Loading...
Creator
Cowell, Henry, 1897-1965
Call number
JPB 00-03 [Text]
Physical description
82.3 linear feet (203 boxes)
Preferred Citation

Henry Cowell Papers, JPB 00-03. Music Division, The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts.

Repository
Music Division
Location
*ZB-4336 [Microfilm]
Access to materials
Request an in-person research appointment.
Portions of this collection have been digitized and are available online.

The Henry Cowell Papers document the composer’s life in great detail. They include scores, writings, correspondence, business and financial papers, promotional material, clippings and articles, concert programs, teaching material, photographs, awards and scrapbooks.

Biographical/historical information

Henry Cowell (March 11, 1897 - Dec. 10, 1965) was an American composer, writer, pianist, educator, lecturer and publisher. He was born to a poor family in Menlo Park, California, near San Francisco; Menlo Park remained his home until 1936. Cowell was mainly schooled at home by his mother and began his music studies at age five on the violin; he switched to piano within a few years and began composing around the time he was 10. Lewis Terman, a psychologist at Stanford University, began studying Cowell as an example of a child genius and used him as a case study subject for the development of the Stanford-Binet IQ test. Another Stanford professor, Samuel Seward, arranged a fund to educate Cowell and to assist his family. Cowell began studying with Charles Seeger, among others, at the University of California at Berkeley in 1914. Another mentor Cowell met in his teens was the Irish Theosophist poet John Varian, whose texts Cowell set to music. Later in his life Cowell studied with musicians from non-western cultures to learn about their music.

Following a stint in the army in 1918-1919, Cowell concentrated on performing his own music. He began touring the United States and visited Europe for the first time in 1923, attracting publicity for his use of tone clusters and direct manipulation of piano strings; he drew more substantial interest from European composers such as Bela Bartók and Arnold Schoenberg.

In addition to his own musical activities, Cowell was a tireless advocate, publisher and presenter for other contemporary composers, most notably Charles Ives, but also for his friends John Becker, Carl Ruggles and Wallingford Riegger, among others. He formed the New Music Society of California, and was a major player in the Pan American Association of Composers, which helped publicize such composers as Carlos Chavez. Cowell also established the brand name New Music, a quarterly journal which also branched out into a record label and score publishing concern.

Cowell taught at many institutions during his life, most notably the New School for Social Research, but also at Columbia University, Eastman School of Music, Stanford University and the University of California. He wrote books, including New Musical Resources, an exploration of modern compositional methods, and Charles Ives And His Music, the first book about Ives (written with Sidney Robertson Cowell). Cowell also toured the world meeting other musicians and composers to facilitate intercultural exchange, at times under the sponsorship of the U.S. State Department and the Rockefeller Foundation

Cowell's music defined many of the major developments of twentieth-century music, and he was among the earliest composers to endorse the view that the musical materials of the whole world, not just Western Europe, should be available to composers and inform their musical and cultural outlook. In many ways his music and philosophy both exemplified and anticipated the musical aesthetics of the late-twentieth and early-twenty-first centuries.

Source: Nicholls, David. "Cowell, Henry (Dixon)", Grove Music Online ed. L. Macy (Accessed 12 September 2006), http://www.grovemusic.com

Scope and arrangement

The Henry Cowell Papers consist of over 82 linear feet of material covering every aspect of Cowell's life and career in extensive detail. They include correspondence, including letters to and from Cowell while he was incarcerated at San Quentin prison; scores and sketches, including notebooks from his early music studies with Charles Seeger; concert programs from throughout Cowell's career; photographs and scrapbooks depicting every stage of Cowell's life; iconography, including posters advertising Cowell's performances; publicity material; autobiographical and biographical manuscripts written by Sidney Cowell; an extensive set of news clippings and articles; financial records; lists of Cowell's compositions, recordings and performances; teaching material associated with the various schools at which Cowell taught and information about Cowell's students; information about Cowell's world tours for the U.S. State Department; books owned by Cowell; awards and honors Cowell received; and material documenting the history of the collection itself and the whereabouts of other portions of Cowell's archives. Major portions of the collection consist of notes, manuscripts, correspondence and other papers of Cowell's widow, Sidney Robertson Cowell; her notes are incorporated into all parts of the collection.

