Converted to EAD3 : Encoded Archival Description (EAD), Version 3 : Release: 1.1.1 : Release Date: 2019-12-16. Validating against latest version of schema.
Contact information: http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.music/perform.contact
Catalog Record: https://lccn.loc.gov/2014572403
Collection material in English and Yiddish
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.
Gift; Martha Wiseman; 2012
No further accruals are expected.
The Pearl Lang Papers was processed by Elizabeth Aldrich in 2012, at which time recorded sound and videos were transferred to the Motion Picture, Broadcasting, and Recorded Sound Division (MBRS). In 2017, Chava Lansky refined the organization of materials and revised the Aldrich draft finding aid. George Kipper and Libby Smigel coded the finding aid for EAD format in 2017, with final revisions to the EAD taking place in January 2018.
Approximately 147 audiovisual materials from the Pearl Lang Papers were transferred in 2012 to the Motion Picture, Broadcasting, and Recorded Sound division (MBRS), where they are identified as part of the Lang (Pearl) Collection (MAVIS collection no. 14778). A paper inventory of this material is available in the Music Division's collection file.
The Library of Congress Music Division holds major collections that, like the Pearl Lang Papers, contain materials related to the Martha Graham Dance Company and School: Martha Graham Collection, Helen McGehee and Umaña Papers, Erick Hawkins and Lucia Dlugoszewski Papers, Sophie Maslow Papers, Armgard von Bardeleben Papers, among others. For materials related to the Pearl Lang Dance Theatre, materials in the Miriam Cole Papers offer several Pearl Lang programs as well as materials related to Martha Graham.
Materials from the Pearl Lang Papers are governed by the Copyright Law of the United States (Title 17, U.S.C.) and other applicable international copyright laws.
Materials among the Pearl Lang Papers are open to research. Researchers are advised to contact the Music Division before visiting to determine whether the desired materials will be available at that time.
Certain restrictions to use or copying of materials may apply.
Researchers wishing to cite this collection should include the following information: [item, date, container number], Pearl Lang Papers, Music Division, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.
Pearl Lang (née Pearl Lack) was an American dancer, choreographer, and teacher. Lang was born to Ashkenazi Jewish immigrant parents in Chicago and grew up in a Yiddish-speaking home. Lang began dancing and choreographing at a young age under the tutelage of Frances Allis. She performed under the direction of Ruth Page for performances funded under the Federal Dance Project, and she saw performances of Martha Graham, Hanya Holm, Doris Humphrey, Harold Kreutzberg, and Charles Weidman.
In 1941, with a scholarship for summer study with Martha Graham in New York, she was taken into the company after just a few months. Lang made her company debut in Graham’s
In 1953, Lang formed her own dance company and choreographed critically acclaimed works that included
Lang was awarded two Guggenheim fellowships, one in 1960 and one in 1969, as well as an honorary doctorate from the Juilliard School in 1995, and she received numerous awards and citations for her contributions to Jewish culture through dance. She was a well-respected teacher at venues including Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival, American Dance Festival, and the Martha Graham School of Dance as well as other institutions throughout the United States, Germany, Switzerland, and Sweden. She served on the faculties of the Juilliard School, Yale University School of Drama, and the Neighborhood Playhouse. Lang’s accomplishments also include staging and choreography for opera and theater. Lang was married to actor Joseph Wiseman, whom she met in 1964. She died in New York City on February 24, 2009.
The Pearl Lang Papers consists of personal correspondence, business papers, awards, interviews, lectures, writings on Lang, Yiddish poetry, periodicals, press releases, promotional materials (such as posters, clippings, and programs), photographs, music scores, and notes on choreography, teaching, and music. The collection also includes choreographic notes, photographs, programs, and other materials relating to Martha Graham. The materials in the Pearl Lang Papers pertain to people in both her professional and personal life including many choreographers, writers, composers, critics, Yiddish intellectuals, Graham company dancers, and family members, as well as grant applications, contracts, and production information involving the Pearl Lang Dance Theatre and Pearl Lang Dance Foundation. Film and video recordings were transferred to the care of the Library of Congress Motion Picture, Broadcasting, and Recorded Sound (MBRS) Division.
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The collection's moving image recordings (dating from 1956-2003) were transferred to the Motion Picture, Broadcasting and Recorded Sound Division. Formats include 16mm film, Betacam-SP, VHS, 2’’ reel, 4” reel, 5” reel, 6” reel, 7” reel, 8” reel, 10” reel, 12” reel, Helical Scan, and U-matic. Most of the moving image materials are either performance recordings or unedited raw footage connected to
The Collection is organized in 11 series:
The
Arranged chronologically.
The
Arranged chronologically.
The
Each subseries is arranged alphabetically by title, topic, or chronologically depending on Lang's original organization of each.
Arranged alphabetically by subject, and chronologically therein.
Arranged alphabetically by subject or topic, and chronologically therein.
The
Arranged alphabetically by author, and by title or subject therein.
Chiefly manuscript and printed music scores, many used for choreography of Pearl Lang. Some manuscripts include cues, annotations, and choreographic notes. Scores published by the Japanese Federation of Composers in 1971 are prevalent. Also included are song lyrics in Yiddish as well as translations to English of lyrics in other languages. For Lang's informal jottings of names of recordings and compositions that she found of interest, see instead the Music Notes subseries within the Writings series.
Where known, arranged alphabetically by composer and alphabetically by work title therein. Song lyrics, a file with multiple composers, and unidentified manuscripts are described at the end of the series.
Annotations in penciland colored pencil
Page of music from another work laid in
Annotated with choreographic notes and cues
Contains inserts, paste overs, annotations
Annotated with choreographic notes and cues
Cover paged: "Not revised"
Arranged alphabetically by subject, and chronologically therein.