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

Yale UniversityYale University

Diane Napert, Catalog Librarian, Yale University

Historical Sound Recordings Historical Sound Recordings at Yaleat YaleComprised 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

Mellon Grant – No. of Mellon Grant – No. of RecordingsRecordingsMellon 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

The numbersThe numbersThe 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

View of 78s housed in View of 78s housed in Mudd Library at YaleMudd Library at Yale

The bibliographic The bibliographic recordsrecordsAccess 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)

The labelsThe labelsOver 360 labels worked onThe largest included Brunswick,

Capitol, Columbia, Decca, Edison, Gramophone and Victor

Yale LabelsYale Labels

ZarzuelaZarzuela“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

Zarzuelas – other Zarzuelas – other elementselementsBroad range, from one-act farces to

three-act tragediesSpoken dialogue is employed in mostAlternates between spoken and sung

scenesSpanish lyric-dramatic genre Long history, including baroque

zarzuela, romantic zarzuela (early 1850s)

Federico Chueca, 1846-Federico Chueca, 1846-19081908La Gran Vía One act revista or revueThe Zarzuela Companion Webber

says written with Joaquín ValverdePremiered Madrid, Teatro Felipe, 2nd

July, 1886 Columbia C 536, approx. 1906Composer was still aliveIn Italian, very popular work,

translated

Federico Chueca, 1846-Federico Chueca, 1846-19081908Gran Vía. Vals del Caballero de

Gracia. Italian.

Luigi Baldassare, baritone with orchestra

Federico Chueca, 1846-Federico Chueca, 1846-19081908

Ruperto Chapí, 1851-Ruperto Chapí, 1851-19091909Las Hijas del Zebedeo – 2 act farce1889Recording 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

Ruperto Chapí, 1851-Ruperto Chapí, 1851-19091909Elvira de Hidalgo, 1892-1980,

sopranoTeacher of Maria CallasThis work recorded in LondonThis was the earliest instance of

this version I could find on OCLC – there were a couple of later recordings

Ruperto Chapí, 1851-Ruperto Chapí, 1851-19091909

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

Elvira de Hidalgo, Elvira de Hidalgo, 1892-19801892-1980

Pedro Miguel Marqués, Pedro Miguel Marqués, 1843-19181843-1918El Anillo de Hierro, 18783 act melodrama set in NorwayColumbia, C 373, 1906 Ven RodolfoCarmen Fernández de Lara,

soprano with orchestraRecording made during

composer’s lifetime

Pedro Miguel Marqués, Pedro Miguel Marqués, 1843-19181843-1918

Joaquín Romualdo Joaquín Romualdo Gaztambide y Garbayo, Gaztambide y Garbayo, 1822-18701822-1870Una vieja, 1860

Comic opera set in MexicoColumbia, C 373, 1906CavatinaJuan Valls, tenor with piano

Tomás Barrera, 1870-Tomás Barrera, 1870-19381938Pupil of ChapíEmigrantes, 1905On a ship leaving SpainDisque Apollon 318, 190?Granadinas ariaIn French and arrangedComposer alive when recorded

Emigrantes. GranadinaEmigrantes. GranadinaHenri Weber, baritone, with pianoPopular work as translated into

French

Tomás Barrera, 1870-Tomás Barrera, 1870-19381938

Paquita Correa, Paquita Correa, sopranosoprano3 recordings of her from ca. 1906She was married to composer Rafael

Calleja GómezContacted by her great-

granddaughter for copies of recordings

She was unable to find them in SpainShe found them because they were

cataloged as part of the grant

Paquita CorreaPaquita CorreaChose one of the three we have“Brindis” from Angel Caido by

Apolinar Brull y Ayerra, 1845-1905

New websiteNew websitehttp://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

Image of Yale web-siteImage of Yale web-site

Grant HSRGrant HSRCouncil 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 2009More archival work

ThanksThanksSpecial thanks to Richard

Warren, Curator, Historical Sound Recordings collection, Yale

Thanks also to Nicole Rodriguez, Library Services assistant, Historical Sound Recordings collection, Yale

QuestionsQuestionsDiane Napert,

diane.napert@yale.edu