The Henry Cowell papers are arranged in seventeen series:

  • Series I: Correspondence
    1884-1994, undated

    In addition to correspondence to and from Henry and Sidney Cowell (and a few others), this series also contains writings and other supplementary material by or associated with certain correspondents. Correspondence to and from Cowell is also found in other series in the collection.

    • Sub-series 1: Henry Cowell, 1884-1979
    • Sub-series 2: Sidney Cowell, 1938-1994 and undated
    • Sub-series 3: Others, 1901-1979
  • Series II: Compositions
    1911-1994, undated

    This series consists of at least partially complete scores to many of Cowell's compositions. All are full scores unless otherwise noted. Most of the scores are photocopies of originals housed at other repositories, the notable exception being the notebooks in sub-series 1. All compositions described by William Lichtenwanger in his book The Music of Henry Cowell: A Descriptive Catalog are arranged and identified by the numbers Lichtenwanger assigned them. This book is held by the Music Division (call number JND 87-22).

    • Sub-series 1: Juvenile Compositions, undated
    • Sub-series 2: Unpublished Compositions, 1911-1965 and undated
    • Sub-series 3: Published Compositions, 1922-1989
    • Sub-series 4: Published Collections, ca. 1963-1988
    • Sub-series 5: Oversized Scores, 1915-1979
    • Sub-series 6: Supplementary Composition Material, undated
    • Sub-series 7: Composition Catalogs, 1930-1994 and undated
    • Sub-series 8: Music Publication Correspondence, 1922-1994 and undated
    • Sub-series 9: Composition File Cards, undated
  • Series III: Performance
    1913-1994, undated

    This series documents the performance, presentation and recording of Cowell's music. It contains information on performances of particular compositions, concert programs, promotional material, performance lists and discographies.

    • Sub-series 1: Performance File, 1921-1994 and undated
    • Sub-series 2: Programs, 1913-1994 and undated
    • Sub-series 3: Performance Presentation, 1920-1966 and undated
    • Sub-series 4: Performance Lists, 1926-1992 and undated
  • Series IV: Biographical
    1892-1989, undated

    Series IV contains biographical documentation conducted by Cowell's mother, Clarissa, his step-mother, Olive, and his wife Sidney; Sidney Cowell's work was the most extensive. It also contains a small set of Cowell autobiographical transcripts, Cowell's datebooks and address books, official records and documents about Cowell and his extended family, and two folders of medical records, which are restricted by New York State Law.

    • Sub-series 1: Clarissa D. Cowell Biographical Work, 1914-1916 and undated
    • Sub-series 2: Olive T. Cowell Biographical Work, 1897-1935 and undated
    • Sub-series 3: Sidney R. Cowell Biographical Work, 1944-1989 and undated
    • Sub-series 4: Henry Cowell Interview Transcripts and Autobiographical Material, 1962 and undated
    • Sub-series 5: Datebooks and Address Books, 1930-1965 and undated
    • Sub-series 6: Official Records and Correspondence, 1892-1982 and undated
  • Series V: Financial and Business Records
    1894-1994

    This series contains both personal and professional financial information for Henry and Sidney Cowell, as well as contracts and financial statements from publishing and recording companies. It also includes a small set of investment and insurance records.

    • Sub-series 1: Income Tax, 1915-1980
    • Sub-series 2: Royalty Statements, 1920-1980
    • Sub-series 3: Contracts, 1922-1994
    • Sub-series 4: Bank Records, 1924-1965 and undated
    • Sub-series 5: Other Financial Records, 1894-1984 and undated
  • Series VI: Prison
    1936-1988, undated

    This series documents the period between Henry Cowell’s arrest and incarceration at San Quentin Prison in 1936 to his parole in 1940. It contains private and official police, court and legal correspondence; court and police records; statements written by Cowell and others in his defense and to secure his release, parole and pardon; documentation of his activities in prison; and Sidney Cowell’s writings on the subject.

