CHARLES WARREN FOX PAPERS

SC 1998.76

Ruth T. Watanabe Special Collections
Sibley Music Library
Eastman School of Music
University of Rochester

prepared by Jeremy N. Grimshaw
Summer 1999

CONTENTS

 

DESCRIPTION OF COLLECTION

Location: M2B 5,4 – 5,5
3 linear feet

Charles Warren Fox. Photograph by Louis Ouzer, from Louis Ouzer Photographs, Box 1, Folder 21.
Charles Warren Fox. Photograph by Louis Ouzer, from Louis Ouzer Photographs, Box 1, Folder 21.

Biographical Sketch

Charles Warren Fox was born on July 24, 1904, in Gloversville, New York. He began his academic studies at Cornell University, where he studied psychology and musicology, the latter under Otto Kinkeldy. In 1932 he joined the Eastman School of Music faculty, beginning by teaching psychology courses part-time. The following year he began teaching music history and musicology courses, and continued teaching at Eastman until his retirement in 1970. He served as the first chairman of the Eastman School’s musicology department, and from 1952 until 1959 served as editor of the Journal of the American Musicological Society. He also served as President of the Music Library Association (1954-56). He passed away in his hometown of Gloversville on October 15, 1983.

 

Provenance

Accessioned by the Sibley Music Library in July, 1998. The date of acquisition is not known.

 

Scope and Content

The collection contains notes gathered by Dr. Fox in the course of his musicological research, as well as photocopies, microfilms, and transcriptions (by Dr. Fox and others) of several 15th- and 16th-century musical manuscripts and publications. A large portion of the research materials are dedicated to the study of the German song “Ein Fröhlich Wesen” and its transmission. The results of this research were given at an American Musicological Society meeting (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, December 29-30, 1937). A reprint of this paper, entitled “Ein Fröhlich Wesen: The Career of a German Song in the Sixteenth Century,” is also contained in the collection (see INVENTORY). The collection also contains Dr. Fox’s correspondence with and submissions from contributors to the Journal of the American Musicological Society. In addition, the collection contains research materials on various other subjects, as well as Dr. Fox’s personal copies of some books, articles, scores, and other materials.

 

Associations

The Eastman School of Music Archives holds Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra concert programs for which Dr. Fox wrote the program notes.

 

Restrictions and Use

There are no restrictions on the use of this collection.

 

DESCRIPTION OF SERIES

Series I. Research Notes.

Wherever possible, Dr. Fox’s folder designations and groupings have been maintained. His notes are divided into the following subseries.

Subseries A. Ein fröhlich Wesen.15 folders containing notes on “Ein fröhlich Wesen,” arranged alphabetically by category (e.g., “E.f.W.-Analyses of Songs, E.f.W.-Variant Readings, etc.).

Subseries B. Composers. 5 folders containing notes on particular composers or issues surrounding them.

Subseries C. Regional Research. 3 folders containing notes on the musical figures and trends of particular geographic regions.

Subseries D. General Research. 9 folders containing correspondence, notes on various manuscript and bibliographic sources, and some miscellaneous pages.

 

Series II. Transcriptions and Arrangements.

17 folders arranged alphabetically by composer and/or publisher, or by city location of manuscript source if no composer or publisher is given. These folders contain transcriptions and arrangements of pieces by various composers, mostly from the late 1300s to the late 1500s. Most transcriptions were completed by Fox, although some were apparently done by colleagues at Dr. Fox’s request or by students as class assignments. One group of transcriptions was originally in a two-ring binder, along with a table of contents supplied by Dr. Fox. The items in this group have not been incorporated into the rest of the series.

 

Series III. Manuscript Facsimiles, Photographs, and Photocopies

27 folders containing excerpts, reproduced through various means (photograph, photostat, photocopy, etc.), of several original manuscripts and early publications. This series is arranged alphabetically by location of the manuscript source (e.g. Basel, Berlin, St. Gall), or by another name given by Fox, usually that of the composer or publisher.

