Scope and Content Note
Modern Music, the quarterly journal of the League of Composers, was published in New York from 1924 to 1946 and edited by Minna Lederman Daniel. Initially the journal was known as The League of Composers' Review. In 1925, the name was changed to Modern Music, although the journal was still published under the auspices of the League. To this day, Modern Music is considered to be one of the most distinguished collections of criticism and scholarship concerning early twentieth-century musical arts. This publication is credited with nurturing an entire generation of composer-critics and for laying the stylistic groundwork for future generations. The roster of contributors includes composers, critics, scholars and artists, many of whom were in the prime of their careers. Exhibited among the twenty-three volumes of this short-lived yet critically-acclaimed journal are the talents of such noteworthy figures as Alban Berg, Aaron Copland, Walter Piston, Virgil Thomson, Paul Rosenfeld, Edwin Denby, André Breton, Lincoln Kirstein and Pablo Picasso, among others.
The original arrangement and series and subseries titles of this collection, which were designated by Minna Lederman Daniel prior to the collection's transfer, have been retained. The contents of the archives consists of materials documenting the cessation of the magazine. The Closing Activities series includes correspondence, financial and budget documents, fundraising materials, clippings, committee meeting minutes, and other materials that document the demise of Modern Music. In addition, it contains an essay by Minna Lederman Daniel entitled "Modern Music Archives: Footnotes to its History," which serves as an introduction to the archives. The Lederman Manuscripts series contains Lederman Daniel's annotated typewritten manuscript of The Life and Death of a Small Magazine (Modern Music, 1924-1946), which was published in 1983 by the Institute for Studies in American Music. The Correspondence series contains letters between Modern Music and its readers and contributors, and eight typescripts of articles submitted to Modern Music by Bertolt Brecht, André Breton, Henry and Sidney Cowell, Lincoln Kirstein, Harold Shapero, and others. The Iconography series includes photographs and artwork, both originals and reproductions, of composers, authors, and stage and costume designs. Noteworthy original works of art include self-portraits by Darius Milhaud and Arnold Schoenberg, sketches of George Antheil by Boris Smirnoff, a pencil drawing of Louis Gruenberg by Enrico Caruso, and a lithograph portrait of Paul Hindemith by Richard Heinsich. The Auxiliary Pamphlets series contains items of historical significance such as contemporary concert and festival programs, and other related lists and publications. The Supplemental Material series contains the final issue of Modern Music, the first issue of The League of Composers' Review, an index, and the monograph A Guide to Wozzeck by Willi Reich. And finally, the Scrapbooks series contains two scrapbooks containing promotional materials dating from 1924 to 1946 and press clippings from 1925 to 1947. The scrapbooks have been microfilmed. Throughout the collection are brief essays and explanations accompanying each series by Minna Lederman Daniel.
The following items described in Minna Lederman Daniel's itemized inventories were not located with the collection as of March 1993:
- File of correspondence to and from Hans Heinsheimer
- Group photo of "American composers at Copland's home"
- Photo of Stefan Wolpe
Peggy Monastra, March 1993