Finding Aid for the John Biggs papers, 1967-2012
PASC-M.0194
Finding aid prepared by UCLA Performing Arts Special Collections staff; reprocessed by Kelly Kress, 2016; machine-readable
finding aid created by Caroline Cubé.
UCLA Library Special Collections
Room A1713, Charles E. Young Research Library
Box 951575
Los Angeles, CA, 90095-1575
(310) 825-4988
spec-coll@library.ucla.edu
Finding aid last updated 30 August 2017.
Title: John Biggs papers
Identifier/Call Number: PASC-M.0194
Contributing Institution:
UCLA Library Special Collections
Language of Material:
English
Physical Description:
4.4 linear feet
(7 boxes)
Date (inclusive): 1967-2012
Abstract: Compositions by John Biggs, including printed and manuscript scores and commercial recordings.
Language of Materials: Materials are in English.
Physical Location: Stored off-site at SRLF. Advance notice is required for access to the collection. Please contact the UCLA Library Special
Collections Reference Desk for paging information.
Creator:
Biggs, John, 1932-
Restrictions on Access
COLLECTION STORED OFF-SITE AT SRLF: Open for research. Advance notice required for access. Contact the UCLA Library Special
Collections Reference Desk for paging information.
Restrictions on Use and Reproduction
Property rights to the physical object belong to the UCLA Library Special Collections. Literary rights, including copyright,
are retained by the creators and their heirs. It is the responsibility of the researcher to determine who holds the copyright
and pursue the copyright owner or his or her heir for permission to publish where The UC Regents do not hold the copyright.
Preferred Citation
[Identification of item], John Biggs papers (PASC-M 194). UCLA Library Special Collections, Charles E. Young Research Library,
UCLA.
UCLA Catalog Record ID
Provenance/Source of Acquisition
John Biggs; gift; 2001.
Biography
John Biggs was born in Los Angeles on October 18, 1932. He received his master's degree in composition from the University
of California, Los Angeles, and also studied at the University of Southern California and the Royal Flemish Conservatory in
Antwerp, Belgium. His teachers included Roy Harris, Lukas Foss, Ingolf Dahl, Flor Peeters, Halsey Stevens, and Leonard Stein.
Biggs taught at Los Angeles City College, UCLA, UC Berkeley, and served as composer-in-residence to six colleges in Kansas.
He founded the John Biggs Consort, which toured internationally under Columbia Artists Management, specializing in medieval,
renaissance, and 20th century music. Awards for his compositions include a Rockefeller Grant, Fulbright Grant, Atwater-Kent
Award, ASCAP Serious Music Awards, and Meet the Composer grants. Biggs' works have been performed by the Ventura County Master
Chorale, the Ventura County Symphony, and the Santa Barbara Chamber Orchestra, among other groups.
Scope and Content
Musical compositions by John Biggs, including orchestral music, chamber music, choral music, and the operas Hobson's Choice
and Ernest Worthing. Primarily full printed scores, many with parts, as well as several manuscript scores. Also included are
seven CDs of Biggs' music.
Organization and Arrangement
The collection is organized into the following series:
- Series 1. Compositions
- Series 2. Commercial Recordings
Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements
COLLECTION CONTAINS AUDIOVISUAL MATERIALS: Audiovisual materials in this collection will require assessment and possible digitization
for safe access. To review these audiovisual materials, you must notify the UCLA Library Special Collections Reference Desk
in advance of your visit.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Biggs, John, 1932- --Archives.
Composers--Archives.
Series 1: Compositions
1967-2012
Scope and Content
Compositions for orchestral music, chamber music, chorale music, and the two operas Hobson's Choice and Ernest Worthing. Handwritten
lyrics and DVDs are included for both operas. Primarily printed scores, some with parts, as well as several manuscript scores
and a few in pdf form. Full scores unless otherwise noted.
Organization and Arrangement
Arranged alphabetically.
Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements
COLLECTION CONTAINS AUDIOVISUAL MATERIALS: Audiovisual materials in this collection will require assessment and possible digitization
for safe access. To review these audiovisual materials, you must notify the UCLA Library Special Collections Reference Desk
in advance of your visit.
