In the Muse hopes our readers in the Northern Hemisphere are having an enjoyable summer. Things have been hot in Washington, and Morris S. Silver and Tom Confare’s ”Sunbeam,” from the Historic Sheet Music, 1800-1922 collection in the Performing Arts Encyclopedia, may provide cool solace in the form of song. This illustration of a demonic sun – undoubtedly a …
The following is a guest post by Senior Music Specialist Ray White. Lucille Ball was born one hundred years ago, on August 6, 1911, in Jamestown, New York. Her career took her from very inauspicious beginnings—she was dismissed from drama school as a teenager by instructors who declared that she had no future as an …
The following is a guest post from Archivist Contractor Janet McKinney. Whether it is Middle Name Pride Day, Pancake Day, or Talk Like a Pirate Day, it seems like there is a day to celebrate just about anything. International Beer Day? Sure! Although we may dismiss these “holidays” as frivolous, it is an opportunity to …
In the Muse can’t believe it’s been a year since the Music Division joined the Library of Congress’s efforts on Flickr Commons. On July 30, 2010, we uploaded the first batch of photos from the William P. Gottlieb Collection to the popular photo sharing site. And it is a happy coincidence that we belatedly celebrate …
The following is a guest post by Rachel Weiss, an intern whom we interviewed on Monday. Just after the turn of the twentieth century, the Music Division was still a fledgling organization. In 1902, Oscar Sonneck was named its first Chief, and he laid the groundwork for the development of many of the division’s wonderful …