    • Sub-series 1: Henry Cowell Correspondence, 1936-1947 and undated
    • Sub-series 2: Official Records, 1936-1975
    • Sub-series 3: Defense Correspondence, 1936-1962 and undated
    • Sub-series 4: Parole Board Correspondence, 1936-1962 and undated
    • Sub-series 5: Prison Activities 1940-1941
    • Sub-series 6: Sidney Cowell Writings on Henry Cowell's Prison Years, 1969-1988
  • Series VII: Organizations
    1923-1987, undated

    This series contains correspondence, meeting minutes, publicity and other materials from organizations pertaining to Henry Cowell’s activities as an employee or board member of those organizations. The significant exception is the section on the Rockefeller Foundation, which co-sponsored a lengthy world tour in 1956-1957 for Cowell to facilitate intercultural musical exchange. Each stop on the tour generated correspondence and associated literature and memorabilia, and at the tour’s conclusion Henry and Sidney Cowell produced final reports for the Foundation describing their activities in each country and city. There is also significant correspondence with the U.S. State Department, which was the other co-sponsor for the world tour.

  • Series VIII: Writings By Henry Cowell
    ca. 1906-1975, undated

    This series contains both Cowell’s published and unpublished writings and documentation about them. It includes work-in-progress, final drafts, proofs, promotional material and correspondence with publishers.

    • Sub-series 1: Published Books, 1929-1975 and undated
    • Sub-series 2: Published Articles, 1921-1964 and undated
    • Sub-series 3: Unpublished Writings, ca. 1906-1961 and undated
    • Sub-series 4: Oversized Material, ca. 1936-1954 and undated
  • Series IX: Writings About Henry Cowell
    1900-1994, undated

    This series includes texts of posthumous radio programs about Cowell, text and correspondence regarding academic writing about Cowell, and general news clippings spanning Cowell’s life until Sidney Cowell’s death.

    • Sub-series 1: Radio Programs, 1977-1981 and undated
    • Sub-series 2: Academic Writing and Recording Liner Notes, 1967-1993 and undated
    • Sub-series 3: General News Clippings and Articles, 1900-1994 and undated
  • Series X: World and Folk Music
    1933-1967, undated

    This series contains material documenting Cowell’s interest in and research of folk music from around the world. It has two divisions: Research materials contains Cowell’s notes and other research on folk music and cultures, including arrangements of vocal and instrumental music. Transcriptions and discographies contain transcriptions of folk songs and information on recordings of indigenous music.

  • Series XI: Teaching and Public Addresses
    1920-1977, undated

    This series contains documentation of Cowell’s long career as an educator and lecturer in various schools and universities across the country. It includes correspondence with schools and students, teaching materials and work by students, lecture texts and symposia transcriptions, promotional material, and information about radio broadcasts and public discussions in which Cowell participated.

    • Sub-series 1: Teaching Materials and Correspondence, 1927-1977 and undated
    • Sub-series 2: Information On Students Of Cowell, 1951-1962 and undated
    • Sub-series 3: Lecture/Recitals and Symposia, 1927-1965 and
    • Sub-series 4: Juries, Committees and Panels, 1937-1965 and undated
    • Sub-series 5: Radio Broadcasts, 1933-1960 and undated
    • Sub-series 6: Programs and Promotional Material, 1920-1962 and undated
  • Series XII: Iconography
    1851-1968, undated

    This series contains imagery documenting Henry and Sidney Cowell and the Cowell family and extended family in both America and Britain. Most of the series documents Henry Cowell’s life in great detail. The posters promote performances of Cowell’s music, mostly in Europe.

    • Sub-series 1: Photographs, 1851-1968 and undated
    • Sub-series 2: Negatives, 1901-1968 and undated
    • Sub-series 3: Scrapbooks, 1870-1960s
    • Sub-series 4: Posters, 1927-1962 and undated
    • Sub-series 5: Art, 1923-1966 and undated
  • Series XIII: Awards and Honors
    1934-1964

    This series contains awards and honors in the form of documents, plaques and objects. It also contains further documentation and correspondence about the awards, and invitations the Cowells received to ceremonies and other honorary events, some not honoring Cowell; these include invitations to the White House. Major awards and events include Cowell’s induction into the American Academy of Arts and Letters and the Juilliard School’s concert celebrating the 50th anniversary of Cowell’s performance debut.

