Table of Contents
- Collection Summary
- Biographical Note
- Scope and Content Note
- Subject Headings
- Administrative Information
- Access and Use
- Encoding Information
- Container List
Collection Summary
| Repository: | Archives and Special Collections Library, Vassar College Libraries |
|---|---|
| Creator: | Middleton, Robert, 1920- |
| Title: | Robert E. Middleton Papers |
| Dates: | 1939-1954 |
| Quantity: | 0.75 cubic feet (2 boxes) |
| Abstract: | Correspondence, photographs and miscellaneous papers from Robert E. Middleton, VC Professor of Music 1953-1985. |
Biographical Note
Born 18 Nov 1920 in Diamond, Ohio, Robert E. Middleton was a composer, performing artist and instructor. Educated at Harvard, Middleton began teaching music at Vassar College in 1953, after spending three years as an instructor at Harvard. Command Performance, Middleton's full-length opera was commissioned by the Vassar College Centennial Committee and had its premiere at Vassar College on 11 Nov 1961. In 1974, Middleton was appointed the George Sherman Dickinson Chair of the Music Department. He retired on 30 June 1985.
TopChronology
| 18 Nov 1920 | Born in Diamond, Ohio |
| Sept 1942-Jan 1946 | Military Service, U.S. Army |
| 1948 | B.A., Harvard University |
| 1953 | Appointed Assistant Professor, Vassar College |
| 1954 | M.A., Harvard University |
| 1958 | Appointed Associate Professor, Vassar College |
| 1965 | Awarded Guggenheim Fellowship in Musical Composition |
| 1966 | Appointed Full Professor, Vassar College |
| 1974 | Appointed George Sherman Dickinson Professor, Vassar College |
| 30 June 1985 | Retired from Vassar College |
Scope and Content Note
The Robert E. Middleton collection contains correspondence, notes, postcards and 2 scores.
TopAccess and Use
Access
This collection is open for research according to the regulations of the Vassar College Archives and Special Collections Library without any additional restrictions.
Restrictions on Use
Permission to quote (publish) from unpublished or previously published material must be obtained as described in the regulations of the Vassar College Archives and Special Collections Library.
Subject Headings
Names:
- Boulanger, Nadia
- Chanler, Theodore, 1902-1961
- Chauncey, Henry
- Copland, Aaron, 1900-1990
- Dallapiccola, Luigi, 1904-1975
- Palmer, Robert, 1915-
- Piston, Walter, 1894-1976
- Slonimsky, Nicolas, 1894-1995
- Szigeti, Joseph, 1892-1973
- Thompson, Randall, 1899-1984
Subjects:
- College teachers
- Composers
- Musicians
- Opera--United States--20th century
- Pianists
Document Types:
- Photographs
- Postcards
- Scores (documents for music)
VCL Categories
- Music
- Vassar College
Administrative Information
Preferred Citation
Robert E. Middleton Papers, Archives and Special Collections Library, Vassar College Libraries.
Processing Information
Processed by Laura Streett, 2005. Updated in 2017.
Acquisition Information
Gift of Robert E. Middleton, 1992. 1950 score donated by the Paddock Music Library, Dartmouth College, 2016.
Appraisal
The Robert E. Middleton Papers were appraised by Wurlitzer-Bruck, 60 Riverside Dr., New York, New York 10024, 1 July 1992.
Container List
| 1.1 | "Approximations for Viola and Piano" by Robert Middleton 1970 (1 score) |
| 1.1b | Boulanger, Nadia, 1939-1946 (14 notes and letters from N.B.; 1 letter from Henry Chauncey, Harvard University) |
| 1.2 | Boulanger, Nadia, 1952-1958 (18 notes and letters; 2 postcards |
| 1.3 | Boulanger, Nadia, circa 1960-1969 (11 notes and letters; 2 photographs) |
| 1.4 | Boulanger, Nadia, 1970-1979 (12 notes and letters) |
| 1.5 | Chanler, Theodore, 1947 (2 letters) |
| 1.6 | Chanler, Theodore — Score of Second Joyful Mystery, circa 1947 |
| 1.6b | "Command Performance : opera in four acts" approximately 1960 (typescript) |
| 1.6c | "The Complete Libretto of Command Performance" by Robert Middleton and Harold Smith 1961 (program for permier performance laid in) |
| 1.7 | Copland, Aaron, 1964, 1969 (4 letters) |
| 1.8 | Dallapiccola, Luigi, 1953-1958 (6 letters) |
| 1.8b | "Organ Preludes" by Robert Middleton 1979 (1 score) |
| 1.9 | Palmer, Robert, 1965 |
| 1.10 | Piston, Walter, 1957-1966 (12 letters; 1 postcard) |
| 1.11 | Slonimsky, Nicolas, 1958 |
| 1.12 | Szigeti, Joseph, 1956-1958 (3 letters from Szigeti; 1 carbon from Middleton; 1 program) |
| 1.13 | Thompson, Randall, 1958, 1964 (2 letters; 1 postcard) |
| Box 2 | "String Quartet" by Robert Middleton 1950 (1 score) |
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Details
Correspondence, photographs and miscellaneous papers from Robert E. Middleton, VC Professor of Music 1953-1985.
