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Rensch
COLLECTION: Roslyn Rensch collection of harp materials
LOCATION AS OF February, 2002: Most individually-cataloged music editions are in
the Music Library's Special Collections area; personal papers, scrapbooks, and
research notes have been deposited in University Archives; recordings are in the
University Press Building Library storage area (several cartons at the end of
the King Collection stacks).
PROVENANCE: Personal collection of donor.
WHEN ACQUIRED: 1989-1990
DESCRIPTION: Roslyn Rensch Erbes, professional harpist, art historian, and
former harp instructor in the School of Music, received a master's degree in art
history from the University of Illinois in 1959. She is the author of several
books on the harp as well as numerous articles. Her donations to the University
of Illinois consisted of 350-400 items of harp music (solo and ensemble)
including manuscript materials, items autographed by composer or arranger, and
some late 19th-century editions (e.g., nine bound volumes originally owned ca.
1900 by Emma Weast Bichl, Chicago-area harpist); approximately 200 recordings
(about 100 78-rpm records as well as LP, 45-rpm, and cassette recordings); books
on the harp, on harp music, and music history; miscellaneous books in other
subject areas (including 34 titles on numismatics); 38 scrapbooks compiled by
Rensch, with materials largely from the period 1917-1968; extensive files of
research notes, journals, programs, photographs, correspondence, and other
personal papers; a scrapbook (with additional loose clippings) compiled by
Margaret Sweeney, professional harpist in Chicago from the 1930s through the
1960s; harps and other musical instruments; art works and artifacts related to
the harp. The Music Library retained the printed and manuscript music,
recordings,
books on music, and certain of the art works; journal issues duplicating
existing holdings may have been discarded. Scrapbooks, personal papers, research
notes, and some pictorial materials have been deposited in University Archives
(10.7 cubic feet of holdings). Non-music books and pamphlets were
forwarded to other Library units to be considered for acquisition. Musical
instruments were donated to the School of Music, as was also a small marble
statue of a harp player, currently on display in the School of Music harp
instructor's studio.
ACCESS/FINDING AIDS/BIBLIOGRAPHY: Refer to the online catalog; almost all items
of harp music have been cataloged and placed in the Music Library's Special
Collections area. Rensch's detailed handwritten lists of donated items, as well
as summary descriptions prepared by Music Librarian William McClellan, are in
the Collections File folder ("Rensch, Roslyn"), along with an extensive file of
correspondence between Rensch and Library personnel, memos concerning
microfilming, publicity, or collection processing, summaries of Rensch holdings
in the University Archives, photographs, and other miscellaneous documents.
Refer to the online catalog for brief entries describing University Archives
holdings of Rensch's personal papers and scrapbooks, and to a finding aid which
may be consulted at the Archives. The scrapbooks have been microfilmed (20
reels). A brief description of the Rensch donation was published in Notes,
the Music Library Association journal ("Notes for Notes," December 19 vol.46
no.2, pp.377-378).
INDEX TERMS: Bichl, Emma Weast
Harp music
Manuscripts
Recordings: 78 rpm
Rensch, Roslyn
Sweeney, Margaret
SEE ALSO: Rensch, Roslyn. Harps and harpists. (London: 1989) [ML1005A36
H27]
"Rensch, Roslyn" in Who's who in American music: classical, 2d ed. (New
York: 1985) [ML106.U3 W46 1985]
The Music Library at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign has been
given a portion of the Roslyn Rensch Harp Collection of music and resources on
the harp and harpists. A musician and art historian, Rensch is the author of
three books and several dozen articles on the harp. The collection comprises
over 900 items, including 110 books, 225 periodical issues from various harp
magazines and other journals, 386 scores and editions of solo harp and ensemble
music (anthologies, separate editions, manuscripts, and harp parts from the
orchestral repertoire), and 150 phonograph records (mainly 78-rpm and LP discs
of classical, folk, and popular music performances featuring harpists such as
Lily Laskine, Henriette Renie, Carlos Salzedo, and Casper Reardon). The
collection also encompasses the music library of Emma Weast Bichl, a
Chicago-area harpist who flourished during the late nineteenth century and first
quarter of the twentieth. Nine binders' albums representing 32 titles issued
during the period 1890-1910 survive from the Bichl library, as do two important
studies on musical instruments by Robert Bruce Armstrong. His Musical
Instruments, vol. 1: The Irish and the High/and Harps (1904), and
vol. 2: English and Irish Instruments (1908), were both autographed by
Armstrong to his colleague W. H. Grattan Flood and include some corrections and
additions in the author's hand. Notes, 1989, pp.377-378
RENSCH,ROSLYN
HARP,LECTURER
b Detroit, Mich, Study: Northwestern Univ, studied harp with Alberto Salvi, BMus,
MMus; Univ III, MA; Ind Univ, studied musicol with Willi Apel & Paul Nettl. Univ
Wis, PhD, 64, Pos: First harpist, Chicago suburban orch, 50'9 & Terre' Haute
Symph Orch, 65-; theatre orch harpist, Chicago, formerly,
Teaching: Instr harp, Univ III, 55-58; prof humanities, art hist & harp, Ind
State Univ, 65-; lectr harp, col, univ & music orgn, Europe & US, 70- Mem: Sigma
Alpha Iota; Am Harp Soc (mem bd dir, 76-82, first v pres, 79-80, chmn comt sch &
fac harp study, 79-); Am Fedn Musicians; World Harp Cong (mem
bd dir 83- secy83-85), Res Interest: The history and music of the harp; harp
representations in art monuments. Publ: Auth, The Harp, from Tara's Halls to the
American Schools, Philosophical Libr, 50; Symbolism and Form of the Harp in
Western European Manuscript Illuminations, Univ Wis, Madison, 64;
The Harp, Its History, Technique and Repertoire, Gerald Duckworth, 69;
Development of the Medieval Harp, Gesta, Int Ctr Medieval Art, Vol X1/2, 27-36;
Cousineau, French Family of Harp Makers, In: New Grove Dict of Music &
Musicians, Vol 5,4.5. Mailing Add: 701 Delaware Ave Terre Haute
IN 47804 ;
RENSCH.ERBES, ROSLYN MARIA See Rensch, Roslyn 1 Who's who in American music:
classical, 2d ed.p.484
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