 

Series IV. Microforms

8 films of various lengths and sizes, containing excerpts from original manuscript sources or early publications. Also included are various notes written by Fox on small pieces of paper, identifying each film, and/or the work to be done with it.

 

Series V. Publications

7 folders containing books, pocket scores, article reprints, and pamphlets.

 

Series VI. AMS Materials

8 folders containing materials pertaining to Dr. Fox’s editorship of the Journal of the American Musicological Society, including official society business and correspondence with contributors to the journal.

INVENTORY

Series I: Research Notes

 

Subseries A: Ein fröhlich Wesen

Box 1

folder 1 Analysis of Songs
folder 2 Aufführungspraxis
folder 3 Holbein
folder 4 Isaac
folder 5 Lute
folder 6 Maximilian I
folder 7 Miscellaneous
folder 8 Organ
folder 9 Quodlibets
folder 10 Rhau, Luther
folder 11 Sources, Descriptions of
folder 12 Similar Pieces
folder 13 Similar Texts
folder 14 Texts vs. no Texts
folder 15 Variant Readings

Box 1

Subseries B: Composers

folder 16 Barbireau
folder 17 Barbireau, Barbingant
folder 18 Isaac – Mass
folder 19 Pipelare, Pierre de la Rue
folder 20 Virdung, Livreplaisant

 

Subseries C: Regional Research

Box 1

folder 21 Antwerp
folder 22 Copenhagen
folder 23 Switzerland

 

Subseries D: General Research

Box 1

folder 24 Correspondence
folder 25 Scores, Notes on
folder 26 Sources, List and Descriptions of
folder 27 Miscellaneous Notes (1)
folder 28 Miscellaneous Notes (2)

Box 6

folder 1 Bibliographic References. Approximately 125 3×5″ cards, each containing the bibliographic information for a particular research source. Arranged by composer. Some have a subject or key word listed at the top.
folder 2 Music History Chronology: 1410-1572. 110 3×5″ cards, each corresponding to a given year, listing important musical and/or historical events occurring in that year.
folder 3 Manuscript Index. Approximately 50 5×8″ cards. At the top of each the location and number of a manuscript source usually appears, followed by a list of secondary sources of information on that manuscript. Some cards list the name of a piece instead, followed by a list of manuscript and secondary sources for the piece.
folder 4 Research Notebooks. Two brown, spiral-bound, 5×8″ inch notebooks, containing bibliographic information for sources and some notes on contents. Most of the note seem to have been taken during trips to the New York Public Library or the Library of Congress. Both notebooks have blank pages in the back. One contains 1½ pages of names and addresses.

Series II: Transcriptions and Arrangements

Box 2

folder 1 Transcriptions from black 2-ring binder. Includes an inventory by Dr. Fox.
folder 2 Transcriptions: Amner – Busnoys
folder 3 Transcriptions: Clemens – Heckel
folder 4 Transcriptions: Isaac
folder 5 Transcriptions: Josquin – Landini
folder 6 Transcriptions: Lassus (1 of 2)
folder 7 Transcriptions: Lassus (2 of 2)
folder 8 Transcriptions: Laurencini – Rossi
folder 9 Transcriptions: Scaramella – Vincenet
folder 10

Transcriptions of anonymous pieces from the following manuscript sources, as listed on the transcriptions. (Some citations are incomplete, and the libraries holding these manuscripts may since have changed their catalogue numbers.)

  • Basel MS F.X. 10
  • Basel MS F.X. 17-20, No. 48
  • Basevi
  • Berlin, Staatsbib. Mus. Ant. O65
  • British National Museum MS Add. 31922
folder 11

Transcriptions of anonymous pieces from the following manuscript sources, as listed on the transcriptions. (Some citations are incomplete, and the libraries holding these manuscripts may since have changed their catalogue numbers.)

  • Brussels, Bibl. Roy., MS IV.90
  • “Codicus”
  • Capp. Guilia MS XIII 27
  • Laburdi MS
  • “Livreplaisant”
  • Mellon Chansonnier
  • Montpellier Codex
  • “Munich”
folder 12 Transcriptions of anonymous pieces from the Odhecaton, an anthology of polyphony published in 1501 by the printer Ottaviano Petrucci.
folder 13

Transcriptions of anonymous pieces from the following manuscript sources, as listed on the transcriptions. (Some citations are incomplete, and the libraries holding these manuscripts may since have changed their catalogue numbers.)

