materials documenting Russo's career in music.
Scope and Contents:
The collection includes Russo's original and published music scores, parts and arrangements; audiovisual materials including recordings of broadcasts of Russo's radio show, performances of Russo's compositions, including performances by Duke Ellington, and film and video recordings of Russo's productions in theater and opera; and personal papers such as correspondence, photographs, scrapbooks, publicity files, contracts, etc. Among the most significant items in the collection are experimental jazz arrangements for Stan Kenton in the late 1940s-early 1950s, undated arrangements for Gerry Mulligan, Russo's original arrangement of Duke Ellington's Sacred Concert, scores to his first and second symphonies, and scores and libretti to several early rock operas. The photographs include images of persons such as Ellington, Kenton, and Billy Strayhorn, and photographs by jazz photographers Herman Leonard and William Claxton. 2007 addendum includes correspondence, mostly between Russo and his family; eighteen diaries for 1946-1967 (not all years are present) with sparse entries, some in Italian; and additional music manuscripts, parts, scores and libretti.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged into nine series.
Series 1: William Russo's Music
Series 2: Teaching Notes
Series 3: Correspondence
Series 4: Publicity, Programs, and Reviews
Series 5: Posters and Artwork
Series 6: Photographs
Series 7: Books and Lecture Notebooks
Series 8: Memorabilia
Series 9: Audiovisual Materials
Biographical / Historical:
William Russo, renowned American jazz composer, arranger, and founder of the Chicago Jazz Ensemble, had a music career that spanned five decades and included performance, conducting and composition. During his career he worked with such diverse talents as Duke Ellington, Billy Strayhorn, Leonard Bernstein, Cannonball Adderly, Yehuidi Menuhin, Dizzy Gillespie, Seiji Ozawa, and Billie Holiday. Although critics acknowledged Russo mainly for his pioneering contributions to the big-band jazz canon, his talents extended to a far wider range of musical styles, creating groundbreaking jazz scores, rock operas, classical works, film scores, and educational textbooks on jazz orchestration and arrangement. In all, he composed over 200 pieces for jazz orchestra with more than 25 recordings of his work. In 1990, Russo received a Lifetime Achievement award from NARAS, the organization that presents the Grammy Awards.
As a young trombonist, Russo studied with Lennie Tristano, the pianist and theorist who became a leader in the progressive jazz movement. During the late 1940s, Russo led the revolutionary Experiment in Jazz band. At age 21, he became one of the chief composers/arrangers for the Stan Kenton Orchestra, one of the most innovative and influential jazz orchestras of the postwar era. In his four years with Kenton, Russo penned such classic Kenton works as "23° North – 82° West," and "Frank Speaking."
Russo made several major jazz recordings under his own name before his classical "Symphony No. 2 in C (TITANS)" received a Koussevitsky award in 1959; it was performed by the New York Philharmonic that same year under Leonard Bernstein, who had commissioned the work. This award marked Russo's "official" entry into the world of classical music. Russo continued to write major symphonic works throughout his career, including his 1992 grand opera, "Dubrovsky."
After his tenure with Kenton, in the early 1950s, Russo led his own successful bands, The Russo Orchestra in New York, and the London Jazz Orchestra, before returning to Chicago to form the Chicago Jazz Ensemble in 1065. With the Ensemble, he presented Duke Ellington's "First Concert of Sacred Music" in 1967. This was one of the rare times when Ellington allowed one of his compositions to be arranged and performed by a jazz orchestra other than his own, and was a reflection of Ellington's respect for Russo. Shortly after this performance, Russo composed a rock cantata, "The Civil War," that led him into the field of rock opera. After concentrating on classical music again in the 1970s, in the late 1980s, Russo began to re-explore the history of jazz through his revived Chicago Jazz Ensemble. In 1995, the Chicago Jazz Ensemble made history with the first-ever complete live performance of Gil Evans' and Miles Davis' "Sketches of Spain" in its original form. Recent Russo works that premiered in Chicago included "Chicago Suite No. 1," and "Chicago Suite No. 2," a recording that was published posthumously in the spring of 2003.
Related Materials:
Materials in the Archives Center
William Russo Transcription and Arrangement of Duke Ellington's First Concert of Sacred Music, 1967-1968 (AC0406)
Provenance:
Bequeathed to the Smithsonian by William Russo. Papers collected after Russo's death in 2003. The 2007 addendum sent by Russo's sister and daughter were also part of the bequest.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research but an oil painting 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.
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.
This collection consists of 110 black-and-white photographic prints depicting musicians performing at various American and European jazz clubs between 1948 and 1991. The collection contains mounted and unmounted 11" x 14" and 16" x 20" prints made by Leonard. Artists represented among these photographs are Billie Holiday, Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie, Duke Ellington, Frank Sinatra, Lester Young, Louis Armstrong, Miles Davis, and Thelonious Monk. The photographs are organized into three series: Series 1: 11"x 14" prints, Series 2: 16" x 20" prints, and Series 3: Addenda. The series are arranged alphabetically by performer's last name. Unmatted 16" x 20" prints can be found in box 2 but are listed alphabetically by performer.
Biographical / Historical:
Herman Leonard (1923‑ ) was born in Allentown, Pennsylvania and served as a military photographer in Burma during World War II. He earned his Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree in photography from Ohio University and began working with Yousuf Karsh, a Canadian portraitist. Settling in New York in 1949, Leonard began photographing jazz musicians at various jazz clubs on Broadway and Fifty‑Second Streets, and in Harlem for such publications as Cosmopolitan, Esquire, Life, Look, Playboy, and Time. He later to Paris to begin a fashion and advertising business. He also continued photographing jazz musicians. In 1988 Leonard presented his first exhibition, "Images of Jazz," in London. This show established his reputation as a leading photographer of jazz and sparked further shows and publications.
Provenance:
The Herman Leonard Photographs were donated to the National Museum of American History by Mr. Leonard on December 17, 1991 and in 2006.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.
Rights:
The Archives Center does not own the rights to the Leonard photographs. All requests for permission to use these photographs for non‑museum purposes must be addressed to: Herman Leonard Photography, LLC, 530 South Lake Avenue #503, Pasadena, CA 91101 (818) 509-8987.
The collection consists of 235 pieces of music ephemera assembled by an anonymous California musicologist over several decades. The contents include such things as concert ticket stubs; show programs; handbills; publicity stills; record store posters; nightclub souvenirs; autographs; contracts, lobby cards; movie stills; postcards; fan and record industry magazines; sheet music; an oversize RKO theatre owners' advertising book for the 1942 sensation "Syncopation," starring Charlie Barnet, Benny Goodman, Harry James, Gene Krupa, et al; and miscellany such as matchbook covers and novelty promotional pieces. There are just a few letters in the collection. The collection contains materials representing both bands and band members, and individual artists. In many cases, there are only one or a few relevant items. Persons and acts represented include: Ray Anthony, Louis Armstrong, Charlie Barnet, Tex Beneke, Les Brown, Dave Brubeck, Cab Calloway, June Christy, Nat King Cole, Tommy Dorsey, Duke Ellington, Ella Fitzgerald, Erroll Garner, Stan Getz, Dizzy Gillespie, Benny Goodman, Glen Gray, Fletcher Henderson, Woody Herman, Harry James, Louis Jordan, Sammy Kaye, Stan Kenton, Gene Krupa, Kay Kyser, Frankie Laine, Peggy Lee, Guy Lombardo, Vincent Lopez, Jimmy Lunceford, Gordon MacRae, Freddy Martin, Billy May, Johnny Mercer, Glenn Miller, Vaughn Monroe, Gerry Mulligan, Red Norvo, Patti Page, Buddy Rich, Artie Shaw, Dinah Shore, Frank Sinatra, Charlie Spivak, Rudy Vallee, Sarah Vaughan, Fred Waring, Chick Webb, Ted Weems, Lawrence Welk, Paul Whiteman, Margaret Whiting, and Benny Goodman. In other cases, the collection contains an item or items (such as menus) that have been autographed. The collection contains autographs or autographed items for the following: Gene Krupa, Jess Stacy, Teddy Wilson, Blue Barron, Eddie Duchin, Shep Fields, Ziggy Elman, Glen Gray Band, Milt Gabler, Horace Heidt, Dick Jurgens, Kay Kyser, Guy Lombardo, Xavier Cugat, Hal McIntyre, Art Mooney, Buddy Morrow, Harry James and "Tiny" Timbrell.
