Nashville publishers sheet music collection, 1863-1912.
(Document/manuscript/pamphlet/archival material)

Original arrangement of materials has been retained.

Materials housed in Special Collections Division of the Main Library, Nashville Public Library.

Items are very fragile. Handle with care.

Music may have once been bound into a single volume.

In library use only. Available by appointment.

Scope and content: Sheet music published or distributed in Nashville, Tenn. A few items may have been published elsewhere but bear connection to Nashville through subject matter, illustrations, or printing house. Most items date from the late 1800s with a few from the early 1900s. Publishers featured prominently in the collection include: R. Dorman & Co.; Jas. A. McClure; Frank G. Fite; Jesse French; and H.A. French. Printing firms include: Brandon Printing; Benson Printing; Marshall & Bruce Co., and others. Many of these firms were located along Church Street. Most illustrated covers are black and white, although several are in color. A few feature photographs. Type of music varies, but includes marches and waltzes. Some music includes advertisements and catalogs for music and pianos, and occasionally other types of businesses. A few works were written specifically to highlight a particular brand or model of piano, such as the Starr piano, which was manufactured in Indiana, but sold at the Jesse French Piano and Organ Company in Nashville

A few items deserve special mention. The "Tennessee Centennial Prize March" is lavishly illustrated in color on the cover, and features black and white drawings on the individual sheets of buildings at the Tennessee Centennial Exposition, including the Parthenon. This particular piece of music, composed by Maurice Bernhardt, was the prize-winner of a competition sponsored by the O.K. Houck music company of Memphis. A brief history of the competition is provided on the first page of music. The piece was dedicated to Mrs. Van Leer Kirkman, president of the Womans Board of the Exposition and her photograph appears on the cover

"Meet Me at Skalowski's" promotes Skalowski's Ice Cream Parlor, located at 217 Fifth Avenue North in Nashville. Photographs of the shop and its proprietor, Maurice H. Skalowski, appear on the back cover, and include a photograph of the orchestra balcony. Inside the back cover is an advertisement which provides a number of details about the parlor, and mentions Skalowski's motto: "a particular place for particular people."

One piece of music, the "Star Waltz for the Piano," was published by F.T. and W.J. Cummins, president and vice-president of the Southern Soda Works, manufacturers of Star Brand Cooking Soda. It includes an advertisement for their product. Other noteworthy pieces include "Richmond is a Hard Road to Travel," copyrighted through a Confederate district court; "Silver Spring Grand Waltz," dedicated to Joel S. French; and the "Vanderbilt University Grand March."

Cite as: Nashville Publishers Sheet Music Collection, Special Collections Division, Nashville Public Library

This material may be protected by copyright law (Title 17 U.S. Code)

Tennessee State Library and Archives;,Gift;,1990,Acc. RT-306.

In English

Of unknown provenance prior to custody of Tennessee State Library and Archives.

Rehouse;,2007;,Linda Barnickel.

No further accruals are expected.