  • Oxford, Christ Church, MS 101
  • “Pernner” (?) MS
  • St. Gall MS 462
  • Trent, Bibl. Comm. 1947-4
folder 14

Transcriptions of anonymous pieces from the following manuscript sources, as listed on the transcriptions. (Some citations are incomplete, and the libraries holding these manuscripts may since have changed their catalogue numbers.)

  • Ulm, Schermar MS 237
  • Vienna, 18832
folder 15 Rough transcriptions
folder 16 Transcriptions: extra copies
folder 17 Miscellaneous transcriptions and student assignments

 

Series III: Manuscript Facsimiles, Photographs, and Photocopies

Box 3

folder 1

Facsimiles of mansucripts from the Universitätsbibliothek Basel.

  • F IX 22. “Aus dem Liederbuch des Bonificus Amerbach, geschreiben von Hans Kotter.” Four negative-exposure pages, 7 x 9½”. Blatt 21 recto through 22 verso. Notated in tablature.
  • F IX 63 [Druck]. “Aus dem Liederbuch des Arnt von Aich.” Two pages, each 7 x 9½”, in negative exposure. One page contains Tenor and Bassus parts, the other the Discantus and Altus. Included also is a positive-exposure copy of the Tenor/Bassus page.
  • F X 10. Two pages, each 8½ x 11½”. Folios 4 recto through 4 verso.
  • F X 18 No. 48. Two pages, each 4½ x 7″. One contains the Altus and Discantus parts, the other the Tenor and Bassus.
folder 2

Facsimiles of Berlin, Mus. MS 40026 [1524]-Kleber.

  • 1 copy, 8 x 13″ photostat, negative exposure, folios 26 verso through 29 recto, 69 recto through 70 recto, and 105 verso through 106 recto. Music is given in tablature.
  • 1 copy, identical to the previous one, but in positive exposure.
  • 1 page, 8½ x 11″. Photocopy of folio 106 verso.
  • An unidentified manuscript excerpt, labeled by Fox “Ritter (Kleber).” One 10½ x 9½” page, followed by one 4½ x 9½” page. A total of six systems, each consisting of two staves.
folder 3

Facsimile of Firenze, R. Conservatorio di musica, MS musicale 2639, No. 16.

  • Six 6 x 9″ photostat pages in negative exposure. Folios 26 verso through 28 recto, and 49 verso through 50 recto.
folder 4

Facsimile of “Gerle” MS. (1533, British Museum)

  • 3 photograph pages, 8 x 10″, in positive exposure. Music in tablature.
folder 5

Facsimile of “Grefswald” MS.

  • 5 pages, 6 x 8¼”, of an unidentified MS containing Isaac’s “Ein fröhlich Wesen.” Each page contains one voice part: Discantus 1, Discantus 2, Tenor 1, Tenor 2, and Bassus.
folder 6

Facsimiles of Heckel publications.

  • 5 pages, 6½ x 8″, in positive exposure. Numbered 23 through 27. Page 23 contains the end of a preceding piece, then the title “Ein fröhlich Wesen. Discant.” Music in in tablature.
  • Pages 23, 24, and 26 of the excerpt listed above, in negative exposure.
  • 5 pages, 6½ x 8″, in negative exposure. Numbered 23 through 27. Page 23 begins with the title “Ein fröhlich Wesen.” Music in tablature.
  • Pages 23, 24, and 26 of the excerpt listed above, in positive exposure.
folder 7

Facsimiles of Isaac, Missa “Ein fröhlich Wesen,” 1539 (Berlin). Positive Set. The two portions of this set together match exactly the negative exposure set in folder 8, except that they have been labeled differently by Fox, and lack a single page.