Arrangement:
Collection is arranged into six series.
Series 1: Magazines, 1939-1950
Series 2: Programs, 1930-1975
Series 3: Publications, 1949-1965
Series 4: Sheet Music, 1935-1943
Series 5: Advertisements, 1932-1954
Series 6: Ephemera, 1938-1953
Provenance:
Purchased at auction by the Archives Center from Cohasco, Inc. in 2016.
Restrictions:
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.
Collection is open for research.
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.
Primarily audiotapes, sheet music, and photographic images. Also: correspondence, newspaper clippings, magazine articles, itineraries, awards, and ephemera.,Of particular interest are recordings or photographic images, including the personalities listed below, and President and Mrs. Tubman of Liberia; also, two interviews and three recordings of Cat Anderson as guest with various university and college jazz bands.
Arrangement:
Collection is divided into four series.
Series 1: Music
Series 2: Original tapes and recordings
Series 3: Photographs
Series 4: Miscellaneous
Biographical/Historical note:
Cat Anderson (Sept 12, 1916 - April 29, 1981) was one of the premier trumpet players of the Duke Ellington Orchestra. Known for his effortless high notes, he was a strong section leader and a great soloist whose style exhibited humor and precision. He grew up in Jenkins= Orphanage in Charleston, SC, received basic music training there, and participated in many of their famous student ensembles. He formed and played with the Cotton Pickers, a group of orphanage teens while still a young man. Before joining Ellington in 1944, he played in several big bands, including Claude Hopkins and Lionel Hampton. Anderson left the Ellington organization from 1947 through 1949 again to lead his own group. From 1959 to1961 and after 1971 Anderson free lanced, working with the Ellington orchestra intermittently. He died in 1981 after receiving honors from the US Air Force, the Prix du Disque de Jazz, and the City of Los Angeles.
Related Archival Materials:
Related artifacts include: awards, plaques, mutes, trumpet mouth pieces, and the Jon Williams/Cat Anderson simulator in the Division of Cultural and Community Life (now Division of Cultural and Community Life). See accession: 1998.3074.
Provenance:
The collection was donated to the National Museum of American History in January 1998, by Dorothy Anderson, Cat Anderson's widow. It was acquired through negotiations with her, her brother, Mr. John Coffey and her nephew, Andrew Brazington. The materials were picked up from Mr. John Coffey of upper N.W. Washington, DC on January 21, 1998.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research. Master tapes not available to researchers.
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 status of items varies. Signed copies of releases on file.
Collection consists of 157 8" x 10" black-and-white photographic copy prints of photographs in Frank Driggs's collection: Duke Ellington and his orchestra. Some copy prints have Smithsonian negative numbers.
Arrangement:
Collection arranged into ten series.
Biographical/Historical note:
Photographer and collector.
Related Materials:
Materials at Other Organizations
Jazz at Lincoln Center
The Frank Driggs Jazz Photograph Collection was acquired by Jazz at Lincoln Center in 2013. The collection also includes posters, sheet music, records and Frank Driggs' personal papers.
Provenance:
Collection donated by Frank Driggs, January 11, 1991.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.
Rights:
The Archives Center does not own rights to these photographs. Contact respository for details.
Ray Brown was an African-American musician, composer, bandleader, manager, music teacher and promoter. He became best known for his collaborative work with Dizzy Gillespie, Oscar Peterson, Ella Fitzgerald, the Oscar Peterson Trio and Norman Granz' s Jazz at the Philharmonic. Over the course of his career, Brown received awards and accolades from the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, the National Endowment for the Arts, the Jazz Hall of Fame, Down Beat and Playboy. Brown's papers document his professional music career from 1944 to 2002 and include music compositions and notes, publicity materials, photographs, and some recordings of his performances.
Scope and Contents:
The collection primarily documents the near sixty-year music career of upright bass player, bandleader, composer, and instructor Raymond Matthews (Ray) Brown and the various bands that he played with. The materials consist of music manuscripts, musical arrangements, published sheet music, photographs, programs, newspaper clippings, magazine articles, posters, audio and video recordings, honors and awards, correspondence, and publications. There is very little information about Brown's education, family or other aspects of his personal life.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged into six series.
Series 1: Musical Compositions and Notes, 1940s-2000s, undated
Series 2: Publicity Materials, 1950s-2002, undated
Series 3: Photographic Materials, 1940-2003, undated
Series 4: Personal Papers, 1954-2010
Series 5: Audiovisual Materials, 1978-1993, undated
Series 6: Performance Materials, 1964-1995, undated
Biographical / Historical:
Raymond Matthews Brown was an African American musician (double bass and cello) born on October 13, 1926 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He became known for his collaborative work with Dizzy Gillespie, Oscar Peterson, Ella Fitzgerald (to whom he was married for a few years), and others. He was a composer, bandleader, manager, music teacher, and promoter. His professional music career lasted almost sixty years, dating from 1944 to 2002.
Brown's career began with a risky move to New York City in 1945, as a recent high school graduate, which resulted in his being hired on the spot to play with Dizzy Gillespie. Brown continued to play with Gillespie and others in various groups, recording songs such as "One Bass Hit" and "Night in Tunisia," before leaving in 1947. Brown married notable jazz singer Ella Fitzgerald that same year. He and Fitzgerald adopted a son, Raymond Matthew Brown Jr., and performed together in Norman Granz's Jazz at the Philharmonic. Granz's tours, which Brown participated in from around 1949 to 1958, allowed him to travel and play all around the world. After being introduced to Oscar Peterson during a Philharmonic tour, Brown became a founding member of the Oscar Peterson Trio in 1952. His growing commitment to the group, along with other factors, led to Brown and Fitzgerald's divorce in 1953. However, the two would continued to collaborate and perform together, as friends and colleagues.
Brown worked with Peterson and other prominent jazz musicians to find the Advanced School of Contemporary Music in Toronto, which lasted from 1960 to 1965. He left the Peterson trio in the late 1960s and moved to Los Angeles to work as a composer, manager, educator, and publisher. In California, he worked for several movie and television show orchestras, became bassist for all of Frank Sinatra's television specials, and accompanied some noted singers, including Fitzgerald, Sarah Vaughan, and Tony Bennett. He composed the theme song to Steve Allen's show, "Gravy Waltz," for which they both won a Grammy Award in 1964. He also managed the Modern Jazz Quartet, and Quincy Jones. In the 1980s, he formed the Ray Brown Trio with pianist Gene Harris, which lasted nine years. He also directed events such as the Monterey Jazz and Concord Summer Festivals, and consulted for the Hollywood Bowl Association. Brown continued to play and record with his trio and various other groups, such as the Oscar Peterson Trio and the Modern Jazz Quartet, for the rest of his life. He also published an instructional book for the bass, Ray Brown's Bass Method, through his own company in 1999. Over the course of his career, Brown received awards and accolades from the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, the National Endowment for the Arts, the Jazz Hall of Fame, Down Beat, Playboy, and many more. Ray Brown died in 2002 at the age of seventy- five.
