Collection Summary
Dorothy Slepian Packer Correspondence 1945-1948
1945-1948
ML31.P33
Packer, Dorothy Slepian, 1923-2014
approximately 50 items
1 container
.5 linear feet
English
Collection material in English
Music Division, Library of Congress
Washington, D.C.
Dorothy Slepian Packer (1923-2014) was a
musicologist, educator, and violinist from Boston, Massachusetts. The collection
consists of Packer’s correspondence with prominent composers between 1945 and 1948.
Significant writers and recipients include Samuel Barber, Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco,
Deems Taylor, Darius Milhaud, Morton Gould, William Grant Still, and Virgil
Thomson.
Acquisition Information
Gift, Dorothy Slepian Packer, 1988
Accruals
No further accruals are expected.
Processing History
Music Division staff processed the Dorothy Slepian Packer Correspondence from 1988-1989.
Anthony Edwards and Rachel McNellis coded the finding aid in 2021.
Other Repositories
The Theology Library Archives at Boston Universty houses notes, publications, papers,
music, and other materials related to Packer's research.
Copyright Status
Materials from the Dorothy Slepian Packer Correspondence 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 Dorothy Slepian Packer Correspondence is 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 on using or copying materials may apply.
Preferred Citation
Researchers wishing to cite this collection should include the following information:
[item, date, container or reel or digital ID number], Dorothy Slepian Packer
Correspondence, Music Division, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.
Biographical Note
Dorothy Slepian Packer was born on April 23, 1923, in Boston, Massachusetts, and became
a musicologist, educator, and violinist. She studied with music historian Karl Geiringer
and earned her Ph.D. at Boston University in 1948. That November, she married Leo S.
Packer (August 5, 1920-January 14, 2016), who was studying engineering at Harvard
University. They had three children: Janet Susan Packer (died 2014), Alex J. Packer, and
Michael Packer (died September 11, 2001). In 1976, she moved to Paris with her husband
for fifteen years, where he worked in several positions as a consultant and United
States diplomat. Dorothy gave frequent guest lectures across the United States and was a
prolific scholar. Her published research encompassed diverse topics related to
twentieth-century American music, sixteenth and seventeenth-century French song, and
eighteenth-century French vaudeville. She taught at Boston University, Nazareth College
in Rochester, New York, and the State University of New York at Buffalo. Packer died in
Boston on March 28, 2014.
Scope and Content Note
The Dorothy Slepian Packer Correspondence spans the years 1945 to 1948. It consists
solely of [Correspondence](DP01)
between Dorothy Packer and composers and contains several responses to a survey she sent
while conducting research for her dissertation. Significant correspondents include Samuel Barber,
Robert Russell Bennett, Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco, Deems Taylor, Morton Gould, Darius
Milhaud, Wallingford Riegger, William Grant Still, and Virgil Thomson.
Organization of the Dorothy Slepian Packer Correspndence
The collection is arranged in one series:
-
[Correspondence,
1945-1948](DP01)
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
Antheil, George, 1900-1959--Correspondence.
Antheil, George, 1900-1959.
Barber, Samuel, 1910-1981--Correspondence.
Barber, Samuel, 1910-1981.
Bloch, Ernest, 1880-1985--Correspondence.
Bloch, Ernest, 1880-1985.
Castelnuovo-Tedesco, Mario, 1895-1968--Correspondence.
Castelnuovo-Tedesco, Mario, 1895-1968.
Creston, Paul, 1906-1985--Correspondence.
Creston, Paul, 1906-1985.
Gould, Morton, 1913-1996--Correspondence.
Gould, Morton, 1913-1996.
Milhaud, Darius, 1892-1974--Correspondence.
Milhaud, Darius, 1892-1974.
Packer, Dorothy Slepian, 1923-2014--Correspondence.
Packer, Dorothy Slepian, 1923-2014.
Schuman, William, 1910-1992--Correspondence.
Schuman, William, 1910-1992.
Still, William Grant, 1895-1978
Still, William Grant, 1895-1978--Correspondence.
Taylor, Deems, 1885-1966--Correspondence.
Taylor, Deems, 1885-1966.
Thompson, Randall, 1899-1984--Correspondence.
Thompson, Randall, 1899-1984.
