Ames (William) Collection, 1947-1966

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Summary

Title:
William Ames Collection
Dates:
1947-1966
Creators:
Ames, William T.
Abstract:
Tape recordings of works by composer William Ames.
Extent:
1 box: 22 open reel tapes
Language:
English
Preferred citation:

William Ames Collection, ARS-0072. Courtesy of the Stanford Archive of Recorded Sound, Stanford University Libraries, Stanford, Calif.

Background

Scope and content:

The William Ames Collection consists of twenty-two tape reels of performances of Ames compositions, some with Ames' own involvement. Documentation of these performances is limited; all information from the tape boxes has been transcribed. Some performers are identified, including sopranos Barbara Troxell and Antonia Lavanne, tenor Earl Rogers, violinist Max Pollikoff and 'cellist George Finckl. Nine of the reels are professional transfers from instantaneous discs by Stone Sound Studio in Woodstock, New York. It is likely, however, that all reels are copies and that the originals exist elsewhere.

Biographical / historical:

American composer William Thayer Ames (1901-1987) was born in Cambridge, Massachusetts and wrote his first compositions while attending Harvard in the early 1920s. After graduating with a degree in music, Ames studied with Nadia Boulanger in Paris, and returned to the United States to teach at the Eastman School of Music. In 1940 Harvard awarded Ames a masters degree, and he lived for a time in New York. It was during this period that a program of his works was performed at Carnegie Hall. In 1954 Ames was appointed to the faculty at Cornell's dance department (pieces for dance and theater were almost as important to him as his chamber music, orchestral works and operas). Following spells in New Hampshire and New York, Ames retired to the peaceful setting of Mendocino, California in 1965, where he spent the rest of his life writing music.

Processing information:

This finding aid was produced with generous financial support from the National Historical Publications and Records Commission.

Rules or conventions:
Prepared using Describing Archives: a Content Standard

About this collection guide

Collection Guide Author:
Finding aid prepared by Franz Kunst
Date Prepared:
© 2011
Date Encoded:
Produced using the Archivists' Toolkit 2011-01-07T10:24-0800

Access and use

Restrictions:

Open for research; material must be requested at least two business days in advance of intended use. Contact the Archive for assistance.

Terms of access:

Property rights reside with repository. Publication and reproduction rights reside with the creators or their heirs. To obtain permission to publish or reproduce, please contact the Head Librarian of the Archive of Recorded Sound.

Preferred citation:

William Ames Collection, ARS-0072. Courtesy of the Stanford Archive of Recorded Sound, Stanford University Libraries, Stanford, Calif.

Location of this collection:
Braun Music Center, 541 Lasuen Mall
Stanford, CA 94305-3076, US
Contact:
(650) 723-9312
soundarchive@stanford.edu
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