Collection Summary
Edward Beach Collection of Jazz Photographs and Other Iconography
1940-1975
1950-1975
1940-1975
1950-1975
ML31.B45
Beach, Ed
approximately 150 items
9 boxes
5 linear feet
English
Collection material in English
Music Division, Library of Congress
Washington, D.C.
The Edward Beach Collection of Jazz Photographs and Other Iconography consist exclusively of photographs and other iconography, primarily of jazz musicians, but a few notable figures from other musical and artistic disciplines are also represented. Images of particular interest include figures such as Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington, John Birks "Dizzy" Gillespie, Billie Holiday, Charles Mingus, Bessie Smith, Aaron Copland, Serge Prokofiev, Ralph Vaughan Williams, and Vaslav Nijinsky.
Selected Search Terms
The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the LC Catalog. They are grouped by name of person or organization, by subject or location, and by occupation and listed alphabetically.
People
Armstrong, Louis, 1901-1971--Portraits.
Basie, Count, 1904-1984--Portraits.
Beach, Ed.
Beiderbecke, Bix, 1903-1931--Portraits.
Britten, Benjamin, 1913-1976--Portraits.
Carter, Benny--Portraits.
Coltrane, John, 1926-1967--Portraits.
Davis, Miles--Portraits.
Delius, Frederick, 1862-1934--Portraits.
Eldridge, Roy, 1911-1989--Portraits.
Ellington, Duke, 1899-1974--Portraits.
Evans, Bill, 1929-1980--Portraits.
Gillespie, Dizzy, 1917-1993--Portraits.
Goodman, Benny, 1909-1986--Portraits.
Hawkins, Coleman--Portraits.
Hindemith, Paul, 1895-1963--Portraits.
Hodges, Johnny--Portraits.
Holiday, Billie, 1915-1959--Portraits.
Janáček, Leoš, 1854-1928--Portraits.
Jones, Hank, 1918-2010--Portraits.
Martinů, Bohuslav, 1890-1959--Portraits.
Milhaud, Darius, 1892-1974--Portraits.
Mingus, Charles, 1922-1979--Portraits.
Monk, Thelonious--Portraits.
Nijinsky, Vaslav, 1890-1950--Portraits.
Orff, Carl, 1895-1982--Portraits.
Prokofiev, Sergey, 1891-1953--Portraits.
Ravel, Maurice, 1875-1937--Portraits.
Shostakovich, Dmitriĭ Dmitrievich, 1906-1975--Portraits.
Smith, Bessie, 1894-1937--Portraits.
Szymanowski, Karol, 1882-1937--Portraits.
Teagarden, Jack, 1905-1964--Portraits.
Vaughan Williams, Ralph, 1872-1958--Portraits.
Young, Lester, 1909-1959--Portraits.
Organizations
Art Tatum Trio--Portraits.
Subjects
Composers--Portraits.
Jazz musicians--Portraits.
Musicians--Portraits.
Titles
Edward Beach collection
Edward Beach jazz photographs and other iconography
Form/Genre
Portraits.
Provenance
Gift; Edward Beach; 1992
Accruals
No further accruals are expected.
Processing History
Kate Rivers processed the Edward Beach Collection of Jazz Photographs and Other Iconography in 1995-1999 with assistance from Michael A. Ferrando and other Music Division staff. Ferrando coded the finding aid in 2007.
Related Material
Edward Beach hosted the radio show "Just Jazz" that aired on station WRVR in New York from 1961 to 1976. Tape recordings of these broadcasts were purchased by the Library of Congress and are held in the Motion Picture, Broadcasting and Recorded Sound Division (MAVIS collection no. 12749).
Copyright Status
The status of copyright on the materials of the Edward Beach Collection of Jazz Photographs and Other Iconography is governed by the Copyright Law of the United States (Title 17, U.S.C.).