  • 41 photograph pages, 6 x 8½”, in positive exposure, numbered by Fox on the reverse of each page.
  • 8 additional pages, labeled on reverse “Missae tredecim…1539 (Berlin).” Numbered on reverse: HH(1)r through HH(4)r, and II(1)r.
folder 8

Facsimiles of Isaac, Missa “Ein fröhlich Wesen,” 1539 (Berlin). Negative Set. This set matches exactly the positive-exposure set in folder 7, except that it has been labeled differently by Fox, and contains one additional page not found in the positive-exposure set.

  • 51 pages, 6 x 8½” in negative exposure, numbered on reverse by Fox. Pages 1-15 are marked “A” for Alto; 16-28 “B” for Bass; 29-41 “S” for Soprano; 42-51 “T” for Tenor.
folder 9

Facsimiles of Munich, Univ. Bibl. MSS 328-331.

  • Seven damaged and faint photostat images, 8½ x 5½”, in positive exposure.
folder 10

Facsimiles of publications by Phalese. Excerpts from three publications, from 1545, 1546, and 1547, all containing a title page followed by two pages of tablature music titled “Een vrolick Wesen.” The music in all three is identical, and the 1546 and 1547 publications appear to have used the same imprint. A related note written by Dr. Fox is included in this folder.

  • Des Chansons Reduictz en Tablature de Lut a deux, trois, et quatre parties. (Louvain, 1545). Three 8 x 10″ positive-exposure photos. The first shows the title page, featuring an illustration of a lute; the remaining two photos are of unnumbered, paired pages from the original.
  • Carminum Quae chely vel testudi… (Louvain, 1546). 3 pairs of 8 x 10″ positive-exposure photos, 6 in total, each pair overlapping at the inner edges to show 1 page of the original publication. The first two photos are of the title page, which features a lute player surrounded by several other musicians (the same illustration featured in the 1547 publication). This is followed by two unnumbered, paired pages from the original. Inscription on the back indicates that Dr. Fox obtained the copies from the Vienna National Library.
  • Des Chansons Reduictz en Tablature de Lut a deux, trois, et quatre parties. (Louvain, 1547). Three 8 x 10″ positive-exposure photos. The first shows the title page, which features a lute player surrounded by several other musicians (the same illustration featured in the 1546 publication); the remaining two photos are of unnumbered, paired pages from the original.
folder 11

Facsimiles from the Regensburg, Pernner MS, pp. 278(?) – 283(?).

  • 4 photocopy pages, 12½ x 8¼”, in positive exposure. Each shows one opening (two pages) of the original. Three pages are numbered 278-9, 280-1, and 282-3. The fourth page is not numbered; it may have appeared immediately before or after the other three, or elsewhere in the manuscript.
folder 12

Facsimiles of St. Gall, MSS 462, 463, and 530.

  • MS 462, f. 28 v. Obrecht, “Ein fröhlich Wesen.” 2 photostats: one 6½ x 9″, in positive exposure; one 6½ x 9″, in negative exposure. One photocopy, 8½ x 11, in positive exposure on cardstock. All three copies show folio 28 verso of the original.
  • MS 463, f. 114 v. Anonymous, “Io non posso,” and Obrecht, “Ein fröhlich Wesen.” One photostat, 6¼ x 8½”, in negative exposure.
  • MS 530, f. 34 v. “Sicher Tablature.” 1 photostat, 7 x 9¼”, in negative exposure. Music is given in tablature.
folder 13

Facsimiles of “Seer Schon” publication. A manual for players of the clavichord, lute, and flute, on reading and performing music notated in tablature.

  • 43 pages. All pages are photostat copies in negative exposure. The first page measures 6 x 8½”, and shows the title page only. All other pages measure 12 x 8½”, and each shows an entire opening. The pages of the original are numbered 1 through 84 by Fox.
folder 14

Facsimile of Segovia Cathedral MS, p. 159.

  • One photostat, 7 x 9½”, in negative exposure. Note by Fox on back reads “(cf. Anglès).
folder 15

Facsimiles of the Tornai MS, 26 r – 27 v. Both sets in this folder are of the same folios from the original.