Related Materials:
Materials in the Archives Center, National Museum of American History
Charismic Productions Records of Dizzy Gillespie NMAH.AC.0979
Ella Fitzgerald Papers NMAH.AC.0584
Duke Ellington Collection NMAH.AC.0301
Duke Ellington Oral History Project NMAH.AC.0368
Edward and Gaye Ellington Collection of Duke Ellington Materials NMAH.AC.0704
Ruth Ellington Collection of Duke Ellington Materials NMAH.AC.0415
Leslie Schinella Collection of Gene Krupa Materials NMAH.AC.1220
Provenance:
The collection was donated to the Archives Center in 2015 by Ray Brown's widow, Cecilia Brown.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.
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.
Correspondence, transcripts of interviews, photographs, a biography, a discography, an award, printed material and other miscellany documenting the life and career of Red Norvo.
Scope and Contents:
The Red Norvo Papers consist of correspondence, transcripts of interviews with Red Norvo, miscellaneous publications (catalogues, monographs, newsletters, pamphlets, programs), periodicals, articles and clippings, photographs, and several miscellaneous documents: various advertisements, a hotel receipt, liner notes, an award from Metronome, a biography prepared by Capitol Records, a Red Norvo discography, a concert engagement advertisement in the form of a postcard, a poster (Benny Goodman), and a Red Norvo concert tour itinerary.
Arrangement:
Divided into 7 series: Series 1: Correspondence, 1939-1997; Series 2: Red Norvo Interview Transcripts, 1991-1993; Series 3: Miscellaneous Publications; Series 4: Miscellaneous Documents; Series 5: Periodicals, Series 6: Periodical Articles and News Clippings; Series 7: Photographs.
Biographical / Historical:
Along with Lionel Hampton, Red Norvo stands as one of the most celebrated and influential figures in the history of Jazz vibraphone. Norvo was born Kenneth Norville in Beardstown, Illinois on March 31, 1908. He began studying marimba at an early age and played in a rhumba band in 1925. After a brief stint as a tap dancer and conductor on the Vaudeville circuit, Norvo played xylophone with the Paul Whiteman Orchestra. He later married the band's singer, Mildred Bailey, and together they were known as Mr. and Mrs. Swing. From the late 1930's through the early 1940's Norvo lead his own orchestra (with arrangements by Eddie Sauter) and his own sextet.
In 1944 Norvo switched permanently to vibraphone and joined the Benny Goodman Sextet. In 1945 the Red Norvo Selected Sextet (featuring Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie) recorded Hallelujah, Get Happy, Slam Slam Blues, and Congo Blues—an event that many critics regard as helping to commence the bebop era and the establishment of modern jazz. In 1946 Norvo played with Woody Herman's First Herd. But in Norvo's formative years it was the improvisational piano style of Teddy Wilson that most influenced his own style of play.
In 1950 Norvo founded the Red Norvo Trio, which included Tal Farlow on guitar and Charles Mingus on bass. Norvo also performed and recorded with a quintet. He settled in Santa Monica, California and became a prolific recording musician with Capitol and other labels. Most of the essential singers of the period either performed or recorded with him: Frank Sinatra, Billie Holiday and Peggy Lee to name a few.
Norvo notably backed Sinatra on his Australian tour in 1959 and appeared with him in the 1960 film, Ocean's Eleven. In 1961 Norvo began to suffer hearing loss, a condition which worsened throughout the remainder of his life. In the 1970's he performed mainly in Las Vegas. He died April 6, 1999 in Santa Monica.
Related Materials:
Materials in the Archives Center
Benny Carter Collection (NMAH.AC.0757)
Milt Gabler Papers (NMAH.AC.0849)
Jazz Oral History Program Collection(NMAH.AC.0808)
William Russo Music and Personal Papers(NMAH.AC.0845)
Jack Siefert/Woody Herman Collection(NMAH.AC.0659)
Ernie Smith Jazz Film Collection (NMAH.AC.0491)
Provenance:
The collection was donated to the Archives Center by Portia Norvo Corlin on April 1, 2004.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research and access on site by appointment. Unprotected photographs must be handled with gloves.
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.
Goodman, Benny (Benjamin David), 1909-1986 Search this
Extent:
25 Cubic feet (75 boxes
)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Legal records
Magazines (periodicals)
Catalogs
Correspondence
Financial records
Music
Bank statements
Autobiographies
Articles
Tax records
Business records
Newsletters
Photographs
Recordings
Sheet music
Date:
1895-2001
Summary:
The collection documents Gabler's involvement in the recording industry and the evolution of Commodore Records. The documentation begins with the Commodore Radio Shop through its evolution to Commodore Music Shop. The collection also includes the beginnings of the Commodore record label and information detailing Gabler's 30 years as staff producer and later Vice-President in Charge of Artists and Repertoire at Decca Records (1941-1974). There is a small collection of black and white photographs chronicling the early years at the Commodore Music Shop, as well as jam sessions, often held at Jimmy Ryan's on 52nd Street. The collection also includes a vast array of audio recordings (mainly audiodiscs).
Scope and Contents:
Papers documenting Gabler's life and career, including: correspondence with family members, friends and people in the music business such as Sammy Davis, Jr. and Lucille Armstrong (Louis' wife); Gabler's writings, including an autobiography and numerous articles; music manuscripts and sheet music, the lyrics for some of which were written by Gabler, and other compositions written by others, including Red Norvo, Eddie Condon and others; legal and financial records, including royalty statements, tax papers and banking records; business records for Commodore and Decca, including correspondence from persons such as Norman Granz, Burl Ives, and Leonard Feather; Commodore and Decca legal records including licensing and trademark documents; publicity materials; production records, such as production logs and liner notes; printed materials such as catalogs, newsletters, magazines, and periodicals; papers relating to Gabler's affiliation with Bert Kaempfert, including correspondence, sheet music and lyrics, and production records; photographs of Gabler and his family and of numerous others in the music industry, including Bing Crosby, Billie Holiday, Sammy Davis Jr., Bert Kaempfert, the Mills Brothers, Rex Stewart, Cootie Williams, Benny Goodman, Coleman Hawkins, Gene Krupa, Louis Jordan, Peck Kelly, Sidney Bechet, Cab Calloway, Louis Armstrong, and numerous others, many taken in the studio during recording sessions; and audio recordings.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged into twenty-seven series.