Access and Restrictions
The Edward Beach Collection of Jazz Photographs and Other Iconography is open to research. Researchers are advised to contact the Performing Arts Reading Room prior to visiting. Many collections are stored off-site and advance notice is needed to retrieve these items for research use. Certain restrictions to use or copying of materials may apply.
Preferred Citation
Researchers wishing to cite this collection should include the following information: container number, Edward Beach Collection of Jazz Photographs and Other Iconography, Music Division, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.
Biographical Sketch
Edward Beach was the host of a well-known jazz radio program in New York City from 1961 to 1976. "Just Jazz," broadcast over station WRVR, was hailed by musicians and those with an avid interest in jazz as one of the finest radio shows in the area devoted to that topic.
Beach was born in Winnipeg, Canada, in 1923 and moved to Portland, Oregon, as a child. He became interested in jazz as a teenager, performed as a pianist with the Gus Arnheim Big Band, and then formed a jazz trio which appeared in Portland, St. Louis, and Chicago. After attending college in Portland, Beach earned course credits toward a graduate degree in theater at Cornell University. He then spent five years in New York City working as an actor in off-Broadway productions, touring companies, television, and summer stock theater.
In 1957, Beach began working at radio station WNYC in New York. He took a position in 1961 with WRVR, a not-for-profit station operated by New York City's Riverside Church. It was there that he developed the much-praised format of the "Just Jazz" broadcast, which featured a single artist on each show. Beach became well-known for his extensive knowledge of jazz music and musicians. The broadcast ceased when the radio station was sold in 1976. Beach retired to Oregon in 1977 and passed away there in 2009.
Scope and Content Note
The Edward Beach Collection of Jazz Photographs and Other Iconography spans from 1940 to 1975 with the bulk of materials dating from 1950 to 1975. The collection consists of photographs and other iconography, primarily of jazz musicians, but notable figures from other musical and artistic disciplines are also represented. Many of the photographs appear to have been produced for publicity purposes, and some are autographed or bear other inscriptions. Of particular interest are images of Louis Armstrong, William "Count" Basie, Bennett Lester "Benny" Carter; John Coltrane, Miles Davis, Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington, Benny Goodman, Coleman Hawkins, Billie Holiday, Charles Mingus, and Bessie Smith. Apart from musicians in the jazz tradition, there are images of composers such as Benjamin Britten, Aaron Copland, Frederick Delius, Leoš Janàček, Bohuslav Martinů, Darius Milhaud, Carl Orff, Maurice Ravel, Dmitri Shostakovich, and Ralph Vaughan Williams, among others. Also included is a large poster of dancer Vaslav Nijinsky.
Organization of the Edward Beach Collection of Jazz Photographs and Other Iconography
The collection is arranged in one series:
-
[Iconography](CL1001)
Container List
Box
Contents
1-9
6
Iconography
The series consists of photographs and other iconography of musicians and two dancers.
Arranged alphabetically by last name.
1/1, 6/1
Adderley, Julian Edwin "Cannonball"
1/2
Akiyoshi, Toshiko
1/3
Allen, Henry "Red"
1/4, 8/1
Armstrong, Louis
Auld, Georgie (John Altwerger)
see
[Goodman, Benny (Sextet)](mu007001_ICONOGRAPHY_CL1001_D3_51)
1/5
Baker, Chesney H. "Chet"
1/6
Bartók, Béla
9/1
Baryshnikov, Mikhail
1/7, 6/2
Basie, William "Count"
9/2-7
Beach, Edward
1/8, 6/3
Bechet, Sidney
1/9
Beiderbecke, Leon Bismarck "Bix"
1/10
Berg, Alban
1/11
Berigan, Roland Bernard "Bunny"
Bernstein, Arthur "Artie"
see
[Goodman, Benny (Sextet)](mu007001_ICONOGRAPHY_CL1001_D3_51)
1/12
Bloch, Ernest
1/13
Braff, Reuben "Ruby"
1/14
Brian, Havergal
1/15
Britten, Benjamin
1/16
Brown, Clifford
1/17
Brown, Raymond
1/18
Bryant, Raphael "Ray"
1/19
Burton, Gary
1/20
Byas, Carlos Wesley "Don"
1/21
Carter, Bennett Lester "Benny"
Christian, Charlie
see
[Goodman, Benny (Sextet)](mu007001_ICONOGRAPHY_CL1001_D3_51)
1/22
Clayton, William "Buck"
1/23
Cohn, Alvin Gilbert (and "Zoot" Sims)
3/25
Cole, Nat "King" (Trio)
2/1
Coltrane, John William
6/4
Copland, Aaron
2/2
Dankworth, John
2/3
Davis, Miles Dewey, Jr.