  • 4 photos, 4 ¾ x 3 ½”, in positive exposure, each photo showing one page of the original.
  • 1 photostat, 10 ¾ x 7 ½”, in negative exposure, showing all four pages.
folder 16

Facsimiles from the Vienna National Library, MSS 18810 and 18832.

  • MS 18810, contratenor, ff. 21r-21v. 2 photostats, 4½ x 6″, in negative exposure, each showing one page of the original.
  • MS 18810, tenor, ff. 21 v – 22 r. 1 photostat, 4½ x 12″, in negative exposure, showing one opening (two pages) of the original.
  • MS 18810, bassus, ff. 21 v – 22 r. 1 photostat, 4½ x 12″, in negative exposure, showing one opening (two pages) of the original.
  • MS 18810, discantus, ff. 23 v – 24 r. 1 photostat, 4½ x 12″, in negative exposure, showing one opening (two pages) of the original.

 

Box 3

folder 16 (cont’d.)
  • MS 18832, ff. 46 v – 48 r. 2 photostats, 4 ½ x 12″, in negative exposure, each showing one opening from the MS. Folio 46 verso through 47 recto is the tenor part, and 47 verso through 48 recto is the bassus part. An additional photostat page, 4 x 6″, in negative exposure, shows only the bassus part from 47 verso.
folder 17 Miscellaneous unidentified photostats of published transcriptions, in negative exposure.

 

Box 5

folder 2

Facsimile of Ulm, Schermars Sammlung MS 237, Discant partbook.

  • 90 photostat pages, approximately 4 x 12″, in negative exposure. Each is folded vertically down the middle. Each copied page shows an opening (two pages) from the original.
folder 3

Facsimile of Ulm, Schermars Sammlung MS 237, Alto partbook.

  • 86 photostat pages, approximately 4 x 12″, in negative exposure. Each is folded vertically down the middle. Each copied page shows an opening (two pages) from the original.
folder 4

Facsimile of Ulm, Schermars Sammlung MS 237, Tenor partbook.

  • 82 photostat pages, approximately 4 x 12″, in negative exposure. Each is folded vertically down the middle. Each copied page shows an opening (two pages) from the original.
folder 5

Facsimile of Ulm, Schermars Sammlung MS 237, Bass partbook.

  • 86 photostat pages, approximately 4 x 12″, in negative exposure. Each is folded vertically down the middle. Each copied page shows an opening (two pages) from the original.

 

Series IV: Microforms

Box 5

film 1 Phalese: Des Chansons Reduictz en Tabulature de Lut à2 à3 à4. Several feet of film, in positive exposure, accompanied by a small note by Dr. Fox giving the manuscript name and contents.
film 2 Verona MS 756: Missa Ein fröhlich Wesen. Several feet of film, in positive exposure, accompanied by a small note by Dr. Fox giving the manuscript name and contents.
film 3 Verona MS 756: Missa Ein fröhlich Wesen. Same as film 2, but in negative exposure.
film 4 Basel, MS F IX 25. 7½”, negative exposure. A small note by Dr. Fox giving the manuscript name and contents can be found in Box 5, folder 1.
film 5 St. Gall, MS 462/463. 12¼”, negative exposure. A small note by Dr. Fox giving the manuscript name and contents can be found in Box 5, folder 1.
film 6 Unidentified film, 7½”, negative exposure. A small note by Dr. Fox that accompanied this film can be found in Box 5, folder 1.
film 7 Unidentified film, 32¾”, positive exposure. A small note by Dr. Fox that accompanied this film can be found in Box 5, folder 1.
film 8 “Trium vocum carmina.” From an unidentified manuscript. 3 sheets, 3 x 4″, each containing three 1 x ½” frames of film. The sheets are marked “T,” “D,” and “B,” presumably signifying tenor, discantus, and bassus parts, respectively.

 

Box 5

folder 1 Notes by Dr. Fox corresponding to Box 5, films 4-7.