Series 1: Personal Correspondence
Series 2: Writings by Milt Gabler
Series 3: Music Manuscripts and Sheet Music
Series 4: Personal Financial and Legal Records
Series 5: Commodore and Decca Correspondence and Gabler Rolodex
Series 6: Commodore and Decca Legal Records
Series 7: Commodore and Decca Financial
Series 8: Publicity
Series 9: Commodore and Decca Projects
Series 10: Production Records
Series 11: Commodore General Correspondence
Series 12: Commodore Financial Records
Series 13: Commodore Legal Records
Series 14: Commodore Production Records
Series 15: Commodore, Various Projects and Topical Files
Series 16: Commodore Publicity Records
Series 17: Business Cards
Series 18: Catalogs
Series 19: Newsletters
Series 20: Serials
Series 21: Monographs
Series 22: Newsclippings, Periodical Articles, and Advertisements
Series 23: Correspondence with Organizations
Series 24: Organization Membership cards
Series 25: Bert Kaempfert
Series 26: Photographs
Series 27: Audio Discs
Biographical / Historical:
Milt Gabler was born in Harlem, New York on May 20, 1911. He began managing his father's radio and small appliance store, the Commodore Radio Shop, while still a teen. Gabler convinced his father to expand the business and sell audio recordings. Soon Gabler pioneered the concept of marketing reissues by leasing discontinued masters from various record companies (mainly Victor, Columbia, Vocalion, and Brunswick). Eventually the Gablers changed the name of the family business to the Commodore Music Shop. By the early 1930's Gabler founded the first mail order record label, United Hot Clubs of America, to reach an even greater audience of jazz enthusiasts.
In 1935 Gabler began publicizing the music shop by staging a series of Sunday afternoon jam sessions at several different recording studios along 52nd Street. Later the jam sessions moved to the nearby jazz club, Jimmy Ryan's.
In 1938 Gabler founded the Commodore music label. It was the first American recording label created exclusively for jazz music. A recording session for Eddie Condon's Windy City Seven at Brunswick Studios was the first original Commodore recording. In 1939 Gabler recorded Billie Holiday's controversial "Strange Fruit", which became Commodore's first major commercial success. Other notable Commodore artists include Sidney Bechet, Jonah Jones, Peck Kelley, Red Norvo, Ralph Sutton, and Teddy Wilson.
Gabler began as a staff producer at Decca Records in 1941 and worked with artists from many different musical genres: Ella Fitzgerald, Bing Crosby, Judy Garland, Brenda Lee, the Weavers, and Louis Jordan, among others. Gabler also began writing lyrics in collaboration with Decca songwriters/composers. In 1954 Gabler produced the first recordings by Bill Haley and the Comets. In addition, Gabler continued to run the Commodore recording label until 1957. Gabler also managed the Commodore Music Shop until 1958, when he began working full-time at Decca as Vice-President in Charge of Artists and Repertoire.
Throughout the 1960's Gabler served as lyricist in a number of collaborations with Bert Kaempfert and Herbert Rehbein. Gabler retained his influential position at Decca until 1974 when the corporation moved to the West Coast. Through the Decca years, Gabler had saved the Commodore masters and in 1974 began to reissue the recordings through Atlantic, Columbia Special Products, and finally United Hot Clubs of America. In 1987 Mosaic Records also began to reissue the entire catalog of Commodore recordings.
In the last decades of his life Gabler remained active in a number of professional organizations, most notably the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, which bestowed upon him a Grammy lifetime achievement award in 1991. Gabler died in New York on July 20, 2001.
Provenance:
Collection donated by Milt Gabler estate, through Lee Gabler.
Restrictions:
The collection is open for research use. Some materials restricted; but most are available for unrestricted research access on site by appointment.
Several items of personal correspondence contained private medical information about living individuals. The originals were removed and will remain sealed until 2030. Copies with the sensitive information redacted are available for research use in the collection.
Access to audio recordings for which no reference copy exists requires special arrangements with Archives Center staff. Please ask the reference archivist for additional information.
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.
Strayhorn, Billy (William Thomas), 1915-1967 Search this
Extent:
3 Items (3 folders)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Photographs
Clippings
Date:
1965-1969
Summary:
Collection consists of two newsclippings, and an advertising yearbook documenting Strayhorn's career as Duke Ellington's chief arranger, co-composer, lyricist, and emergency fill-in at the piano.
Scope and Contents:
The Billy Strayhorn Ephemera Collection consists of two newsclippings, and an advertising yearbook documenting Strayhorn's career as Duke Ellington's chief arranger, co-composer, lyricist, and emergency fill-in at the piano. The newsclippings document the collaborative relationship that existed between Ellington and Strayhorn. The advertising yearbook was published as a tribute to Strayhorn after his death. It includes numerous commentaries to Billy Strayhorn by some of the period's leading jazz musicians.
Arrangement:
Collection is arranged into one series.
Biographical / Historical:
Billy Strayhorn, composer and pianist, was born in Dayton, Ohio on November 19, 1915. He joined the Duke Ellington Orchestra in 1939 after a brief period working as the pianist for the Mercer Ellington Orchestra. For nearly three decades Strayhorn served as associate arranger and second pianist for Duke Ellington. Billy Strayhorn remained with the Ellington Orchestra until his death on May 31, 1967.
Provenance:
Collection donated by Gregory & Thelma Morris, May 17, 1991.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.
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.
Ellington, Mercer Kennedy, 1919-1996 (musician) Search this
Extent:
1.33 Cubic feet (4 boxes)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Audiotapes
Photographs
Clippings
Programs
Correspondence
Television scripts
Date:
1924-1990
Scope and Contents:
Photographs, event programs, periodicals, cassette audio tapes, correspondence, TV program scripts and pamphlets documenting Duke Ellington's career as a musician, 1924-1974, and his legacy after his death.
Arrangement:
Divided into five series.
Series 1; Photographs, 1964-1968
Series 2: Publications, 1944-1990
Series 3: Memorabilia, 1965-1981
Series 4: Correspondence and sketches, 1958-1990
Series 5; Cassette audio tapes, 1924-1933
Biographical / Historical:
Businessman and Ellington enthusiast, Robert Udkoff was born in Chicago and first heard Duke Ellington perform at Chicago's Oriental Theater in 1928. In 1932 he established a cordial relationship with Ellington that lasted until Ellington's death in 1974.
Provenance:
Collection donated by Robert Udkoff, 1991, January 29.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.
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.
Audiotapes, CDs and digital files: an ongoing project to interview and preserve the memories of people important in the jazz world, including jazz musicians, singers, dancers, producers, arrangers, and others. A list of interviewees and interviewers follows.
The following is a list of the individuals who conducted the interviews.
1. Brown, Anthony
2. Baker, Lida
3. Burstein, Julie
Interviewer
2. Bluiett, Hamiet
Arrangement:
This collection is arranged into six series.
Series 1, DAT and CD Original Interview Recordings, 1992-2012
Series 2, Cassette Reference and Master Interview Tapes, 1992-2012
Series 3, Audio CD Reference Copies, 2000-2012
Series 4, Video/CD, 1994-2012
Series 5, Transcripts and Abstracts, 1992-2014
Series 6, Supplemental Documentation, 1992-2012
Biographical / Historical:
The Smithsonian Jazz Oral History Program, a project of "America's Jazz Heritage, A Partnership of the Lila Wallace-Reader's Digest Fund and the Smithsonian Institution" initiative was created in 1992. More than 150 in-depth oral history interviews were conducted from 1992 through 2002. The collection was transferred to the Archives Center of the National Museum of American History in 2000. Now part of the National Museum of American History's American Music History Initiatives, the Smithsonian Jazz Oral History Program continues to conduct interviews as funding is available.
