Scope and Content Note
The John Adams Music Manuscripts and Papers span from 1925 to 2017, the bulk of which date from 1980 to 2017. The material primarily consists of music manuscripts and computer-generated scores, but also includes correspondence, financial and business papers, programs and promotional materials, biographical materials, photographs, and clippings.
The Music series contains two subseries, Music by Adams and Music by Others. Music by Adams contains sketches, manuscript scores, computer printout scores, scores for conducting, and occasional parts. Music by Others primarily consists of works that Adams orchestrated, such as the three Piazzolla tangos, but also includes a small number of inscribed or collected scores by other composers.
The Correspondence series contains both professional and personal communications to and from Adams. Correspondents include collaborators, fellow composers, musicians, performing organizations, commissioning entities, and family members.
Business Papers consist of contracts and correspondence that extensively document Adams’s commissions and appearances as a conductor.
Financial Papers include receipts, invoices, tax information, bank statements, and other documents pertaining to different aspects of Adams's professional activities and personal life. Many materials relate to travel, such as boarding passes, hotel information, and expense reports. The series also includes detailed royalty statements from music publishers and record companies.
Biographical Materials consist of items related to Adams's personal life and career, such as datebooks and calendars, transcripts of interviews with Adams, awards and materials that pertain to them, schoolwork, and family documents. The series also includes writings by Adams and others.
Programs in the collection are from performances of Adams’s compositions and appearances of Adams as a conductor and/or performer. Other promotional materials include flyers, mailings, and posters.
Clippings contain articles, concert announcements, reviews, and news about Adams’s career and accomplishments. They also include documentation of historical events, some referenced by Adams in his compositions.