Bacon, Ernst. Papers, 1926-1990

Collection context

Summary

Creators:
Bacon, Ernst, 1898-
Abstract:
Primarily incoming correspondence, with only 4 retained carbons of Bacon's outgoing letters including one to Charles Ives. There is a high concentration of letters from the 1930s-1940s.
Extent:
.75 linear ft.
Language:
English.

Background

Scope and content:

Most of Bacon's correspondents were involved in the music community in some fashion, from composers, to musicians, to critics. Notable correspondents include Ernest Bloch, Eugene Goosens, Otto and Ethel Luening, and George Szell. However, Bacon fostered friendships with other artists as well, including author Henry Cowell and his wife, Sidney. The letters in this collection date from Cowell's incarceration in San Quentin. There are also letters from Tillie Olsen and Upton Sinclair. Since the collection is made up entirely of correspondence, it has not been divided into Series. Whenever possible, items have been processed by individual names, resulting in 93 folders arranged alphabetically by individual, and 2 remaining folders arranged by date.

Biographical / historical:

This collection represents a compilation of correspondence received by Ernst Bacon, and a few carbons of letters by him, between 1910 and 1989. During this time Bacon was an active participant in the musical community of the U.S., while maintaining friendships and collaborations with a variety of artists and musicians, both domestically and in Europe. Bacon and his wife were also active in the late 1920s and early 1930s in assisting artists and musicians to escape the growing Nazi movement. Bacon worked as a conductor and composer, as well as a professor of music. He directed the San Francisco Federal Music Project from 1935-1937. The majority of the correspondence, however, postdates this period and is generally of a more personal than professional nature. Some of the letters involve either soliciting recommendations or forwarding copies of recommendations for various honors among Bacon and his colleagues. Bacon's own accomplishment of achieving a Guggenheim Fellowship is recorded in a letter from the Guggenheim Foundation included in the collection.

Acquisition information:
Purchased, 1996.

Indexed terms

Subjects:
American literature--20th century.
Art, Modern--20th century--California.
Music--20th century--California.
Names:
Ameling, Amy.
Barnes, Matt.
Bauer, Harold, 1873-1951.
Bloch, Ernest, 1885-1977.
Boyle, Kay, 1902-
Bufano, Beniamino, 1898-1970.
Bynner, Witter, 1881-1968.
Corcoran, Thomas.
Cowell, Henry, 1897-1965.
Cowell, Sidney Robertson.
Curtain, Phyllis.
Dixon, Maynard, 1875-1946.
Donat, Peter, 1928-
Downes, Edward, 1911-
Eloesser, Leo.
Erskine, John, 1879-1951.
Faurรขe, Gabriel, 1845-1924.
Field, Sara Bard, 1882-1974.
Foldes, Andor, 1913-
Gautier, Eva.
Glenn, Carroll.
Goosens, Boonie.
Goosens, Eugene, Sir, 1893-1962.
Goldman, Maurice.
Gould, Morton, 1913-
Hanson, Howard, 1896-
Huntington, Hartford, 1911-
Horgan, Paul, 1903-
Houston, George F.
Hurd, Henrietta.
Hurd, Peter.
Ives, Charles, 1874-1954.
Jalowetz, Heinrich.
Kindler, Hans, 1892-1949.
Krasner, Louis, 1903-
Kurenko, Maria.
Lehmann, Lotte, 1888-1976.
Lee, Russel.
Lockwood, Normand, 1906-
Loesser, Arthur, 1894-1969.
Lomax, Alan, 1915-
Lorenz, Adolf, 1854-1946.
Lubin, Ernest.
Luening, Otto, 1900-
Luening, Ethel.
MacDowell, Edward, Mrs.
Martino, Donald, 1931-
Harrison, Guy Fraser, 1894-1986.
Harrison, Lou, 1917-
Moe, Henry Allen, 1894-1975.
Mumford, Lewis, 1895-
Newhall, Nancy Wynne.
Nies-Berger, Edouard.
Nordoff, Paul, 1909-
Nowak, Lionel, 1911-
Olsen, Tillie.
Piazzini, Gottardo.
Pinza, Ezio.
Pleasants, Henry.
Ross, Hugh, 1898-
Rowell, Margaret Avery, 1900-
Saben, Mowry.
Saminsky, Lazare, 1882-1959.
Schumann, Elisabeth.
Sebastian, John, 1944-
Sharp, Cecil, 1859-1924.
Shaw, Robert, 1916-
Sinclair, Upton, 1878-1968.
Slonimsky, Nicolas, 1894-
Sokoloff, Vladimir.
Sowerby, Leo, 1895-1968.
Stackpole, Ralph, 1885-1973.
Stock, Frederick, 1872-1942.
Szell, George, 1897-1970.
Szigeti, Joseph, 1892-1973.
Thompson, Randall, 1899-
Thomson, Virgil, 1896-
Tinayre, Yves, 1891-1972.
Toch, Ernst, 1887-1964.
Warfield, William.
Weigl, Karl, 1881-1949.
Whedon, Harriet.
Wood, Charles Erskine Scott, 1852-1944.

Access and use

Location of this collection:
Department of Special Collections, Green Library
557 Escondido Mall
Stanford, CA 94305-6004, US
Contact:
(650) 725-1022