The Smithsonian Jazz Oral History Program was established to document significant jazz musicians, performers, producers, and business associates in their own words and voices. Program staff contacted and worked with potential interviewees to arrange for interviews. Each interview was conducted by a jazz authority and was recorded on digital audiotape by a professional audio engineer. The interviews averaged 6 hours in length and covered a wide range of topics including early years, initial involvement in music, generally, and jazz specifically, as well as experiences in the jazz music world, including relationships to musicians. The original DAT interview tapes were then dubbed to audiocassettes and CD to create protection and access copies. More recent interviews have been recorded using fully digital technology and the interviews are preserved and made availbel as digital files.
A number of the interviews were conducted as part of the Ella Fitzgerald Oral History Project of the Jazz Oral History Program. Funded by the Ella Fitzgerald Charitable Foundation, these interviews focus on the life and work of Ella Fitzgerald. The National Endowments for the Arts Jazz Masters Oral Histories Program continues to support new interviews with NEA Jazz Masters.
For more information about jazz concerts, education, collections, Jazz Appreciation Month, and the Jazz Master orchestra, visit Smithsonian Jazz.
Provenance:
The interviews were made for the Smithsonian Institution under the auspices of the Smithsonian Jazz Oral History Program supported by America's Jazz Heritage, funded by the Lila Wallace-Reader's Digest Fund, the Smithsonian Institution, and the National Endowment for the Arts Jazz Masters Oral Histories Program. Additional interviews were conducted with support from the Ella Fitzgerald Charitable Foundation.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research. Researchers must use reference copies.
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. Release forms exist for most interviews.
[Interviewee name] Interview, Smithsonian Jazz Oral History Program Collection, 1992-2014, Archives Center, National Museum of American History.
Sponsor:
The interviews were made for the Smithsonian Institution under the auspices of the Smithsonian Jazz Oral History Program and supported by America's Jazz Heritage, funded by the Lila Wallace-Reader's Digest Fund, the Smithsonian Institution, and the National Endowment for the Arts Jazz Masters Oral Histories Program. Additional interviews were conducted with support from the Ella Fitzgerald Charitable Foundation.
The collection consists of correspondence, appointment books, business records, music manuscripts, sound recordings, photographs, and ephemera documenting the activities of Duke Ellington and the management of Tempo Music, Incorporated. There is a small amount of material relating to the Ellingotn family.
Scope and Contents:
The Ruth Ellington Collection of Duke Ellington Materials includes music manuscripts (circa 1930-1981), sound recordings, Duke and Ruth Ellington's business and personal correspondence (1942-1991), business records covering the years 1923-1988, performances and programs covering the years 1951-1989, numerous awards and honors to Ellington and the orchestra, and personal papers relating to the Ellington family. Also among the materials are minutes of business meetings, letters, and newspaper clippings relating to the Duke Ellington Society in New York city, the certificate of incorporation and invitations for the Ellington Cancer Center, and slides, film, and home videos. The collection is arranged into eleven series.
Arrangement:
Divided into eleven series:
Series 1: Music Manuscripts, Scripts and Compositional Materials, 1930-1981, undated
Subseries 1.1: Music Manuscripts, undated
Subseries 1.2: Published Books, 1943-1986, undated
Subseries 1.3: Oversize Materials, undated
Subseries 1.4: Music Manuscript Notebooks and Untitled Music, undated
Subseries 1.5: Tempo Music, Incorporated Copyright Sheets of Non-Ellington Material, undated
Subseries 1.7: Notes, Scripts and Compositions, 1958-1969, undated
Series 2: Business Records, 1923-1988, undated
Series 3: Performance Materials, 1951-1989, undated
Series 4: Publicity, 1935-1992, undated
Series 5: Awards and Recognition, 1936-1989, undated
Series 6: Correspondence, 1942-1991, undated
Series 7: Photographs, 1937-1990, undated
Series 8: Family Papers, 1911-1981, undated
Series 9: Other Artists, 1955-1986, undated
Series 10: Harry Carney Materials, 1938-1959
Series 11: Audiovisual Materials, circa 1946-1970
Subseries 11.1: Sound Recordings, circa 1946-1970
Sub-subseries 11.1.1: Duke Ellington Concerts
Sub-subseries 11.1.2: Duke Ellington Volumes 1 through 58
Sub-subseries 11.1.3: Duke Ellington and His Orchestra
Sub-subseries 11.1.4: Duke Ellington Jazz Society Guest Talks
Sub-subseries 11.1.5: Interviews
Sub-subseries 11.1.6: Miscellaneous
Sub-subseries 11.1.7: Non-Ellington Materials
Sub-subseries 11.1.8: 16" Transcription Discs
Subseries 11.2: Moving Images, 1929 - 1970
Biographical / Historical:
Born in 1915, Ruth Dorothea Ellington Boatwright was the sister and only sibling of Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington. Sheltered and doted upon, she was almost sixteen years younger than her brother. She attended elementary and junior high schools in the Washington Metropolitan area and finished her basic schooling in New York City where the family moved in the early 1930s. Her mother, Daisy, died there in 1935, followed by her father, J. E. in 1937. Sometime after those life altering events, Ms. Ellington graduated from the New College program at Columbia University with a degree in biology.
In 1941, Duke Ellington established Tempo Music, and surprised his sister Ruth, by installing her as president of the company. He had a strong desire to maintain control of his own publishing, television, and recording rights, and after his sister's graduation, Duke felt that she could assist in accomplishing this goal.
Ruth's duties at Tempo included signing contracts, arranging some travel at Duke's request, and, most importantly, keeping Duke's music copyrighted. According to her own interview statement, she never arranged bookings. Other interests included hosting a Sunday salon for musicians, appearing at and listening to recording studio sessions once or twice a year, and keeping in touch with the older band members' wives. The older band members (i. e., Johnny Hodges, Harry Carney, Otto Hardwick, and Arthur Wetsol) along with the earlier singers (Ivie Anderson, Joya Sherrill, Marie Cole, and Kay Davis) were like family to Ruth.
In the 1950's, she was host of a radio program on WLIB in New York on which she interviewed guests including the writer Ralph Ellison.
Ruth Ellington's first marriage to Daniel James, a journalist and political scientist, produced two sons Michael and Stephen James. This marriage ended in divorce and she later married McHenry Boatwright, an operatic baritone. Boatright died in 1994.
Ruth was active in the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. She was a founder of the jazz ministry of St. Peter's Lutheran Church in Manhattan and a friend of the first designated jazz pastor, the Reverend John Garcia Gensel.
After Duke's death in 1974, Ruth maintained Tempo until 1995 when she sold fifty one percent of the company to a New York publishing firm, Music Sales. Ruth Dorothea Ellington Boatwright died in 2004 at the age of 88 in Manhattan. She was survived by her two sons.
Provenance:
The collection was donated to the National Museum of American History in 1991. A second set of materials was received from Ruth Ellington Boatwright in 1993.
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.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction. Copyright restrictions exist. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Collection documents the career of noted American jazz musician Dizzy Gillespie, through a donation from his former manager, Charles Fishman.
Scope and Contents:
The collection primarily documents Charles Fishman's tenure as Gillespie's manager, 1985-1993, and is composed of business records. There is also a significant amount of personal material and photographs from the 1940s-1980s, much of which was saved by Mr. Fishman when Dizzy Gillespie wanted to throw these materials away or take them home.
Born in South Carolina in 1917, John Birks "Dizzy" Gillespie was a master jazz trumpeter, bandleader, singer, and composer. In the 1940s, he was one of the principal developers of both bebop and Afro-Cuban jazz. Through the multitudes of musicians with whom he played and who he encouraged; he was one of the most influential players in the history of jazz.
