Scope and Content Note
The papers of Francis Maria Scala (1819?-1903) span the years 1816-2013 with the bulk of the materials dating from 1820 to 1915. The collection consists primarily of manuscript and printed music -- 608 titles -- arranged or composed by Scala for band concerts, military formations, and White House functions. It also includes photographs, clippings, programs, correspondence, and other materials related to Scala's life and career.
Aside from the German language instruction book, all of the bound 19th-century publications within the Francis Scala Papers are musical instruction guides. Of those texts, literature on the clarinet comprises one-third of the collection. Since the renowned bandmaster played the instrument while attending a Naples conservatory and began his military music career with the woodwind before graduating to Fife Major, it is understandable that material on the clarinet would formulate a sizeable amount of the Books series.
The entire Clippings series is housed in three folders. Each ten-year span chiefly consists of highlights from Scala’s career and news about the Marine Corps. In addition to these, there are clippings featuring other notable figures, such as Abraham Lincoln, Arthur Rubinstein, and John Philip Sousa, as well as current events (presidential inaugurations, the national health program, and revolutionary brain research conducted by his son Dr. Norman P. Scala).
While there is a smattering of letters addressed to Francis Scala, most of the Correspondence is intended for his son Norman. Included among the former is a message from Marine Band Director William Santelmann, a few Italian-language letters from his father Gennaro, and glowing testimonials from the longest-serving commandant of the Marine Corps, Archibald Henderson. Among the latter, one can find multiple notes asking Norman about his father’s music, dialogues about piano lessons taken and given by the younger Scala, and results from research about the career of the elder Scala.
Three folders hold Scala’s Financial Records. Pension documents dating from 1893 to 1926 constitute the greatest amount of cohesive material within the series. Other items include military pay records, a relief fund certificate indicating a $3,000 payment to his wife Olivia at the time of his death, and receipts from the music merchandise dealer John F. Ellis & Co.
The Music series is housed in 37 boxes and comprises the largest series within the collection. It ranges from original compositions by Francis Scala (marches, quicksteps, waltzes, etc.) to arrangements of operatic repertoire, particularly that of Italian composers Vincenzo Bellini and Gaetano Donizetti. This music was used by the Marine Band for concerts, ceremonies, and White House events. It includes such titles as “Union March,” which was written for Lincoln’s 1861 inauguration, and “The Lady’s Polka,” composed in honor of Mary Todd. The piece which Scala considered his greatest musical achievement, “President Grant’s Inauguration March,” is also present.
Most of the Photographs within the Francis Scala Papers feature group snapshots of the Marine Corps Band. Another cluster of images depict formal studio portraits of Norman Scala in his marine uniform and a tuxedo. There are photographs of Scala as a young man in military regalia and as an elderly retiree sitting on the porch of his Washington D.C. home. The remaining photographs portray Scala’s second wife Olivia, Helen Joseffy, whose father instructed Norman on the piano, scenic images, and the painting Visit of the Prince of Wales, President Buchanan and Dignitaries to the Tomb of Washington at Mount Vernon, October 1860.
Only 20 items make up the Programs series, of which a dozen are duplicates from a 1978 Library of Congress performance by The Fennel Symphonic Winds. Of those 12, three are autographed by Frederick Fennel. Four programs dating from 1867 to 1925 are for the Marine Band, while two—one for the 1909 commencement at Washington College of Music and one for a 1911 recital— pertain to Norman Scala. The final two programs advertise a performance by the Broadway actress Margaret Anglin at Columbia Theatre and a solo concert by the world-renowned pianist Ignacy Paderewski.
A sticker, a palm-sized booklet, two career information bulletins, and two full color brochures commemorating the 215th anniversary of the United States Marine Band are all that comprises the Promotional Materials. The date span of the items, which are contained in a single folder, is 2012 to 2013.
The Subject Files series contains Scala's personal documents, including his marriage certificate, naturalization document, and last will and testament. There are materials dealing with his military career, such as his enlistment and discharge papers, forms outlining the statutes and regulations of the Marine Corps, and bills for his relief. Also present are Norman’s D.C. public library card and Francis Scala’s facial hair.
The Writings series primarily consists of memoranda that Scala wrote. One in particular was intended for the editor of The Evening Times of Washington D.C. The famous conductor had written it in response to an article about the capturing of the Bastille in Paris that was published on April 20th of 1901. Another newspaper-related piece is the typed extract of “Scala’s Glorious Past” which first appeared in the January 19, 1896 edition of The Morning Times. The final manuscript, “Walt Whitman and the Marine Band,” was authored by the German author Nathan Hans and expounds on the poet’s love of music and his frequent appearances at the concerts performed by “The President’s Own.”
Also included within the Francis Maria Scala Papers is the calling card of Abraham Lincoln written in the hand of the 16th president of the United States.