Tagged Fleisher Collection

Rediscovering Sophie Drinker: A Pioneer in Women’s Music History

The Music Special Collections Department at the Free Library of Philadelphia holds three collections of music materials: the Edwin A. Fleisher Orchestral Music Collection , the Sheet Music Collection , and the Drinker Choral Collection…

Department Highlights: Music

Since  Parkway Central Library  opened in 1927, patrons have had free and open access to its rich and unique collections, expanding services, and professionally trained and welcoming staff. The robust programs and collections…

First Fleisher Collection Scholarship Awarded to Philadelphia Composer and Pianist, Rhyuhn Green

The Edwin A. Fleisher Collection of Orchestral Music is excited to announce our new partnership with Play on Philly (POP). We are particularly enthusiastic about this alliance as POP echoes Edwin Fleisher’s original concept in…

Fleisher Collection of Orchestral Music Gifts Avshalomov Works to China

The Edwin A. Fleisher Collection of Orchestral Music is excited to announce the gift of three complete performance sets for works by Russian-born Chinese national composer Aaron Avshalomov to the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra. The three…

The Fleisher Collection in LGBTQ+ Cinema

The  Fleisher Collection of Orchestral Music  at the Free Library of Philadelphia houses over 22,000 pieces. Works are available for loan to amateur and professional performance groups worldwide, and many motion picture…

Literature Meets Music with Shakespeare Is for Everyone

William Shakespeare is a towering figure in English literature, but his contributions were not limited to written work; he also had a major influence on classical music. A new webinar from the Free Library’s Literature Department…

African American History in the Fleisher Collection

Lately, there has been a resurgence of interest in African Americans' contributions to the classical music genre. Boston Conservatory is set to have a Florence Price Birthday Celebration Concert ; the film Chevalier  (released…

Rediscovering Louis Ballard at the Fleisher

The Edwin A. Fleisher Collection of Orchestral Music team is thrilled about Fort Smith Symphony Orchestra’s latest album,  Louis Wayne Ballard : a stunning compilation of recorded performances of Louis W. Ballard’s…

Faces of the Free Library: Meet Mark!

As patrons may know, the Free Library has been expanding staffing efforts throughout the library system in recent months. With all the hiring excitement, there’s a mix of both new and familiar faces in all of the branches, and you…

Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage in the Fleisher Collection

The Edwin A. Fleisher Collection of Orchestral Music at the Free Library of Philadelphia offers a closing theme as Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month comes to an end for 2023. As we share a sampling of the rich cultural…

Confession: I’m an Accidental Music Librarian

Hi, my name is Gillian and I’m an accidental music librarian. Specifically, I’m an accidental orchestral music librarian. I recently joined the staff of The Edwin A. Fleisher Collection of Orchestral Music (Fleisher…

The ABCs of the WPA at FLP

As part of his bold New Deal aimed at national reform and recovery in the wake of the Great Depression , President Franklin D. Roosevelt launched the Work Projects Administration (WPA) . The federally funded program focused on putting…

Finding "Nonno"

In addition to offering patrons ever-growing Digital Collections , dozens of research databases , and a rich variety of genealogic resources , the Free Library and the Special Collections Division deliver an exceptional customer…

Going Under COVID: How the Shows Still Go On

by Dr. Gary Galván In early March 2020, orchestras around the world began contacting the Fleisher Collection to let us know they were canceling concerts for which they had borrowed music. The socio-cultural impact of COVID-19 was…

#SpecialCollectionsAtHome

The Free Library of Philadelphia is home to a myriad of Special Collections . Since mid-March, we have been closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This means that those of us who work with the Special Collections, are unable to work…

The Rights and Wrongs of Social Distancing

by Karin S. and Chris B. Social Distancing can be a challenge! It seems like the rules of what you should and shouldn't do are always changing.  To help you learn* about the right and wrong ways to do it, a team of Special…

Fleisher Discoveries | #5WomenArtists (+1)

by Kile Smith The National Museum of Women in the Arts asked, "Can you name five women artists?" March is Women’s History Month , and Fleisher Discoveries is answering that question with five women composers –…

The Fleisher Collection Debuts a New Music Podcast!

by Kile Smith While this is our first-ever podcast, Discoveries is actually entering its 17th year of broadcasts. In the fall of 2002, the Fleisher Collection of Orchestral Music at the Free Library of Philadelphia launched Discoveries…

Discoveries from the Fleisher Collection: MacDowell, Strausses, and 1885

Saturday, July 7, 2018, 5:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. Johann Strauss, Jr. (1825–1899). The Gypsy Baron, Overture 1885) Richard Strauss (1864–1949). Horn Concerto No. 1 (1883) Edward MacDowell (1860–1908). Piano Concerto…

Discoveries from the Fleisher Collection: American Romantics and Other Cultures

Saturday, June 2, 2018, 5:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. Charles Cadman (1881–1946). Dark Dancers of the Mardi Gras (1933) Carl Busch (1864–1943). Minnehaha’s Vision (1914) Cadman . Thunderbird Suite (1918) Gena Branscombe…