  • Series XIV: Cowell Collection
    1940-1991, undated

    This series contains information about the history of the Cowell Collection itself, including information on other repository holdings and correspondence between Sidney Cowell and The New York Public Library.

    • Sub-series 1: Repositories, 1940-1994 and undated
    • Sub-series 2: Repository Listings, undated
    • Sub-series 3: Biographers, 1964-1991
  • Series XV: Ephemera
    1912, undated

    Contains short writings, activity lists and drawings by Cowell from his youth, undated name and address notes and business cards, and illegible notes.

  • Series XVI: Sidney Cowell Material
    1937-1992

    This series contains writings and research carried out by Sidney Cowell that were mostly unrelated to Henry Cowell. It includes her autobiographical unpublished manuscript Chapbook Of Cheer and a manuscript about animals, Many Nations. Small portions of the former may deal with Henry Cowell. The series also contains some research on folk music.

  • Series XVII: Books, Pamphlets and Articles
    1933-1986, undated

    This series contains published items that contain notes, author autographs or other inscriptions. Most are inscribed to Cowell by the authors.

Administrative information

Source of acquisition

The Henry Cowell Papers were willed to the Music Division in 1994 by Sidney Robertson Cowell.

Processing information

Processed by Processed by Peter Hirsch and Matthew Snyder; Machine-readable finding aid created by Matthew Snyder.

