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Mannes School of Music clippings and scrapbook collection

 Collection
Identifier: MA-03-01-01

Summary

This collection consists of news clipping files and scrapbooks that document Mannes from its founding through the early 1990s. The scrapbooks, which cover the school's early history through the 1960s, contain concert programs, advertisements, and news articles. Other scrapbooks, some from before the establishment of Mannes, document the activities of the school's founders, David and Clara Mannes, in their work as musicians and educators.

Dates

  • 1910 - 1994

Creator

Extent

11.7 Cubic Feet (11 boxes, 1 oversize box)

Language of Materials

English

Scope and Content of Collection

The Mannes School of Music clippings and scrapbook collection consists of newspaper clippings related to David and Clara Mannes and the Mannes School of Music, as well as programs for concerts given by David and Clara Mannes and Mannes student recitals. The majority of the collection consists of news clippings collected by clipping services. The clippings in Series I, which cover 1959-1994, are organized into files by subject. Earlier clippings (through 1964) are pasted into scrapbooks, these are found in Series II. The collected articles range from reviews and notices of Mannes-related performances, to profiles of Mannes musicians, interviews, and editorials mentioning or pertaining to the Mannes family or the Mannes School of Music.

The collection also includes concert programs for David Mannes’s Metropolitan Museum of Art orchestra concerts, New York Symphony Orchestra concerts, conducted by Walter Damrosch (Clara Mannes's brother), and newspaper and magazine items regarding notable Mannes alumni and faculty, including Julius Rudel, Eve Queler, George Szell, Murray Perahia, Frederica von Stade, and Burt Bacharach. Also included are clipped advertisements for Mannes School of Music, reviews of New Songs for New Voices, a book of children’s songs co-edited by David and Clara Mannes and published in 1928, and articles about the Music School Settlement, a music school for Black children that David Mannes directed prior to founding Mannes in 1916.

Access Restrictions

Collection is open for research use. Please contact archivist@newschool.edu for appointment.

Use Restrictions

To publish images of material from this collection, permission must be obtained in writing from The New School Archives and Special Collections. Please contact: archivist@newschool.edu.

Historical Note

Mannes School of Music was established in 1916 by David and Clara (Damrosch) Mannes, professional musicians and educators. Prior to establishing Mannes, David founded one of the first music schools for Black children, the Music School Settlement for Colored People in Harlem.

In 1940, David and Clara's son Leopold, a pianist who was also one of the inventors of Kodachrome film, became first the director and then president of the school. In 1953, the school was granted a charter from the State of New York and became a degree-granting college. The name of the institution was changed to the Mannes College of Music.

In the 1950s and '60s, Mannes became known for its signature curriculum, the "Techniques of Music." During this time, many eminent faculty and students passed through the school's doors. In the 1970s, the school suffered a financial crisis that brought it to the brink of collapse. Under the leadership of Charles Kaufman, the school survived this crisis. In 1989, Kaufman negotiated the merger of Mannes with The New School, in large part to gain greater tuition revenue through access to The New School's continuing education program. Kaufman served as dean until 1996.

In 2005, the school was renamed Mannes College The New School for Music. In 2015, as part of a university-wide reorganization, Mannes became a division of The New School's College of Performing Arts and the name changed to Mannes School of Music. From 1996-2011, Mannes was led by Joel Lester. As of 2018, the dean of Mannes is Richard Kessler, who has served in that role since 2011.

Sources:

Grimes, William. "Mannes School Says Thank You." The New York Times, April 17, 1995.

The New School. "History." Mannes. Accessed October 25, 2018. http://www.newschool.edu/mannes/history/

Organization and Arrangement

Arranged alphabetically in 2 series: 1. News clipping files, 1946, 1959-1994 2. Scrapbooks, 1910-1964

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Transferred from the Harry Scherman Library of Mannes College of Music to The New School Archives and Special Collections, 2015.

Related Materials

The New School Archives holds the Mannes School of Music Concert Office collection (MA.05.04.01.01), which includes concert programs; the Mannes School of Music photograph collection (MA.04.01.01); as well as records from the Mannes administration.

Title
Guide to the Mannes School of Music clippings and scrapbook collection
Status
Completed
Author
Jason Adamo
Date
February 26, 2020
Description rules
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin