Collection Summary
Alma Gluck Scrapbooks and Other Materials
1902-1940
(bulk 1909-1918)
1902-1940
(bulk 1909-1918)
ML31.G48
Gluck, Alma, 1884-1938
approximately 200 items
10 containers
5.0 linear feet
English
Material principally in
English
Music Division, Library of
Congress
Washington, D.C.
Alma Gluck was a Romanian-born American soprano and voice teacher. This collection principally consists of scrapbooks related to her professional career. It also includes photographs, annotated sheet music, correspondence, clippings, and other assorted materials.
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
Gluck, Alma, 1884-1938--Archives.
Gluck, Alma, 1884-1938--Correspondence.
Gluck, Alma, 1884-1938--Photographs.
Gluck, Alma, 1884-1938.
Gluck, Alma, 1884-1938.
Sembrich, Marcella, 1858-1935.
Zimbalist, Efrem.
Subjects
Operas--Excerpts--Vocal scores with piano.
Sopranos (Singers)--United States.
Form/Genre
Clippings (Information artifacts)
Correspondence.
Photographic prints.
Scrapbooks.
Provenance
Gift, Marcia Davenport, March 1973.
Accruals
No further accruals are expected.
Processing History
The Alma Gluck Scrapbooks and Other Materials were processed by Mary McCarthy in July 1991. The finding aid was revised and coded for EAD by Christopher Hartten in April 2010.
Transfers
Sound recordings have been transferred to the Library of Congress Motion Picture, Broadcasting, and Recorded Sound Division.
Related Material
The Library of Congress Music Division holds several collections that contain correspondence from Alma Gluck, the most notable being the Elizabeth Sprague Coolidge Collection. Additional correspondence is present in the Damrosch-Blaine, [Damrosch-Tee Van] , Schwerke, and A.P. Schmidt collections.
Copyright Status
The Alma Gluck Scrapbooks and Other Materials are governed by the Copyright Law of the United States (Title 17, U.S.C.) and other applicable international copyright laws.
Access and Restrictions
The Alma Gluck Scrapbooks and Other Materials are open to research. Researchers are advised to contact the Music Division prior to visiting in order to determine whether the desired materials will be available at that time. Certain restrictions to use or copying of materials may apply.
Preferred Citation
Researchers wishing to cite this collection should include the
following information: [item, date, container number], Alma Gluck Scrapbooks and Other Materials, Music Division, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.
Biographical Note
Date
Event
1884 May 11
Born Reba Fiersohn in Romania
1886
Father Israel Fiersohn dies
1890
Moves to New York with mother Anna Fiersohn
1902
Marries insurance agent Bernard Gluck
1903
Daughter Abigail (Marcia Davenport) born
1906
1909
Studies voice with Arturo Buzzi-Peccia
1909 November 16
Debut performance with Metropolitan Opera Company as Sophie in
Werther
1909 November 28
Debut performance at Metropolitan Opera House stage
1910 October 18
First song recital at Mendelssohn Hall
1912
Divorces Bernard Gluck
1912
1913
Studies voice with Marcella Sembrich
1913
Begins recording for Victor Records
1913 June 15
First song recital in London
1914 July 15
Marries violinist Efrem Zimbalist
1916 summer
Daughter Marie Virginia born
1916 August 6
Mother Anna Fiersohn dies
1919
Son Efrem Zimbalist Jr. born
1925 May 25
Last recital at Manhattan Opera House
1938 October 27
Dies from cirrhosis of the liver at the Rockefeller Institute, New York
Scope and Content Note
The Alma Gluck Scrapbooks and Other Materials span the period 1902-1940, with the majority of the materials dating from 1909-1917. Gluck's distinguished career as an operatic singer is chronicled in eleven scrapbooks filled with clippings of performance reviews and other musical activities, including recording releases with Victor Records and voice studies with Marcella Sembrich. Interspersed are articles pertaining to personal matters such as her divorce from Bernard Gluck, marriage to Efrem Zimbalist, and other subjects.
The "Photographs" series consists of fifty-nine black and white images of family portraits, concert tours, and assorted publicity shots. Included are photographs of Efrem Zimbalist with Walter Damrosch and an album from Gluck's World War I performances at Camp Lewis, Washington. The "Music" series is comprised almost entirely of annotated and unannotated printed piano-vocal scores, the exception being a tunebook with melodic lines scrawled in the singer's hand. The remaining materials include several letters, articles, obituaries and sympathy cards, and reviews of Marcia Davenport's biography on Mozart.
