Abstract Alice Eversman (1885-1974) and Elena de Sayn (1884?-1966) were a performing duo active in the early 1900s. Eversman was an operatic soprano and de Sayn was a violinist. During the 1930s, they both settled in Washington, D.C., and became music critics for the Washington Star. They were important members of the local musical community as well as newspaper writers' groups. De Sayn also continued her performing and teaching career through the early 1960s. The...

Abstract Composer George Gershwin (1898-1937) and his lyricist brother Ira (1896-1983) wrote some of the most significant American popular songs of the first half of the twentieth century. Working with novelist and poet DuBose Heyward, they created the great American opera Porgy and Bess. Additionally, George Gershwin composed several singularly American concert works, including An American in Paris and ...

Abstract Composer George Gershwin (1898-1937) and his lyricist brother Ira (1896-1983) wrote some of the most significant American popular songs of the first half of the twentieth century. After George's untimely death in 1937, Ira worked with many other notable composers and diligently kept his brother's legacy alive. After Ira's death, his wife, Leonore, created the Ira and Leonore S. Gershwin Trusts in 1987 to function as a philanthropic fund endowing organizations in areas such as the arts,...

Abstract Victor Herbert was a composer, conductor, cellist, and co-founder of the American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers (ASCAP). The music materials include mostly manuscript scores, parts and sketches for Herbert's stage, screen and orchestral works, and arrangements. The collection also contains Victor Herbert Orchestra encore part books and music by other composers. Additional materials include correspondence, programs, clippings, photographs, scrapbooks, promotional materials,...

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The papers consist of approximately 2,800 original playbills, plus extensive research materials and data sheets covering the historical breadth of American musical theatre.

Abstract Burton Lane composed popular songs and music for Broadway and film musicals. Among his most notable works are the musicals Finian’s Rainbow (lyrics by E. Y. Harburg) and On a Clear Day You Can See Forever (lyrics by Alan Jay Lerner). The materials in the collection document Lane's professional life with both holograph and printed music, annotated scripts, photographs, programs, posters, correspondence, clippings, and...

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Alex North (1910-1991) was an American composer of music for feature films, dance, theater productions, and the concert hall. He brought a new and uniquely "American" sound to his works. The collection contains performance materials for dance works, incidental music for theater productions, songs, musical comedies and revues, and concert works. A small amount of scripts, promotional materials, and clippings are also included.

Abstract Harold Rome (1908-1993) was an American composer and lyricist best known for his work in musical theater. Rome first made his mark by writing and composing musical revues, most notably his 1937 hit debut Pins and Needles. He later established himself as a writer of shows that were considered to be socially conscious for the time, including I Can Get It For You Wholesale (1962) and The Zulu and the...

Abstract Elizabeth Severn, psychotherapist, author, and psychoanalytic patient of Sándor Ferenczi; and her daughter, Margaret Severn, ballet dancer and vaudeville performer. Correspondence, writings, printed matter, and photographs concerning Elizabeth Severn's private life and her career as a psychotherapist. Correspondence, writings, art work, printed matter, photographs, and digital files relating to Margaret Severn's life as a dancer in New York theaters, in traveling vaudeville shows in the...

Abstract Billy Strayhorn (1915-1967) was an American jazz pianist, composer, arranger, and lyricist. He is prominently known as the leading arranger for the Duke Ellington Orchestra, a position that he held for nearly three decades. The collection chiefly contains scores, sketches, lead sheets, and parts for original compositions and arrangements by Strayhorn and Ellington, as well as business papers, photographs, scripts, and other materials pertaining to Strayhorn's life and the posthumous...

Abstract Dana Suesse was an American pianist and composer who incorporated popular, jazz, and classical elements into her works. Suesse gained attention for writing popular songs such as "You Oughta Be in Pictures" and "The Night is Young and You're So Beautiful," but also received acclaim for her orchestral works, including Concerto in Three Rhythms . The collection documents Suesse's career and includes music manuscript...

Abstract The Harry Von Tilzer and H. Harold Gumm Papers consist of both personal and professional papers of composer and music publisher Harry Von Tilzer (1872-1946) and his brother, H. Harold Gumm (1881 or 82-1973), who was a lawyer, agent, and producer in the entertainment business. After having served as attorney for the Harry Von Tilzer Music Publishing Co. (HVTMPC) for several decades, Harold Gumm served as executor of Harry Von Tilzer's estate and took over the company when Von Tilzer died in...

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The composer-lyricist team of Robert Wright and George "Chet" Forrest was active from the 1930s through the 1990s, primarily in the medium of staged musicals, though they also wrote songs for films, club acts, revues, television, and radio. The collection documents their creative output through holograph, manuscript, and printed scores, parts, sketches and lyric sheets as well as a small amount of clippings, contracts, correspondence, notes, programs, schedules, and scripts.