Norman Luboff Collection Was Given to the Music Division of the Library of Congress in 1993 by Mrs
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Guides to Special Collections in the Music Division of the Library of Congress NORMAN LUBOFF COLLECTION Finding aid URL: http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.music/eadmus.mu2005.wp.0023 LIBRARY OF CONGRESS WASHINGTON 1994 Table of Contents Introduction ........................................................................iii Biographical Note ...................................................................iv Scope and Content Note .............................................................. v Container List ...................................................................... 1 MUSIC ..................................................................... 1 ii Introduction The Norman Luboff Collection was given to the Music Division of the Library of Congress in 1993 by Mrs. Gunilla Marcus-Luboff. Certain restrictions to use or copying of materials may apply. Linear feet: 38 No. of containers: 139 Approximate no. of items: 10,000 iii Biographical Note Norman Luboff (1917-1987) was one of the most well-respected, multi-faceted, and popular musicians of mid to late 20th century America. His career in choral music as composer, arranger, conductor, singer, recording artist, teacher, publisher, and promoter was significant in promoting interest in choral music among the public as well as both professional and amateur musicians. Born in Chicago on May 14, 1917, Luboff studied piano and voice as a child. After attending both the University of Chicago and Central College, he pursued graduate studies under the direction of composer Leo Sowerby. While teaching music theory at Central, he began singing and arranging music for popular Chicago radio shows. After a stint with the Signal Corps during World War II and some radio work in New York, Luboff settled in Hollywood where he became choral director for "The Railroad Hour," a weekly radio program starring Gordon McRae and featuring music from opera, operetta and musical comedy. In Hollywood, Luboff composed and arranged music for television including the Bell Telephone Hour, Dinah Shore Show, Ford Star Jubilee, the Jerry Lewis Show and for more than 80 motion pictures such as "Country Girl," "Giant," and "Island in the Sun." Among the many popular performers with whom he worked were Harry Belafonte, Rosemary Clooney, Bing Crosby, Vic Damone, Doris Day, Percy Faith, Katharine Hepburn, Frankie Laine, Ezio Pinza, Frank Sinatra, Jo Stafford, and Paul Weston. Among the song lyricists with whom he worked the names of Alan Bergman and Marilyn Keith are particularly noted. The Norman Luboff Choir, organized during the 1950s, exposed millions of listeners to a wide gamut of music ranging from Renaissance polyphony to the characteristic Luboff arrangements of folk and popular songs. Among its more than 75 LPs, one in particular "Song of the Cowboys" won the 1960 Grammy award. Luboff founded the Walton Music Corporation in the late 1950s in order to facilitate dissemination of his many compositions and arrangements and to introduce new compositions and arrangements by young and unknown composers. Later the company would take a significant role in promoting the music of Scandinavian composers, a project in which Luboff had a particular interest. In the 1960s and 1970s, he had made a considerable number of guest appearances as conductor and clinician with both amateur and professional choral organizations, most notably the Radio Choir of Denmark and the Swedish Radio Choir. Luboff's interest in collecting the music of world cultures, especially that of the Scandinavian countries, resulted in a 1965 Prentice-Hall Inc. collection of more than 100 folk songs assembled by Luboff with the assistance of guitarist-musicologist Winfred Starcke and illustrator, Paul Freeman. In 1985, Norman Luboff moved to Bynum, North Carolina where he died in 1987. He was one of the most influential men in the American mid-20th century contemporary choral music scene. iv Scope and Content Note The Norman Luboff Collection contains 139 boxes of both music and non-music materials. Luboff's working music library of choral works and songs, most of which are composed and/or arranged by him, comprise more than 130 of the boxes. These scores include printed music as well as autograph scores by Luboff and others, and arrangements, often accompanied instrumental parts and performed by the Norman Luboff Chorale in concert and on recording. Most of these materials date from the mid-1950s to the late 1970s. The organization of the music retains Luboff's original organizational scheme. Each title is assigned a number and the works are arranged in numerical order regardless of format or genre. These materials are located in boxes 1 through 