Thomson, Virgil, 1896-1989--Correspondence.
Thomson, Virgil, 1896-1989.
Subjects
Composers--Correspondence.
Titles
Dorothy Slepian Packer collection of correspondence, circa 1946
Form/Genre
Business correspondence.
Container List
1
Correspondence, 1945-1948
1945-1948
This series consists of correspondence between Dorothy Packer and well-known
composers. Packer sent a questionnaire about compositional practices to composers
while conducting research for her dissertation The Use of Polyphonic
Forms and Devices by Contemporary American Composers (Boston University,
1948). Included here are responses to that survey from Robert Russell Bennett,
Frederick Jacobi, Douglas Moore, Deems Taylor, and Randall Thompson. Other
notable correspondents include George Antheil, Samuel Barber, Mario
Castelnuovo-Tedesco, Morton Gould, Robert McBride, Darius Milhaud, Wallingford
Riegger, William Schuman, William Grant Still, and Virgil Thomson.
Arranged alphabetically by correspondent's last name.
1/1
Antheil, George, 1946 October 19-1947
March 2
1946 October 19-1947 March 2
1/2
Balogh, Ernő, 1947 February
13
1947
February 13
1/3
Barber, Samuel, 1945 April 19
1945
April 19
1/4
Bennett, Robert Russell,
undated
undated
Questionnaire
1/5
Bloch, Ernest, 1945 June 4
1945
June 4
1/6
Castelnuovo-Tedesco, Mario, 1947 August 12
1947
August 12
1/7
Cohn, Arthur, 1947 June 9-1947 June
29
1947 June 9-1947 June 29
1/8
Creston, Paul, 1945 March 26-1946
October 14
1945 March 26-1946 October 14
1/9
Gould, Morton, 1945 March 8
1945
March 8
1/10
Green, Ray, 1948 February
12
1948
February 12
1/11
Gruenberg, Louis, 1945 April 4-1947 June
27
1945 April 4-1947 June 27
1/12
Hanson, Howard, 1945 March 16
1945
March 16
1/13
Inch, Herbert, 1947 June 18
1947
June 18
1/14
Jacobi, Frederick,
undated
undated
Questionnaire
1/15
Janssen, Werner, 1947 July 5
1947
July 5
1/16
Kramer, A. Walter, 1947 June 23
1947
June 23
1/17
Kurtz, Edward, 1947 June 24
1947
June 24
1/18
La Violette, Wesley, 1947 June 28
1947
June 28
1/19
Lockwood, Norman, 1947 August 2
1947
August 2
1/20
McBride, Robert, 1945 February 7-1947
July 1
1945 February 7-1947 July 1
1/21
McDonald, Harl, 1947 June 12
1947
June 12
1/22
McKinly, Carl, 1947 June 30
1947
June 30
1/23
Milhaud, Darius,
undated
undated
1/24
Moore, Douglas, 1945 February
14
1945
February 14
Questionnaire
1/25
Morris, Harold, 1945 March 31-1947 July
29
1945 March 31-1947 July 29
1/26
Palmer, Robert, 1948 September
4
1948
September 4
1/27
Piston, Walter,
undated
undated
1/28
Porter, Quincy, 1945 February 21-1947
June 5
1945 February 21-1947 June 5
1/29
Rapoport, Eda, 1947 June 3
1947
June 3
1/30
Read, Gardner, 1946 September
2
1946
September 2
1/31
Riegger, Wallingford, 1945 April 1-1947 May
24
1945 April 1-1947 May 24
1/32
Rogers, Bernard, 1945 February
19-21
1945 February 19-21
1/33
Schuman, William, 1945 March 16-1947 May
20
1945 March 16-1947 May 20
1/34
Scruggs, Philip Lightfoot, 1947 July 21
1947
July 21
1/35
Smith, David Stanley,
undated
undated
1/36
Sowerby, Leo, 1947 June 4
1947
June 4
1/37
Still, William Grant, 1945 April 4
1945
April 4
1/38
Taylor, Deems,
undated
undated
Questionnaire
1/39
Thompson, Randall, 1945 April 17
1945
April 17
Questionnaire
1/40
Thomson, Virgil, 1945 March 15
1945
March 15