Separated material

  • Scores (All published. Inscribed, if at all, with Sidney Cowell's name.)
    • Anadolu Halk Sarkilari. (Book of Turkish songs.)
    • Bach, JS: Chorale “Jesus bleibet meine Freude” from church Cantata No. 147. Transcribed for piano by Harold Bauer. Published by G. Schirmer.
    • Bach, JS
      • Englische Wuiten. C.F. Peters.
      • Forty-Eight Preludes and Fugues. For piano. Books I & II. The Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music.
      • Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring. Arr. by Myra Hess. Oxford University Press.
      • Klavierübung I. Teil Partiten. C.F. Peters
    • Brahms, Johannes
      • Klavier=Werke Band II. C.F. Peters.
      • Variationen Und Fuge, Op. 24. C.F. Peters.
    • English Tunes for Young Pianists. Adam Carse, ed. Augener Ltd.
    • Irish and Welsh Tunes for Young Pianists. Adam Carse, ed. Augener Ltd.
    • Mexican Songs
      • Canionero Mexicano. Frances, Toor, Ed. Arr. for guitar and piano.
      • Cantos Escolares.
      • Cantos Para El 1er Ciclo
      • Cantos Para El 2o Ciclo.
      • Cantos Para El 3er Ciclo
      • Cantos Para Escuelas Primarias Y Secundarias
    • Caturla, Alejandro Garcia: Son. For piano.
    • Chopin, Frederic
      • Präludien und Rondos. C.F. Peters.
      • Chopin’s Complete Works For The Piano Vol. 30. Book Four: Nocturnes. C.F. Peters
    • Crisostomo, Giovanni: La S. Litergui Greca. J. Fischer.
    • Crumb, George
      • Five Pieces For Piano. C.F. Peters.
      • Makrokosmos, Vol. I & II. C.F. Peters
    • Gagaku: Japanese Classical Court Music. Transcribed by Sukehirc Shiba.
    • International Collection of Revolutionary Songs. Moscow: Moscow State Music Publishing Office, 1933.
    • Lorca, Federico Garcia: Silvestre Revueltas Homenaje. For chamber orchestra. Score only.
    • Proletarian Songs of USSR. Moscow: Moscow State Music Publishing Office, 1932.
    • Red Songbook. Workers Library Publishers, 1932. Photocopy. Note from Pete Seeger says the editor was Charles Seeger.
    • Sharp, Cecil J. Country Dance Tunes. For piano. Set II. Novello.
    • Songs of Fighting China. Chinese News Service.
    • Songs For America. Workers Library Publishers. Photocopy. Note from SRC states the editor was Earl Robinson.
    • Standard Settings of Pipe Music of the Seaforth Headlands. Paterson’s Publications.
    • Workers Songbook. Workers Library Publishers, 1934 & 1935. Photocopy. Note from Pete Seeger says the editor was Charles Seeger.
    • [Unknown title] (Book of Russian songs.)
    • Orphan published work pages: One folder of various published volumes, very fragile and disintegrating.
  • Books, Journals and Articles
    • 30th Conference Souvenir, 1956. Madreas: The Music Academy, 1956. Conference program book.
    • American Composers Alliance Bulletin. Spring 1953
    • American Music Festival in Bad Homburg July 6 to 8, 1931. Festival program.
    • Berti, Luciano. Fra Angelico. New York: Grosset & Dunlap, 1968.
    • Boletin Latino-Americano De Musica. Lima: Imprenta Editorial Lumen, 1936.
    • Boots, Mrs. J.L. Korean Musical Instruments and An Introduction To Korean Music. Published as Volume XXX of the Transactions of the Korean Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society 1940. Office of War Information, 1945. (Henry Cowell, chief music editor.)
    • Bucken, Dr. Ernst. Handbuch Der Musik-Wissenschaft.
    • Bulos, Afif A. Arabic Music. Beirut: Catholic Press, 1955.
    • Campos, Ruben M. Folklore Y La Musica Mexicana. Mexico: Secreteria De Educacion Publica, 1928.
    • Cowell, Henry and Sidney Cowell. Charles Ives And His Music. New York: Oxford University Press, 1955.
    • Cowell, Henry and Sidney Cowell. Ives. (Polish edition of Charles Ives And His Music.
    • Cowell, Henry. New Musical Resources. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1930, 1969 and 1996 editions.
    • Deutsche Island-Forschung 1930. Sonderbruck, Iceland.
    • die Riehe: A periodical devoted to developments in contemporary music. Edited by Herbert Eimert and Karlheinz Stockhausen. Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania: Theodore Presser, 1959.
    • Duriyanga, Phra Chen. Thai Music. Bagkok: The National Culture Institute, 1953.
    • Elias, William Y. Grapes: Practical Notation For Clusters And Special Effects For Piano And Other Keyboards. New York: Pendragon, 1984.
    • Fewkes, J. Walter. Music Of The Hopi Indian. Insert for Hopi and his Music, Gennett Records.
    • Fifty-Sixth Conference Souvenir 1982. Madreas: The Music Academy, 1982. Conference program book.
    • A Golden Treasury of Psalms and Prayers. Mount Vernon, New York: Peter Pauper, unknown date.
    • Hagemeyer, Dora
      • Leaf And Shadow. Carmel-By-The-Sea, California: Carmel Pine Cone Press, 1941.
      • Leaf and Stone. Self-published, 1932.