The youngest of nine children, Gillespie was exposed to music by his father, a part-time bandleader who kept all his band's instruments at home, where young Gillespie tried them out. At age twelve, he received a music scholarship to the Laurinburg Institute in North Carolina, where he played trumpet in the school band. In 1935, at age eighteen, he moved to Philadelphia and joined his first band, where his clownish onstage behavior and sense of humor earned him his nickname, "Dizzy." Thereafter, he was almost constantly joining and leaving, or forming and disbanding, bands of various size and style, as he set out to first hone his talent, then to develop his own creative innovations and to publish his recordings, and then to fulfill his lifelong desire to lead his own band. Along the way, he played with, collaborated with, encouraged, and influenced, all the major – and most of the minor – jazz musicians of his age, including Charlie Parker, Duke Ellington, Ella Fitzgerald, Benny Carter, Billy Eckstine, Cab Calloway, and John Coltrane.
In 1937, Gillespie moved to New York, where he joined Teddy Hill's band; with Hill he made his first overseas tour, to England and France. By 1939, he had joined Cab Calloway's band and had received his first exposure to Afro-Cuban music. In 1940, Gillespie met Charlie "Bird" Parker, Thelonious Monk, and Kenny Clarke and together they began developing a distinctive, more complex style of jazz that became known as bebop or bop. In the early 1940s, Gillespie made several recordings of this new sound. In 1945, he formed and led his own big band, which was quickly downsized into a quintet due to financial problems. He was able to reform the band the next year and keep it together for four years, but it was disbanded in 1950. During this time, he began to incorporate Latin and Cuban rhythms into his work. In 1953, a dancer accidentally fell on his trumpet and bent the bell. Gillespie decided he liked the altered tone and thereafter had his trumpets specially made that way.
In 1956, after leading several small groups, the United States State Department asked Gillespie to assemble a large band for an extensive cultural tour to Syria, Pakistan, Turkey, Greece, and Yugoslavia; a second tour, to South America, took place several months later. Although he kept the band together for two more years, the lack of government funding prevented him from keeping such a large group going and he returned to leading small ensembles. In 1964, displaying the humor for which he was well-known, Gillespie put himself forward as a candidate for President.
Gillespie continued to tour, perform, record, and to collaborate with a wide range of other musicians throughout the 1970s and 1980s. He continued to encourage new styles and new talents, such as Arturo Sandoval, whom he discovered during a 1977 visit to Cuba. In 1979, Gillespie published his autobiography, To Be or Not to Bop. In the late 1980s, he organized and led the United Nations Orchestra, a 15-piece ensemble that showcased the fusion of Latin and Caribbean influences with jazz. In these later years, although still performing, he began to slow down and enjoy the rewards of his extraordinary talent. He received several honorary degrees, was crowned a chief in Nigeria, was awarded the French Commandre d'Ordre des Artes et Lettres, won a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award, and received both the Kennedy Center Medal of Arts and the ASCAP Duke Ellington Award for Fifty Years of Achievement as a composer, performer, and bandleader. Dizzy Gillespie passed away on January 6, 1993.
Related Materials:
Materials held in the Archives Center
John and Devra Hall Levy Collection NMAH.AC1221
Paquito Rivera NMAH.AC0891
James Moody Papers NMAH.AC1405
Chico O'Farrill Papers NMAH.AC0892
Boyd Raeburn Papers NMAH.AC1431
William Claxton Photographs NMAH.AC0695
Ray Brown Papers NMAH.AC1362
Earl Newman Collection of Monterey Jazz Festival Posters NMAH.AC1207
Graciela Papers NMAH.AC1425
Leonard Gaskin Papers NMAH.AC0900
Ella Fitzgerald NMAH.AC0584
Herman Leonard Photoprints NMAH.AC0445
Stephanie Myers Jazz Photographs NMAH.AC0887
John Gensel Collection of Duke Ellington Materials NMAH.AC0763
Duke Ellington Collection NMAH.AC0301
Benny Carter Collection NMAH.AC0757
Chuck Mangione NMAH.AC1151
Bill Holman Collection NMAH.AC0733
Duncan Schiedt Photograph Collection NMAH.AC1323
Fletcher and Horace Henderson Music and Photographs NMAH.AC0797
Ernie Smith Jazz Film Collection NMAH.AC0491
W. Royal Stokes Collection of Music Publicity Photoprints, Interviews, and Posters NMAH.AC0766
William Russo Music and Personal Papers NMAH.AC0845
Pat and Chuck Bress Jazz Portrait Photographs NMAH.AC1219
Milt Gabler Papers NMAH.AC0849
Floyd Levin Reference Collection NMAH.AC.1222
Materials held in the Division of Culture and the Arts
Includes Dizzy Gillespie's iconic "bent" trumpet (1986.0003.01); sound recordings, a button, and a sculpture.
Materials held in the Smithsonian Institution Archives
National Museum of American History. Office of Public Affairs Accession 95-150
Smithsonian Institution. Division of Performing Arts Accession 84-012
Smithsonian Institution. Office of Telecommunications Record Unit 296
Smithsonian Institution. Office of Telecommunications Record Unit 590
Materials held in the Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution
Gertrude Abercrombie AAA.abergert
Materials at Other Organizations
Dizzy Gillespie Collection, circa 1987-2000, University of Idaho Library, Special Collections and Archives
Provenance:
The collection was donated by Charles Fishman, Dizzy Gillespie's manager, in 2007.
Restrictions:
The collection is open for research. Researchers must handle unprotected photographs with gloves. Researchers must use reference copies of audio-visual materials. When no reference copy exists, the Archives Center staff will produce reference copies on an "as needed" basis, as resources allow.
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.
Business and personal papers, photographs, and audio recordings of Claude "Fiddler" Williams, an award-winning jazz fiddler. Although Williams played music for almost a century the materials in this collection date largely from 1970 to 2005.
Scope and Contents:
This collection documents the later life and career of jazz violinist Claude "Fiddler" Williams. Materials include correspondence, photographs, unpublished writings, awards, business records, financial records, programs and a few music manuscripts. There is one scrapbook and several audio recordings. There are also an autographed poster from 1997 honoring five inductees to the Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame, including Claude Williams, Merle Haggard, Patti Page, Woody Guthrie and Eddie Burris. While there are some materials from Williams's youth, the vast majority of the collection dates from 1970. Williams's second wife, Blanche Y. Fouse-Williams, was vigilant about saving his papers. She also managed his career for the last few years of his life. This accounts for the increased volume of materials documenting his later years. Materials generally are arranged in chronological order within series and subseries.
Series 1, Business Records, 1973-2005, undated, is divided into seven subseries and includes business records, information relating to tours and performances, awards and certificates, business and personal correspondence, financial papers, articles and newspaper clippings, and biographical information.
Subseries 1, Events, 1977-2004, undated, includes contracts, copies of newspaper clippings, performance programs, brochures, ticket stubs, travel itineraries, travel receipts, correspondence, materials regarding his work as a fiddle teacher, advertisements for performances, a certificate of recognition, and napkins saved from a Washington Education Television Association (WETA) performance at the White House in 1998. Materials are arranged in chronological order.
Subseries 2, Itineraries, 1990-2001, includes lists and correspondence detailing locations, musicians, travel and lodging plans, and financial compensation for William's performances. Materials are arranged in chronological order.