Box 4, Folder 1
American Folk Songs (incl. pdf on CD-R)
1967
Box 3, Folder 1
Bethlehem Down - manuscript score
undated
Box 4, Folder 3
Black Waltz of a Gossiping Diva
2001
Box 3, Folder 2
Black Waltz of a Gossiping Diva - manuscript score
2001
Box 4, Folder 4
Cantata Rustica - full score with CD
1991
Box 4, Folder 5
Cantata Rustica - choral score and parts
1991
Box 4, Folder 5
Canto Sobre La Muerte de Silvestre
1991
Box 1, Folder 1
Canto Sobre La Muerte de Silvestre - manuscript score
1991
Box 3, Folder 3
Cello Concerto - manuscript score
1988
Box 4, Folder 6
A Christmas Canticle
1971
Box 4, Folder 7
Concert Suite - full score and parts
1986
Box 2, Folder 1
Concerto for Cello and Chamber Orchestra
1996
Box 2, Folder 2
Concerto for Oboe and String Orchestra
1978
Box 1, Folder 2
Concerto for Orchestra - manuscript score
1988
Box 3, Folder 4
Concerto for Orchestra
1988
Box 4, Folder 8
Concerto for Viola, Woodwinds and Percussion - full score and parts
1978
Box 1, Folder 3
Concerto for Violin and Chamber Orchestra - manuscript score
1987
Box 2, Folder 3
Concerto for Violin and Classical Orchestra
1988
Box 1, Folder 6
Cowboy Miniatures - manuscript score
2007
Box 3, Folder 5
Dance Suite - manuscript score
1999
Box 4, Folder 10
Dialog for Violin and Piano
1978
Box 4, Folder 11
Double Reed Concerto (incl. pdf on CD-R)
2011
Box 4, Folder 13
Ernest Worthing: A Musical Play in Three Acts (incl. music and DVD)
1997
Box 4, Folder 14
Fantasy on a Theme of Rameau
1996
Box 4, Folder 15
A Garland of Southern Song
1990
Box 2, Folder 4
Hobson's Choice - full score
2000
Box 5, Folder 1
Hobson's Choice - vocal score (incl. CDs, DVD)
2000
Box 5, Folder 2
Hobson's Choice - parts
2000
Box 5, Folder 3
Hobson's Choice - parts and libretto
2000
Box 5, Folder 4
Hobson's Choice - lyrics (also incl. lyrics for Ernest Worthing)
2000
Box 3, Folder 6
Hobson's Choice - manuscript score
2000
Box 1, Folder 6
March of the Krumhorns - manuscript score
2006
Box 5, Folder 5
Mass for Our Time - full score and parts
2003
Box 5, Folder 6
Medieval Dance Suite
1993
Box 5, Folder 7
Meditations and Digressions
2005
Box 1, Folder 6
Meditations and Digressions - manuscript score
2005
Box 3, Folder 7
Pater Noster - manuscript score
1997
Box 5, Folder 9
Please Don't Rain on My Tuba
2003
Box 1, Folder 6
Please Don't Rain on My Tuba - manuscript score
2003
Box 5, Folder 10
A Renaissance Bouquet
1994
Box 5, Folder 12
Soliloquy from Planet Earth (inc. CD-R accompaniment)
1979
Box 6, Folder 1
A Song, a Prayer, a Voyage
2006
Box 1, Folder 6
A Song, a Prayer, a Voyage - manuscript score
2006
Box 6, Folder 2
Songs for Baritone and Cello
1997
Box 1, Folder 4
Songs of Laughter, Love of Tears - manuscript score
1985
Box 6, Folder 5
Symphony No. 1 - parts
1978
Box 6, Folder 6
Symphony No. 1 - parts
1978
Box 1, Folder 5
Symphony II - manuscript score
undated
Box 1, Folder 6
This Tiny King - manuscript score
undated
Box 6, Folder 9
Three Songs From Catullus
1978
Box 6, Folder 10
Two Chorales on Poems of Oscar Wilde
1978
Box 2, Folder 6
Variations on a Theme of Shostakovich
1978
Box 6, Folder 11
With Rue My Heart is Laden
1978
Box 6, Folder 12
Web of Life - full score
1994
Box 6, Folder 14
Web of Life - chorale score/youth score
1994
Series 2: Commerical recordings
1991-2004
Scope and Content
Commercial CDs of Biggs' works, recorded by a variety of orchestras and vocalists.
Organization and Arrangement
Arranged alphabetically.
Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements
COLLECTION CONTAINS AUDIOVISUAL MATERIALS: Audiovisual materials in this collection will require assessment and possible digitization
for safe access. To review these audiovisual materials, you must notify the UCLA Library Special Collections Reference Desk
in advance of your visit.
Box 6, Folder 15
Chamber Music of John Biggs - Barkezian Ensemble
1999
Box 6, Folder 16
John Biggs - A Choral Bouquet
2001
Box 7, Folder 1
John Biggs - A Vocal Bouquet
2001
Box 7, Folder 2
Music of John Biggs - Czech National Symphony
2004
Box 7, Folder 3
The Music of John Biggs - Moravska Filharmonie Olomouc
1997
Box 7, Folder 4
Paul Freeman Introduces John Biggs
2000
Box 7, Folder 5
Music From Six Continents: Biggs, Dembski, Jazwinski, Wolfe - Polish Radio and TV Symphony Orchestra of Krakow
1991