Digging for Treasure: Zarzuelas and Other Gems in the Historical Sound Recordings Collection at Yale University

1. Digging for Treasure: Zarzuelas and Other Gems in the Historical Sound Recordings Collection at Yale University Diane Napert, Catalog Librarian, Yale University

2. 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

3. 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

4. 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

5. View of 78s housed in Mudd Library at Yale

6. 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)

7. The labels • Over 360 labels worked on • The largest included Brunswick, Capitol, Columbia, Decca, Edison, Gramophone and Victor

8. Yale Labels

9. 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

10. 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)

11. 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

12. Federico Chueca, 1846-1908 • Gran Vía. Vals del Caballero de Gracia. Italian. • Luigi Baldassare, baritone with orchestra

13. Federico Chueca, 1846-1908

14. 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

15. 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

16. Ruperto Chapí, 1851-1909

17. Las Hijas del Zebedeo, Manuscript, Barcelona,1889

18. Elvira de Hidalgo, 1892-1980

19. Pedro Miguel Marqués, 1843-1918 • 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

20. Pedro Miguel Marqués, 1843-1918

21. 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

22. Tomás Barrera, 1870-1938 • Pupil ofChapí • Emigrantes, 1905 • On a ship leaving Spain • Disque Apollon 318, 190? • Granadinas aria • In French and arranged • Composer alive when recorded

23. Emigrantes. Granadina • Henri Weber, baritone, with piano • Popular work as translated into French

24. Tomás Barrera, 1870-1938

25. 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

26. Paquita Correa • Chose one of the three we have • “Brindis” from Ángel Caídoby Apolinar Brull y Ayerra, 1845-1905

27. 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

28. Image of Yale web-site

29. 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

30. 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

31. Questions • Diane Napert, diane.napert@yale.edu