JAVS Fall 2008

FUTURE PROJECTS WITHIN THE RILEY COLLECTION

have been organized by chapter and volume. The final proofs and plates (photos/illustrations) have also been separated by chapter and are included in these files. This section of the collection also contains the drafts and corre spondence that led to the Italian translation La Storia della Viola (translated by Elena Belloni Filippi). Several letters noting corrections were sent to Riley from violists around the world and have been kept in this section of the collection. Through his communication with several hundred violists around the world, one can imagine the amount of mail Riley received (and sent) throughout his life; especially while researching and writing The History of the Viola . The letters have yet to be official ly counted, but it is estimated that there are over a thousand let ters in the Riley Collection deal ing with topics from the length ening of fingerboards to the budg et of the American Viola Society. Many of these letters are from his toric performers and public fig ures, from William Primrose to Jimmy Carter. Most of the letters have been organized by date, but all of the letters need to be sum marized and recorded into an accessible database. This task would be suitable for any violist seeking a project for a grant, dis sertation, or graduate work. It is hoped that these letters can be archived and stored in a similar fashion to the letters found in the Primrose and Coletta Collections at PIVA.

violists throughout the world. These questionnaires asked per formers to detail their educational background, performance history, favorite viola, and any other information of pertinent interest. Completed questionnaires were returned to Riley, often including résumés, promotional materials, concert programs, photos, and several personal letters. The accu mulated documents were kept in individual files, each bearing the name of an important violist or composer who contributed to viola literature. These files, from Abell to Zukerman, have been preserved in their original folders and take up as much room as all the drafts and proofs for Volume I of The History of the Viola. The International Viola Congress section fills four archival boxes, containing Maurice Riley’s sou venirs and notes from every International Viola Congress he attended throughout his life (almost every congress held until 1995). Riley was the man respon sible for bringing the International Viola Congress to American soil when he hosted the 1975 IVC at Eastern Michigan University. Due to the success of that congress (the first one Primrose attended), Riley was consulted regularly for advice and help in organizing future con gresses worldwide. The largest section contains all the drafts, proofs, and plates for The History of the Viola. Thousands of pages of drafts— some typed, many handwritten—

Archiving the Correspondence section of the Riley Collection is one of several projects remaining to be completed. Hundreds of photos of violists and International Viola Congresses have been organized by year and event, but digital copies need to be made for archiving and greater accessibility. Some individuals and events in the photos need identifi cation. Recordings, microfilm, and reel-to-reel films from several viola competitions, lectures, and panels also need to be digitized and organized. Another interest ing project entails going through Riley’s collection of books, includ ing his own copies of The History of the Viola . Post-it notes, inser tions, and bookmarks need to be removed from these books and properly archived. These books are fascinating to thumb through; showing the intense toil and thor ough editing Riley gave his work. The “beast” of the collection that remains to be tamed is the massive collection of research accumulated by Riley throughout his lifetime. This portion of the collection is perhaps the most revealing into the life and work of Maurice Riley. Currently the research fills two large cardboard boxes—stacks of notes, copied articles, excerpts from books, bibliographies, etc. The amount of research is staggering, and the individual or individuals who take on this task will have to use his or her best judgment as to how to best organize the materials.

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