Digging for Treasure: Zarzuelas and Other Gems in the Historical Sound Recordings Collection at Yale University
Diane Napert, Catalog Librarian, Yale University
Historical Sound Recordings at Yale
Comprised of historical recordings of performers important in the fields of Western classical music, jazz, American musical theater, drama, literature, and history (including oratory). HSR was founded by Mr. and Mrs. Laurence C. Witten II in 1960/1961 with their collection of early vocal recordings
Mellon Grant – No. of Recordings Mellon awarded a grant of $789,000 starting in 2006 for cataloging of 78 rpm recordings 853,162 commercial recordings at Yale, Stanford and Rodgers & Hammerstein Archives of Recorded Sound Over 320,000 78 rpm recordings – mostly uncataloged Syracuse joined project March 2008
The numbers The project contributed over 24,000 records to OCLC through November 2009 (figure includes only 2008 for Syracuse, approx. 3,500, and some upgraded copy) Volume figures would be higher due to multi-disc sets and multiple copies Yale able to extend project a few months with money from Yale Class of ’45W and add several hundred more records
View of 78s housed in Mudd Library at Yale
The bibliographic records Access points were added for composers, lyricists, arrangers, performing groups (but not each player within a named group), main performers, conductors, speakers Attempts were made to connect arias to the correct opera and excerpted songs to the correct musicals (mostly successful)
The labels Over 360 labels worked on The largest included Brunswick, Capitol, Columbia, Decca, Edison, Gramophone and Victor
Yale Labels
Zarzuela “It’s been said that zarzuela means to Spain what operetta means to Vienna, Offenbach to Paris, Gilbert and Sullivan to London, and the musical to Broadway. Well yes, it means all of that—and much more.” p. xi, The Zarzuela Companion, Christopher Webber Foreward Plácido Domingo
Zarzuelas – other elements Broad range, from one-act farces to three-act tragedies Spoken dialogue is employed in most Alternates between spoken and sung scenes Spanish lyric-dramatic genre Long history, including baroque zarzuela, romantic zarzuela (early 1850s)
Federico Chueca, 1846-1908 La Gran Vía One act revista or revue The Zarzuela Companion Webber says written with Joaquín Valverde Premiered Madrid, Teatro Felipe, 2nd July, 1886 Columbia C 536, approx. 1906 Composer was still alive In Italian, very popular work, translated
Federico Chueca, 1846-1908
Gran Vía. Vals del Caballero de Gracia. Italian.
Luigi Baldassare, baritone with orchestra
Federico Chueca, 1846-1908
Ruperto Chapí, 1851-1909
Las Hijas del Zebedeo – 2 act farce 1889 Recording Columbia 3901-M, approx. 1924 Selection Carceleras or Al Pensar en el Dueño de mis Amores Prison lament, however in this case it is described as a song of “amorous frustration” Technically challenging, popular for Spanish divas
Ruperto Chapí, 1851-1909 Elvira de Hidalgo, 1892-1980, soprano Teacher of Maria Callas This work recorded in London This was the earliest instance of this version I could find on OCLC – there were a couple of later recordings
Ruperto Chapí, 1851-1909
Las Hijas del Zebedeo, Manuscript, Barcelona,1889
Elvira de Hidalgo, 1892-1980
Pedro Miguel Marqués, 18431918 El Anillo de Hierro, 1878 3 act melodrama set in Norway Columbia, C 373, 1906 Ven Rodolfo Carmen Fernández de Lara, soprano with orchestra Recording made during composer’s lifetime
Pedro Miguel Marqués, 18431918
Joaquín Romualdo Gaztambide y Garbayo, 1822-1870 Una vieja, 1860 Comic opera set in Mexico Columbia, C 373, 1906 Cavatina Juan Valls, tenor with piano
Tomás Barrera, 1870-1938 Pupil of Chapí Emigrantes, 1905 On a ship leaving Spain Disque Apollon 318, 190? Granadinas aria In French and arranged Composer alive when recorded
Emigrantes. Granadina Henri Weber, baritone, with piano Popular work as translated into French
Tomás Barrera, 1870-1938
Paquita Correa, soprano 3 recordings of her from ca. 1906 She was married to composer Rafael Calleja Gómez Contacted by her great-granddaughter for copies of recordings She was unable to find them in Spain She found them because they were cataloged as part of the grant
Paquita Correa Chose one of the three we have “Brindis” from Ángel Caído by Apolinar Brull y Ayerra, 1845-1905
New website
http://www.loc.gov/jukebox/ access to a vast selection of music and spoken-word recordings “produced” in the U.S. between the years 1901 and 1925
Image of Yale web-site
Grant HSR Council on Library and Information Resources (CLIR) for Song, Speech and Dance: Special Collections from the Recorded Sound Archives at Yale and Stanford Universities 18 months starting December 2009 More archival work
Thanks Special thanks to Richard Warren, Curator, Historical Sound Recordings collection,Yale Thanks also to Nicole Rodriguez, Library Services assistant, Historical Sound Recordings collection,Yale
Questions
Diane Napert,
[email protected]