Subseries 3, Awards and Certificates, 1978-2002, contains awards and certificates of appreciation from the Steamboat Delta Queen, Annual Black Musicians Conference, Kansas City Chapter of the International Association of Jazz Record Collectors, and the Manhattan School of Music, as well as an invitation to a reception honoring Kansas City Jazz musicians from the Consul General of Japan. Materials are arranged in chronological order.
Subseries 4, Correspondence, 1975-2004, consists of information relating to travel arrangements, tours, remuneration, music recordings, press kits, contracts, public television performances, involvement with the National Endowment for the Arts and the National Endowment for the Humanities, as well as Williams's Smithsonian Folkways recording. Materials are arranged in chronological order.
Subseries 5, Financial Papers, 1990-2005, includes information about travel and payment, hotel bills and receipts, invoices for performances, music recordings sales, royalty statements and copies of checks. Materials are arranged in chronological order.
Subseries 6, Press, 1973--005, undated, includes magazines, newspaper clippings and articles, about Williams's performances and music, appearances and jazz festivals, as well as the Kansas City Jazz scene. Magazine titles include Kansas City Magazine , Missouri Alumnus , The Masters Traditional Arts Apprenticeship Program , Jazz Ambassador Magazine , Kansas City Ambassador to Jazz , The Mississippi Rag , Fiddler Magazine , Jazz News , Jazz Times , Living Blues , Blues Access , and Kansas City . Materials are arranged by type and then in chronological order.
Subseries 7, Music, 1989-1995, undated, contains thirteen audio tape recordings, one CD, sheet music and set lists of music performed by Williams. There is an audio recording of Black and Blue: A Musical Revue , a Folk Master performance at Carnegie Hall. Williams's work with James Chirillo, an appearance on Birdflight , as well as recordings of live and studio performances are also included among these materials. There is a copy of Williams's CD Swingtime in New York and an interview from1992. Materials are arranged in chronological order.
Series 2, Personal Papers, 1978--005, undated, is divided into two subseries and contains letters, cards, postcards, invitations, copies of email, and requests for information and interviews. Most of the correspondence was addressed to Williams but there are materials that were sent to Blanche Williams. The correspondence is generally from fans, friends and family.
Subseries 1, Correspondence, 1978-2005, undated, consists of birthday cards from school age children, postcards, copies of newspaper clippings, White House and other government correspondence, congratulations or birthday wishes, as well as personal correspondence from friends inquiring about Williams's health and well-being. Also included is a draft for a chapter in a book on Claude Williams's contributions to jazz. Requests relating to research about Williams are also included. Materials are arranged in chronological order. Materials are arranged first by type followed by general correspondence in chronological order.
Subseries 2, Miscellaneous, undated, contains ephemera, autographs, affiliates list, well-wishes to Blanche Williams, a funeral program, mailing lists, lists of affiliated organizations, and a Count Bassie autograph.
Series 3, Photographs, 1977-2004, undated, includes personal and professional photographic prints and negatives of Williams. Subjects include performances and festivals, headshots and publicity, images of other musicians, family, friends, and posters with photographs created for his funeral. The majority of these photographs are of performances. Materials are arranged by subject.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged into three series.
Series 1, Business Records, 1973-2005, undated
Subseries 1.1, Events, 1977-2004, undated
Subseries 1.2, Itineraries, 1990-2001
Subseries 1.3, Awards and Certificates, 1978-2002
Subseries 1.4, Correspondence, 1975-2004
Subseries 1.5, Financial Papers, 1990-2005
Subseries 1.6, Press, 1973-2005, undated
Subseries 1.7, Music; 1989-1995, undated
Series 2, Personal Papers, 1978-2005, undated
Subseries 2.1, Correspondence, 1978-2005, undated
Subseries 2.2, Miscellaneous, undated
Series 3, Photographs, 1977-2004, undated
Biographical / Historical:
Claude "Fiddler" Williams, 1908-2004, was born in Muskogee, Oklahoma, the son of a blacksmith. His musical gifts developed at a very early age, and he quickly became adept at the guitar, banjo, mandolin and cello, learning mostly by ear, without formal training. After hearing the jazz violinist Joe Venuti, the violin became his instrument of choice, and it remained so for the rest of his life. He migrated to Kansas City in 1927 and toured with several territory bands. Additionally Williams toured with the Twelve Clouds of Joy and the Cole Brothers, and in 1936, joined Count Basie's band as the first guitarist. After he was fired from Count Basie's band because John Hammond thought Williams's guitar solos were taking too much attention away from Basie, he went back to the violin (or "fiddle" as he preferred to call it) and focused exclusively on it for the rest of his life. Later he started his own band and toured with several jazz groups working for a short time with the Works Progress Administration (WPA). His band appeared at the Monterey Jazz Festival, the Nice Jazz Festival, and the Smithsonian Institution's Festival of American Folk Life. Williams received numerous honors and awards, including induction into the Oklahoma Jazz Hall of Fame, a proclamation from the city of Kansas City, and a 1998 National Heritage Fellowship which included a $10,000 award. President Bill Clinton invited him to perform at one of the parties celebrating his first inauguration. Williams continued to tour and perform until well into his nineties. He also gave instruction at Mark O'Connor's annual fiddle camp to young violinists. Mr. Williams died in April 2004.
Separated Materials:
Artifacts donated to the Museum's Division of Culture and the Arts (now Division of Cultural and Community Life) include a suit and violin. See accession numbers: 2005.3105 and 2007.3020.
Provenance:
This collection was donated by Claude Williams's widow, Blanche Y. Fouse-Williams, in 2005.
Restrictions:
The collection is open for research use.
Physical Access: Researchers must handle unprotected photographs with gloves. Researchers must use reference copies of audio-visual materials. When no reference copy exists, the Archives Center staff will produce reference copies on an "as needed" basis, as resources allow.
Technical Access: Do not use original materials when available on reference audio tapes.
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:
Music -- 20th century -- United States Search this
Thirty-four tapes of radio shows Wells did on radio station KJAZ in San Francisco on the subject of women in jazz. Some of the sessions featured interviews, while others featured recorded music. The performers and interviewees are listed below.
Arrangement:
1 series.
Biographical / Historical:
Film director and producer, Wells was once a disc jockey on radio station KJAZ in San Francisco.
Related Materials:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
John and Devra Hall Levy Collection, NMAH.AC1221
Ella Fritzgerald Papers, NMAH.AC0584
Bill Holman Collection, NMAH.AC0733
W. Royal Stokes Collection of Music Photoprints and Interviews, NMAH.AC0766
Joel Dorn Papers, 1966-1987, NMAH.AC.0536
Jeffrey Kliman Photographs, NMAH.AC0628
John Gensel Collection of Duke Ellington Music, NMAH.AC0763
Leonard Gaskin Papers, NMAH.AC0900
Smithsonian Institution Archives
Smithsonian Institution, Division of Performing Arts, Accession T90055
Provenance:
Donated by Audrey Wells to the Archives Center in 2005.
Restrictions:
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.
Collection is open for research.
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.
Collection consists of three music manuscripts created by Cuban-born musician and composer Paquito D'Rivera and a photograph.
Scope and Contents:
The collection consists of three music manuscripts created by D'Rivera including A Song of Peace commissioned by the New York Festival of Songs for its annual concert series in 2000. Annie Colina wrote the lyrics for this song. There are also two other music manuscripts including I Remember Diz written by D'Rivera for Dizzy Gillespie shortly after his death. In addition, there is a photograph of D'Rivera's birthday celebration with Dizzy Gillespie in 1988. The materials are arranged in chronological order.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged in three folders.
