public-spirited alumnus collector
The newest exhibition at the Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library pays tribute to an alumnus whose personal interests prompted him to collect a wide variety of historical artifacts, and whose public spirit prompted him to donate those items to Yale so they could be accessible to a wider audience.
Titled "From Heinrich Schütz to Henry Miller," the show features selections from the archive of Frederick R. Koch, a 1961 graduate of the School of Drama. Koch's collection, assembled chiefly in the 1980s, reflects his broad range of interests in literature, the visual arts and -- especially -- music.
The exhibit, which will be on view
In the catalog accompanying the show, President Richard C. Levin writes: "This exhibition, organized as part of the University's Tercentennial celebration, displays for a wider public some of the most important scores and manuscripts assembled by Frederick R. Koch, a selection that reflects the impressive range and diversity of this vast collection. With the exhibit and its catalog, the University wishes to express gratitude for one of the greatest collections to come to Yale since the year of its founding."
While the show includes some of the diverse literary treasures Koch collected -- from the manuscript of A.A. Milne's first poetry collection, "When We Were Very Young" (1924), to the heavily corrected working typescript of Henry Miller's "Tropic of Cancer" -- it reflects the principal emphasis of the alumnus' collections: musical works of the 19th and 20th centuries.
Among the items on display are manuscript scores by Pergolesi, Boccherini, Mozart, Berlioz, Schubert, Liszt, Gounod, Chopin, Fauré and Stravinsky.
Two of the highlights include a recently discovered score of "The Tales of Hoffmann," which has radically altered previously held assumptions about the composition history of Jacques Offenbach's posthumous masterpiece; and the complete piano vocal draft of "Pelléas et Mélisande," described as the single most important manuscript of Debussy's opera. The latter is marked with modifications in different colored inks, allowing scholars to trace the composition of the opera over a period of almost eight years.
Koch's interest in the theater arts is also reflected in the materials relating to opera and other collaborations between authors and composers. The Beinecke exhibition, for instance, includes an 1819 cantata by Rossini in honor of Emperor Francis I of Austria; Francesco Maria Piave's 1843 libretto to Verdi's "Ernani," completely in the composer's hand; and the manuscript of Hugo von Hofmannsthal's 1903 play "Elektra," which became the basis of the Richard Strauss opera of the same name.
The Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library is located at 121 Wall St. It is open for exhibition viewing Monday-Friday 8:30 a.m.-4:45 p.m. and Saturday 10 a.m.-3 p.m. Admission is free. For further information, call (203) 432-2977 or visit the library's website at www.library.yale.edu/beinecke/.
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