      • Overtones. London: Mitre, 1944.
      • The Shining Wind. Carmel-By-The-Sea, California: Carmel Pine Cone Press, 1944
      • Sonnets And Other Songs. Wellington: Harry H. Tombs, undated.
      • Spring In October. Self-published, 1939.
      • Swords of the Grass. Carmel-By-The-Sea, California: Seven Arts Press, 1927.
    • Hammond Times. Jan. 1941.
    • Het Muziekcollege Caecilla Maandblad Voor Muziek. German magazine, Oct. 1932.
    • The History Of A Self-Made Musical Organization In Los Angeles. (Pamphlet about Evenings On The Roof concert series, September 1946.)
    • The Journal of the Music Academy Madras. Vol. XXXIII, 1962, Vol. XXVIII, 1957, and Vol XXXII, 1961.
    • Kolinski, Mieczyslaw. Die Musik der Primitivstämme auf Malaka und ihre Beziehungen zur samoanischen Musik. Revue Internationale D’Ethnologie Et De Linguistique, 1930.
    • Landeck, Beatrice, Elizabeth Crook and Harold C. Youngberg. Making Music Your Own. Morristown, NJ: Silver Burdett, 1965.
    • Maandblad Voor Hedendaagsche Muziek. (Brochure for German organ company, December 1932.)
    • Meng, Chih. Remarks On Chinese Music and Musical Instruments. New York: China Institute in America, 1932.
    • Mull, Helen K. The Acquisition of Absolute Pitch. Reprint from The American Journal of Psychology, Oct. 1925.
    • Musicalia: Revista Bimestral De Arte Y Critica. Jan-Apr. 1942.
    • Music Academy Thirtysixth Conference 1962 Souvenir. (Program book.)
    • National Music Council Bulletin, August 1943.
    • Ortiz, Fernando. La “Clave” Xilofonica De La Musica Cubana. Habana, 1935.
    • The Paumanok Review. Spring 1962.
    • Perspectives USA. Winter 1956.
    • Sachs, Curt. Vergleichende Musicwissenschaft. Leipzig: Quelle & Meyer, 1930.
    • Salas, Eugenio Pereira. Notas Para La Historia Del Intercambio Musical Entre Las Americas Antes De Ano 1940. Published in May 1943 Music Series No. 7 by the Pan American Union.
    • Sambamoorthy, P.
      • The Melakarta Janya-Raga Scheme With An Explanatory Chart And Two Appendices. Madras: The Indian Music Publishing House, undated.
      • The Musical-Time Chart Explaining The Scheme Of The Thirty-Five Talas. Madras: The Indian Music Publishing House, undated.
    • South Florida’s Historic Ives Festival 1974-1976. Festival program.
    • Tempo: The Boosey & Hawkes Newsletter. 1941 Jan. and 1944 Dec.
    • Ten Years of the American Institute of Musicology 1945-1955. Pamphlet.
    • Thompson, Edan. Yoga Cookbook. New York: Philosophical Library, 1959.
    • Volume of Proceedings of the Music Teachers National Association. Edited by Theodore M. Finney. Pittsburgh: The Association, 1946.
    • Vrionides, Christos. The Byzantine Chant of The Greek Orthodox Church. Babylon, New York: Byzantium, 1959.
  • Sound Recordings and Related Material
    • Fifteen 78rpm discs, all commercially released, none of Henry Cowell.
    • Record 4 (33rpm) of box set Making Music Your Own.
    • One 33rpm disc. Enchanted Evening In Micronesia: Songs and Dances from Marshalls, Ponape, Turk, Yap and Palau.
    • Liner note booklet in German for Music des Orients.
    • Label for 78rpm disc for Suite For Woodwinds by Henry Cowell, New Music Quarterly Recordings
  • Oversized Clippings and Promotional Material
    • Oakland Tribune, 1924
    • New York World, 1924
    • San Quentin Prison newspaper, 1936
    • What The Critics Say Of Henry Cowellpromotional sheet with press quotes, ca. 1925
  • Posters
    • Leipzig, 1923 (Fragile.)
    • Munich, 1923
    • Paris, 1925 (Advertising Nicolas Slonimsky performance. Two versions, one smaller, one larger.)
    • Hungary, 1926
    • Venice, 1926
    • Belgrade, 1932 (Two copies, different colors, one in much better condition.)
    • Sweden, 1932
    • London, 1960 (Advertising Leopold Avakian performance.)
    • Germany, undated
    • Czechoslovkia, undated (Fragile.)
  • Suitcase (Used by Henry Cowell for many years. Contains explanatory note from Sidney Cowell.)

Related Material

The Music Division holds other collections with notable Henry Cowell content, including the John J. Becker Papers (JPB 04-27), the Frank Wigglesworth Papers (JPB 97-44), the Wallingford Riegger Papers (JPB 91-18) and the Hugo Weisgall Papers (JPB 00-43). The Rodgers and Hammerstein Archives of Recorded Sound holds the Henry Cowell Collection of Non-Commercial Recordings (*L(Special) 88-33).

Using the collection

Location

Music Division
New York Public Library for the Performing Arts, Dorothy and Lewis B. Cullman Center
40 Lincoln Center Plaza, New York, NY 10023-7498
Third Floor

Conditions Governing Use

For permission to publish, contact the Chief, Music Division.

Alternative form available

Grainger letters. Also available on microfilm as part of the Henry Cowell papers; service copy classmark: *ZB-4336