 

Series V: Publications

Box 4

folder 1 Walther, C. L. Chansonvormen op het Einde Van de XVde EEUW. Amsterdam: H. J. Paris, 1938. 127 pp.
folder 2

Pascal, Pensées. Paris: Librairie Hatier, date unknown. 61 pp.

  • Gabriel, Paul. Das deutsche evangelische Kirchenlied. Leipzig: Verlag, Quelle, & Meyer, 1935. 143 pp.
folder 3

Librettos

  • Wagner, Richard. Lohengrin. Leipzig: Philipp Reclam jun, date unknown. 73 pp.
  • Wagner, Richard. Das Rheingold. München: G. Fransiche Buch-druckerei, date unknown. 62 pp.
  • Wagner, Richard. Siegfried. München: G. Fransiche Buchdruckerei, date unknown. 76 pp.
  • Wagner, Richard. Tristan und Isolde. München: G. Fransiche Buch-druckerei, date unknown. 43 pp.
folder 4 Fox, Charles Warren. “Ein Fröhlich Wesen: The Career of German Song in the Sixteenth Century.” Reprint of a paper read before the American Musicological Society (Pittsburgh, Pa., December 29-30, 1937). (2 copies)
folder 5 Schrade, Leo. “Unknown Motets in a Recovered Thirteenth-Century Manuscript.” Speculum XXX, no. 3 (July 1955). Offprint. Inscription by the author.
folder 6 Miscellaneous publications and fragments.
folder 7

Materials pertaining to the American Council of Learned Societies:

  • The ACLS Newsletter, vol. IX, nos. 1-4.
  • Official Announcement, dated April 8, 1958, regarding the naming of 27 recipients of awards through the ACLS Grant-in-Aid program.
  • Official Announcement, dated April 14, 1958, regarding the bestowal of a $500,000 grant from the Ford Foundation to encourage international scholarly congresses to meet in the United States.

 

Series VI: Materials pertaining to the American Musicological Society

Box 4

folder 8 Miscellaneous administrative materials, including a program from the 1957 annual meeting at UCLA, a financial report, minutes from a Society Board meeting, and a newsletter dated April 15, 1958.
folder 9 Copy of a letter from Charles Warren Fox to Howard Brown regarding an article accepted for publication in the Spring 1959 issue of the Journal of the American Musicological Society.
folder 10 Correspondence between Charles Warren Fox and Samuel E. Brown, Jr. regarding the acceptance of an article for publication in the Spring 1959 issue of the Journal of the American Musicological Society. Included is Brown’s initial inquiry, his draft of the article, entitled “A Possible Cantus Firmus Among Ciconia’s Isorhythmic Motets,” and a copy of Fox’s response.
folder 11 Correspondence between Charles Warren Fox and Ralph T. Daniel, Jr., regarding an article accepted for publication in the Spring or Summer 1959 issue of the Journal of the American Musicological Society. Included is Daniel’s initial inquiry and a copy of Fox’s response. The article in question is not included.
folder 12 Correspondence from Walter A. Rubsamen regarding an article submitted for consideration to the Journal of the American Musicological Society. Included are Rubsamen’s initial inquiry and his draft of the article, entitled “The Justiniane or Viniziane of the 15th Century.” Musical examples to accompany this article are found in this collection, Box 2, folder 8.
folder 13 Correspondence between Charles Warren Fox and the Rev. Fidelis Smith, O.F.M., regarding an article proposed by the latter for consideration by Journal of the American Musicological Society. Included are Fr. Smith’s initial inquiry and also Fox’s reply, in which he agreed to receive a copy of the article for possible publication.
folder 14 Copy of a letter from Charles Warren Fox to Lincoln B. Speiss regarding the acceptance of an article by Speiss for publication in the Spring 1959 issue of the Journal of the American Musicological Society.
folder 15 Correspondence from John Ward regarding an article submitted for consideration to the Journal of the American Musicological Society. Included is Ward’s initial inquiry and his draft of the article, entitled “Music for A Handefull of pleasant delites.” The article bears some editorial markings, presumably in Fox’s hand.

 

Box 2

folder 18 Musical examples to accompany the materials in Box 4, folder 12.

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