Biographical / Historical:
Paquito D'Rivera, born in 1948, is a Cuban musician and composer of both jazz and classical music. He plays both the clarinet and the alto saxophone. In his teen years, D'Rivera became a founding member of the Orquesta Cubana de Musica Moderna, directing the group for two years. At the same time, he played both the clarinet and saxophone with the Cuban National Symphony Orchestra. D'Rivera was also a founding member and co-director of the musical group Irakere, a band that played a mixture of jazz, rock, classical and traditional Cuban music. In 1980, he sought asylum in Spain at the United States Embassy. He moved to New York and played with Dizzy Gillespie's last big band.
D'Rivera has won several Grammy awards, including Best Latin Jazz Album in 2003 and 2008 and best classical album at the Latin Grammy awards in 2003 and 2005. In addition, D'Rivera was nominated for Grammy awards in 1979 and 1980. He received the National Medal for the Arts in 2005 and was named one of the 2005 National Endowment for the Arts Jazz Masters.
D'Rivera is also a composer of music. In 2007, he received a John Simon Guggenheim Fellowship in Music Composition. He also received the 2007-2008 appointment as Composer-in-Residence at the Caramoor Center for Music and the Arts. D'Rivera's compositions reflect his widespread musical interests combining Afro-Cuban rhythms and melodies with classical origins.
Related Materials:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
Tito Puente Papers (AC0894)
Chico O'Farrill Papers (AC0892)
Mongo Santamaria Papers (AC0893)
Smithsonian Jazz Oral History Program Collection (AC0808)
Charismic Production Records of Dizzy Gillespie (AC0979)
Separated Materials:
The Museum's Division of Culture and the Arts (now Division of Cultural and Community Life) holds artifacts related to this collection including a Panama hat, white tuxedo, and D'Rivera's first clarinet. See accession number: 2005.3048.
Provenance:
Paquito D'Rivera donated the collection to the Archives Center in 2005.
Restrictions:
The collection is open for research use.
Physical Access: Researchers must handle unprotected photographs with gloves.
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.
Collection includes music manuscripts, articles and clippings, concert programs, passports, and photographs.
Scope and Contents:
This collection documents, mostly in photographs, the musical career of Mongo Santamaria. Other materials include music manuscripts, magazine and newspaper articles, flyers, posters, and passports.
Series 1, Photographs, circa 1950s–1990s, includes primarily black and white and some color images of Mongo Santamaria. There is a photograph of Santamaria with the first Congo he brought from Cuba to the United States. Of particular interest is Santamaria performing with Tito Puente and Cal Tjada's bands. Some of the earlier photographs document performances at the Palladium Nightclub and Apollo Theatre. There are publicity photographs of Santamaria and his band created by the recording studios. The photographs also include award ceremonies, bar scenes and concert appearances. The materials are arranged in chronological order.
Series 2, Music Manuscripts, 1958-1985; undated, includes music created by Santamaria and music performed by him but written by other composers. Escena Afro-Cubanas composed and arranged by Valerie Capers (1985), Just Say Good-by by Rodgers Grant, Mambo Olga Pachanga by Nicolas Martinez (1961) and Peace by Horace Silver are included among these materials. The materials are arranged in alphabetical order by title.
Series 3, Personal and Background Information, 1945-1996; undated, include a profile of Santamaria and other musicians written in Japanese. There are also magazine articles documenting the development of Santamaria's career and his public appearances. Articles from the Miami Herald and the Chicago Tribune are also included among the materials. Personal items consist of Santamaria's Cuban and American passports. The materials are arranged in alphabetical order by type.
Series 4, Performance Materials, 1977-1996; undated, includes the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences Certificate to Mongo Santamaria and his Latin-Jazz Orchestra in recognition of nomination for the Best Tropical Latin Performance for Free Spirit, Espirito Libre, 1985. There are also flyers and an entertainment guide, some in Spanish, advertising public appearances for concert performances. A program in French for a jazz festival in Vienna includes profiles of the performers. There are posters including a black and white drawing of jazz musicians by Robert Leonard (1985) and appearances at the Miami Jazz and Heritage Festival, Apollo Theatre, Oberlin College and the Blue Note. Materials are arranged in alphabetical order by type.
Arrangement:
The collection is divided into 4 series.
Series 1: Photographs, circa 1950s-1990
Series 2, Music Manuscripts, 1958-1985 and undated
Series 3, Personal and Background Information, 1945-1996 and undated
Series 4, Performance Materials, 1977-1996 and undated
Biographical / Historical:
Cuban-born percussionist, composer, arranger, and bandleader.
Related Materials:
The materials in this collection complement the Latino Music Collection, Tito Puente Papers, Chico O'Farrill Papers, Dizzy Gillespie Collection and Paquito d'Rivera Music Manuscripts and Photograph.
Provenance:
Donated to the Archives Center by Mongo Santamaria's daughter, Nancy Anderson.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.
Rights:
Fees for commercial reproduction. Reproduction restricted due to copyright or trademark.
The collection documents the professional career of Chico O'Farrill, Cuban-born trumpet player, composer and arranger of Afro Cuban, bebop, and other styles of jazz.
Scope and Contents:
The collection consists of materials documenting the musical career of Chico O'Farrill. There are no personal papers, and there is very little information about his life.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged into two series.
Series 1, Music Manuscripts, undated
Series 2, Other Materials, 1949, 1975, 1999
Biographical / Historical:
: Arturo (Chico) O' Farrill was born October 28, 1921, into an Irish-German Cuban family in Havana, Cuba. He learned to play trumpet while attending Riverside Military Academy in Gainesville, Georgia. O'Farrill later returned to Havana and studied composition. He arranged and composed classical music and jazz for mainstream and Latin musicians. He played trumpet throughout the mid-forties with various Cuban bands, including the Lecuna Cuban Boys. In 1948, O'Farrill moved to New York to study at The Julliard School. Later he composed and arranged music for Benny Goodman, Count Basie, Machito, Stan Kenton, Dizzy Gillespie, and Gato Barbieri. He collaborated with impresario Norman Granz, who helped put together a recording session including Machito, alto saxophonist Charlie Parker, tenor saxophonist Flip Phillips and drummer Buddy Rich. They recorded Afro Cuban Jazz Suite in 1950, a successful blend of the bebop sound he arranged for Benny Goodman and Latin jazz rhythms. O'Farrill formed his own band and toured the United States and Cuba, returning to Havana around 1955, subsequently relocating to Mexico City. O'Farrill moved to Los Angeles in 1965. He recorded Afro Cuban Moods with Dizzy Gillespie in 1975. Around this time, he began to compose commercial music for advertising and television. From 1998 until 2000, he conducted the Lincoln Center Latin Jazz Orchestra and the Chico O'Farrill Afro-Cuban Jazz Big Band in New York. O'Farrill died on June 27, 2001 in New York City.
Materials in the Archives Center, National Museum of American History:
Paquito D'Rivera Music Manuscripts and Photograph (AC0891)
Tito Puente Papers (AC0894)
Mongo Santamaria Papers (AC0893)
Charismic Productions Records of Dizzy Gillespie (AC0979)
Latino Music Collection (AC0852)
Provenance:
Guadalupe Valero O'Farrill, widow of Chico O'Farrill, donated the collection in 2005.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.
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.