Organization of the Alma Gluck Scrapbooks and Other Materials
This Alma Gluck Scrapbooks and Other Materials are organized in 4 series:
- Scrapbooks, 1909-1917
- Photographs, 1902-1928
- Music, 1900s-1920s
- Miscellany, 1913-1940
Catalog Record: [https://lccn.loc.gov/2010561029]
Container List
Container
Contents
1-7
Scrapbooks, 1909-1917
1909-1917
1
1909 November 16 - 1910 September 8
1909 November 16 - 1910 September 8
[30] p.
2
1910 September 9 - 1911 October 20
1910 September 9 - 1911 October 20
[30] p.
3
1911 October 4 - 1912 January 29
1911 October 4 - 1912 January 29
[72] p.
3
1912 January 31 - 1912 June 9
1912 January 31 - 1912 June 9
[36] p.
3
1912 March 21 - 1912 December 8
1912 March 21 - 1912 December 8
[71] p.
4
1913 January 22 - 1914 July 31
1913 January 22 - 1914 July 31
[91] p.
4
1913 June 10 - 1914 March 28
1913 June 10 - 1914 March 28
[98] p.
4
1915 April 24 - 1916 June 30
1915 April 24 - 1916 June 30
[149] p.
5
1914 July 10 - 1915 January 17
1914 July 10 - 1915 January 17
[149] p.
6
1916 July 28 - 1916 December 6
1916 July 28 - 1916 December 6
[149] p.
7
1916 November 25 - 1917 April 4
1916 November 25 - 1917 April 4
[100] p.
8
Photographs, 1902-1928
1902-1928
8/1
1902, 1907-1913
1902, 1907-1913
12 black and white photographs
8/2-3
1909-1913
1909-1913
18 black and white photographs
Principally AG in various opera roles
8/4
1917-1918
1917-1918
20 black and white photographs
Includes: New York Symphony tour; World War I performances at Camp Lewis
8/5
1919, 1928
1919, 1928
9 black and white photographs
8-9
Music, 1900s-1920s
1900s-1920s
Beethoven, Ludwig van
8/6
Adelaide
AG annotations
8/6
Loin de ma tombe obscure
Brahms, Johannes
8/7
Dort in den Weiden
8/7
O liebliche Wagen
8/7
Vorschneller Schwur
AG annotations
Haydn, Joseph
8/8
La vie
Lehmann, Liza
8/9
In a Persian garden
Autograph printed score
Inscribed by AG to Arturo Toscanini
Lully, Jean Baptiste
8/10
Amadis. Bois apais redouble ton ombre
AG annotations
Martini, Jean Paul Egide
8/10
Plaisir d'amour
AG annotations
Méhul, Etienne Nicolas
8/11
Joseph. Air de Joseph
Monsigny, Pierre-Alexandre
8/11
O ma tendre musette
Mozart, Wolfgang Amadeus
9/1
Alleluia
AG annotations
9/2
Cosi fan tutte
Incomplete
9/3
Idomeneo. Zeffiretti lusinghieri
AG annotations
9/4
Lieder
AG annotations
Edition Peters plate number: 6703
9/5
Lieder
AG annotations
Edition Peters plate number: 9536-9537
9/6
My favorite songs: Alma Gluck
Rosa, Salvator
9/7
Only smile, I will ask nothing more
Schubert, Franz
9/8
Die Forelle
9/8
Heidenröslein
9/9
Der Lindenbaum
9/9
Die Post
Incomplete
9/9
An Sylvia
AG annotations
Schumann, Robert
9/10
Auftrage
9/10
Er ist's
AG annotations
9/10
Frühlingsnacht
AG annotations
9/11
Intermezzo
9/11
Der Nussbaum
AG annotations
Strauss, Richard
9/12
Du meines Herzens Krönelein
9/13
Tunebook
[63] p.
10
Miscellany, 1913-1940
1913-1940
10/1
Alma Gluck Zimbalist Memorial performance, 1940 November 23
1940 November 23
Programs and clippings
10/2
Articles about AG, 1913, 1938-1939, undated
1913, 1938-1939, undated
10/3
Letter from AG to Marcia Davenport, undated
Holograph manuscript, in ink; [1] p.
10/3
Letter from [Uncle] Dan Froham to AG, April 15
Holograph manuscript, in ink; [1] p.
AG response attached
10/4
Marcia Davenport materials, 1932, undated
1932, undated
Articles and reviews related to her biography on Mozart
10/5
Obituaries, 1939, undated
1939, undated
10/6
Sympathy notes and cards regarding death of AG
Notable correspondents: Carl Engel; Geraldine Farrar; Sinclair Lewis; Lily Pons; John D. Rockefeller Jr.; Elizabeth Shumann; Arturo and Carla Toscanini; Alice Damrosch Wolfe; Bruno Zirato
10
Davenport, Marcia. Mozart. New York : Charles Scribner's Sons, 1932
Printed edition inscribed to AG