116 with oversize materials comprising boxes 98 through 116. The indication "also see box [#]" after the title of items listed in boxes 1 through 97 indicates the presence of oversize materials for that item. Oversized materials are found in boxes 101, 108 through 121, and 128 and 129. Box 117 contains music composed and/or arranged by Luboff but not assigned a filing number by him. These materials are arranged in alphabetical order by title. There sequential gaps in the numbering of titles indicates that a missing numbered item was not a part of the gift and that it, perhaps, may have never existed or may have been destroyed by Luboff himself. A collection of more than 480 folk song books collected and assembled by Luboff throughout his career was also given to the Library. These books have not been retained with the collection but have been cataloged and dispersed throughout the holdings of the Music Division. Each book is identified as being the gift of Gunilla Marcus-Luboff. Photocopies of the title pages of each of these volumes are retained in the files of the Music Division. In addition to three folders of unidentified sketches, presumably composed by Luboff, box 99 contains four folders of music not composed by Luboff. These materials are arranged in alphabetical order by composer. Box 100 contains "onion skin" of parts for Luboff compositions and arrangements for "Freedom Country," "Ice Capades," "Chevrolet Show" in addition to Pillsbury and Marlboro television commercial jingles. Box 101 contains materials relative to "Highland fling," a musical based on the life of Robert Burns. Luboff's compositions for Aesop's fables and More Aesop's fables, with lyrics by Marilyn Keith and Alan Bergman and produced by Golden Records, is found in boxes 39, 40, 41, 99, 100, 102 and 125. Lead sheets and various production materials for "Songs of Man," Luboff's compilation of folks songs are located in boxes 138 and 139. Particularly interesting among the non-music items is a fascinating series of programs, itineraries and other documents related to Norman Luboff Choir tours spanning the period 1963 to 1988. Processed by William Nelson and Rodney Todd, Music Technicians and Robert Saladini, Music Specialist, 1994 v Container List MUSIC Box/Folder # Contents 1 2 Blue Danube (Great Waltz) 3 Fascinating rhythm 4 Fine and dandy 5 Four leaf clover 6 The freedom train 8 For you, for me, for evermore 10 Danger men working 11 The four freedoms 12 Easy to love 14 Sometimes I'm happy (also see box 108) 15 Sound off 17 The eagle and me 19 Bundle of nerves (also see box 108) 20 Ding dong the witch is dead 23 Country style 25 Cuanto le gusta 30 Civilization 34 I like to hike 35 Patapan 42 Buzz buzz 59 Manhattan 2 68 My heart's in the highlands 71 Navy blue and gold 75 Night and day 81 Papa, won't you dance 82 Paul Bunyan 84 Polly wolly doodle 88 Sweet Genevieve 92 San Fernando Valley 94 Saturday night is the loneliest night 100 Capital ship 108 Sooner or later 109 South America take it away 110 Main street 111 Stanley steamer 113 Sweet Adeline 117 Swingin' on a star 131 April showers 134 Army blue 135 As time goes by (also see box 108) 139 Jeepers creepers 157 The Lord's prayer 160 Love on a Greyhound bus 162 Washboard blues 171 I only have eyes for you (also see box 108) 173 When the boys come home 177 On the sunny side of the street 3 183 Gotta dance 197 Tonight on Broadway 207 There's a great day comin' mañana 214 The house I live in 217 If you are but a dream (Reverie album) 247 Dry bones (also see box 108) 249 I want a girl 253 Long ago and far away Norman Luboff Collection 1 MUSIC Box/Folder # Contents 269 December 270 The twelve days of Christmas (also see box 98) 271 Sweetheart of Sigma Chi (Halls of ivy) 272 Buffalo gals (also see box 108) 277 Valencia 280 Estrellita 282 Love walked in 300 Lullaby of Broadway 320 Love is sweeping the country 321 Oh yes 4 322 The sheik 324 Honeysuckle rose 327 Boatman's song 329 Cape Cod girls 331 Blow boys blow 348 Say sí sí 353 Paris in the spring 356 Flow gently sweet Afton 360 Heigh ho anybody home 365 La vie en rose 366 Auprès de ma blonde (also see box 108) 377 Wonderful Copenhagen 378 Till the end of time 386 Cáe cáe 390 Anniversary waltz 404 Walkin' my baby back home 409 Dear old girl 419 God bless America 428 Juanita (also see box 108) 430 My buddy 441 Lazy bones 450 Beautiful dreamer 453 Trolley song 466 The three caballeros 467 Joshua fit de battle (also see box 108) 5 468 You do something to me (also see box 108) 473 Nellie Bly 476 I'll see you in my dreams 489 That's for me 489 It's a grand night for singing (State fair) 489 All I owe Ioway (State Fair) 489 It might as well be spring (State fair) 494 Thou swell 503 Almost like being in love (also see box 108) 506 Every time (Best foot forward) 506 Buckle down Winsocki (Best Foot Forward) 506 Finale act III (Best foot