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COLLECTION Identifier: Ms. Coll. 105

William D. and Peggy Smith collection of Eubie Blake correspondence, printed sheet music, and other material, 1970-1977.

Overview

Materials by and about the American jazz pianist and composer Eubie Blake, including correspondence, articles, clippings, photographs, and sheet music, collected during the 1970's by William D. and Peggy Smith. In the letters Eubie Blake discusses his music, composing, and events of his career. The correspondence also documents the friendship between Eubie and Marion Blake and the Smiths.

Dates

  • Creation: 1970-1977

Conditions Governing Access

Access to the collection is unrestricted.

Extent

1 collection (2 file boxes)

The collection consists mainly of materials by and about Eubie Blake, primarily from the 1970's, collected by William D. and Peggy Smith, admirers of Blake who became friends. Included are letters between Eubie and the Smiths, as well as those from Marion Blake to the Smiths. The correspondence documents their friendship as well as events in Eubie Blake's career. The Smiths collected clippings, articles, and other biographical material about Eubie Blake which are included in the collection. There are also letters from Ivan Browning, a singer and collaborator with Eubie, to the Smiths. Also included is a collection of sheet music, all songs by Eubie Blake.

Physical Location

Merritt Room

Immediate Source of Acquisition

The Eda Kuhn Loeb Music Library purchased the collection from Charles Apfelbaum, dealer in rare manuscripts and archives in Watchung, NJ, in 1996.

Processed by:

Sarah Adams

Title
William D. and Peggy Smith collection of Eubie Blake correspondence, printed sheet music, and other material, 1970-1977.
Author
Eda Kuhn Loeb Music Library, Harvard College Library
Language of description
und
EAD ID
mus00005

Repository Details

Part of the Eda Kuhn Loeb Music Library Repository

The Eda Kuhn Loeb Music Library is the primary repository of musical materials at Harvard. The Music Library’s collecting mission is to serve music teaching and research programs in the Music Department and throughout the Faculty of Arts and Sciences. In addition, it supports the musical needs of the broader Harvard community as well as an international scholarly constituency. We collect books, musical scores, serial titles, sound recordings and video formats, microforms, and rare and archival materials that support research in a wide variety of musical disciplines including historical musicology, music theory, ethnomusicology, composition, and historically informed performance practice, as well as interdisciplinary areas related to music. The special collections include archival collections from the 19th, 20th and 21st century.

Contact:
Music Building, 3 Oxford Street
Cambridge MA 02138 USA
(617) 495-2794