2/4
Davison, William "Wild Bill"
6/5
Debussy, Claude
2/5
DeFranco, Boniface Ferdinand Leonardo "Buddy"
2/6
Delius, Frederick
2/7
Desmond, Paul
2/8
Edison, Harry "Sweets"
2/9
Edwards, Leonard
2/10
Eldridge, Roy "Little Jazz"
2/11, 6/6, 9/8
Ellington, Edward Kennedy "Duke"
2/12, 6/7
Evans, Bill
2/13
Farmer, Arthur Stewart
2/14
Fitzgerald, Ella
2/15
Flanagan, Tommy Lee
2/16
Garner, Erroll Louis
6/8
Gershwin, George
2/17, 9/9
Getz, Stanley
2/18, 6/9, 8/2, 9/10
Gillespie, John Birks "Dizzy"
2/19
Goodman, Benny
2/20, 6/10
Goodman, Benny (Quartet)
2/21
Goodman, Benny (Sextet)
2/22
Gordon, Dexter
2/23
Grappelli, Stephane
see also
[Hot Club of France, Quintet of the](mu007001_ICONOGRAPHY_CL1001_D3_67)
2/24, 6/11
Griffin, John Arnold III "Johnny"
8/3, 9/11
Hackett, Robert Leo "Bobby"
2/25
Haig, Alan W.
2/26
Hampton, Lionel
7/12
Harlem Dance Theater soloist
2/27
Harris, Barry Dole
2/28
Hawes, Hampton
6/12, 9/12
Hawkins, Coleman
2/29
Hindemith, Paul
6/13
Hines, Earl
2/30
Hinton, Milton "Judge"
2/31
Hodges, John Cornelius "Rab," "Rabbit," "Jeep"
3/1, 6/14
Holiday, Billie (Eleanora Gough McKay)
3/2
Honegger, Artur
3/3
Hot Club of France, Quintet of the
3/4
Hubbard, Frederick Dewayne "Freddie"
9/13
Humes, Helen
3/5
Hyman, Dick
3/6
Ives, Charles
3/7
Jackson, Milton "Bags"
3/8
Jacquet, Jean-Baptiste "Illinois"
3/8
Janàček, Leoš
3/9
Jones, Hank
3/10
Kelly, William
3/11
Kirk, Roland T.
3/11
Kodály, Zoltán
3/12
Konitz, Lee
Krupa, Gene
see
[Goodman, Benny (Quartet)](mu007001_ICONOGRAPHY_CL1001_D3_50)
Laine, Cleo
see
[Dankworth, John](mu007001_ICONOGRAPHY_CL1001_D3_30)
3/13
Lewis, John
3/14
Mahler, Gustav
3/15
Martinů, Bohuslav
3/16
McKenna, David J. "Dave"
3/17
McPartland, Marian
3/18, 6/15
Milhaud, Darius
Miller, Bass
see
[Cole, Nat "King" (Trio)](mu007001_ICONOGRAPHY_CL1001_D3_27)
3/19
Mingus, Charles
see also
[Gillespie, John Birks "Dizzy"](mu007001_ICONOGRAPHY_CL1001_D3_48)
3/20
Monk, Thelonious
3/21
Montgomery, John Leslie "Wes"
3/22
Montoliu, Vincente "Tete"
Moore, Oscar Fred
see
[Cole, Nat "King" (Trio)](mu007001_ICONOGRAPHY_CL1001_D3_27)
3/23
Morton, Ferdinand "Jelly Roll"
3/24
Mulligan, Gerry
3/26
Navarro, Theodore "Fats"
3/27
Newborn, Phineas, Jr.
3/28
Nichols, Herbert Horatio "Herbie"
3/29
Nielsen, Carl
6/11
Nijinsky, Vaslav
3/30
Orff, Carl
3/31, 9/14
Parker, Charlie
see also
[Gillespie, John Birks "Dizzy"](mu007001_ICONOGRAPHY_CL1001_D3_48)
3/32
Passalaqua, Joseph Anthony "Joe Pass"
9/15
Pemberton, Bill
9/16
Perelman, S. J. (Sidney Joseph)
4/1, 6/16
Peterson, Oscar Emmanuel
4/2
Petrucciani, Michel
4/3
Pettiford, Oscar
4/4
Poulenc, Francis
4/5, 7/1
Powell, Earl "Bud"
see also
[Gillespie, John Birks "Dizzy"](mu007001_ICONOGRAPHY_CL1001_D3_48)
4/6, 7/12
Prokofiev, Serge
7/3
Ravel, Maurice
4/7
Reinhardt, Jean-Baptiste "Django"
see also
[Hot Club of France, The Quintet of](mu007001_ICONOGRAPHY_CL1001_D3_67)
Roach, Max
see
[Gillespie, John Birks "Dizzy"](mu007001_ICONOGRAPHY_CL1001_D3_48)
4/8
Rollins, Theodore Walter "Sonny"
4/9
Roussel, Albert
4/10, 9/17
Rowles, James George "Jimmy"
8/5
Satie, Eric
4/11
Schoenberg, Arnold
4/12
Schuman, William
4/13
Scriabin, Alexander
4/14
Shearing, George Albert
7/4
Shostakovitch, Dmitri
4/15, 7/5
Sibelius, Jean
4/16, 7/6, 9/18
Silver, Horace Ward Martin Tavares
4/17, 7/7, 9/19-20
Sims, John Haley "Zoot"
see also
[Cohn, Alvin Gilbert](mu007001_ICONOGRAPHY_CL1001_D3_26)
7/8
Smith, Bessie
4/18
Smith, Hezekiah Leroy Gordon "Stuff"
4/19
Stewart, Leroy "Slam"
4/20
Stitt, Sonny
4/21
Stravinsky, Igor
4/22
Sullivan, Ira Brevard, Jr.
4/23
Sullivan, Marietta Williams "Maxine"
4/24
Sutton, Ralph Earl
4/25
Szymanowski, Karol
Tabackin, Lew
see
[Akiyoshi, Toshiko](mu007001_ICONOGRAPHY_CL1001_D3_2)
4/26
Tate, George Holmes "Buddy"
5/1, 7/9, 8/4
Tatum, Art
7/10
Tchaikovsky, Pyotr Ilych
5/2
Teagarden, John Weldon "Jack"
5/3
Terry, Clark
5/4, 9/21
Thompson, Eli "Lucky"
5/5
Tristano, Leonard Joseph "Lennie"
5/6, 9/22
Vaughan, Sarah Lois
5/7
Vaughan Williams, Ralph
5/8
Waller, Thomas Wright "Fats"
5/9
Walton, Sir William
5/10, 9/23
Webster, Benjamin Francis
5/11
Weston, Randy
5/12
Williams, Charles "Cootie" Melvin
see also
[Goodman, Benny (Sextet)](mu007001_ICONOGRAPHY_CL1001_D3_51)
5/13
Williams, Mary Lou
5/14
Wilson, Theodore "Teddy"
5/15
Woods, Phil
7/11
Young, Lester Willis "Pres"