xt7r222r6c4q https://exploreuk.uky.edu/dips/xt7r222r6c4q/data/mets.xml https://exploreuk.uky.edu/dips/xt7r222r6c4q/data/2013ms0849.dao.xml Geritz, Josephine 1937-1952 0.3 Cubic feet 1 box (21 items) collections English University of Kentucky This digital resource may be freely searched and displayed.  Permission must be received for subsequent distribution in print or electronically.  Physical rights are retained by the owning repository.  Copyright is retained in accordance with U. S. copyright laws.  For information about permissions to reproduce or publish, contact the Special Collections Research Center. Josephine Geritz collection on John Jacob Niles Composers Folk Music. Music--Appalachian Region Sheet music. Josephine Geritz collection on John Jacob Niles text Josephine Geritz collection on John Jacob Niles 1937 1937-1952 2014 true xt7r222r6c4q collection false 
     
         2013ms0849 
         
             
                 Josephine Geritz collection on John Jacob Niles, 1937-1952
                     2013ms0849 
                 
                 Geritz, Josephine collection on John Jacob Niles 
                 Finding aid prepared by Heidi Taylor-Caudill 
             
             
                 
                     
                 
                 University of Kentucky Special Collections 
                 
                     Special Collections 
                     Margaret I. King Building, North 
                     Lexington, KY, 40506-0039 
                     (859) 257-8611 
                     SCLREF@LSV.UKY.EDU 
                 
                 2013 October 11 
             
         
         
             This finding aid was produced using the Archivists' Toolkit
                 2014-01-21T17:02-0500 
             
             Describing Archives: A Content Standard 
         
     
     
         
             Josephine Geritz collection on John Jacob Niles 
             2013ms0849 
             
                 University of Kentucky Special Collections 
             
             
                 
             
             
                 0.3 Cubic feet 
                 1 box (21 items) 
             
             1937-1952 
             
                 Geritz, Josephine 
             
         
         
             Preferred Citation note 
             2013ms0849 : [identification of item], Josephine Geritz collection on John Jacob Niles, 1937-1952, University of Kentucky Special Collections. 
         
         
             Immediate Source of Acquisition note 
             Gift, 2013 
         
         
             Arrangement note 
             Collection is arranged by subject. 
         
         
             Conditions Governing Use note 
             Property rights reside with the University of Kentucky. The University of Kentucky holds the copyright for materials created in the course of business by University of Kentucky employees. Copyright for all other materials has not been assigned to the University of Kentucky. For information about permission to reproduce or publish, please contact Special Collections. 
         
         
             Conditions Governing Access note 
             Collection is open to researchers by appointment. 
         
         
             Scope and Contents note 
             The Josephine Geritz collection on John Jacob Niles (dated 1937-1952, 0.3 cubic feet; 21 items) comprises sheet music in handwritten and facsimile form that document folk music from the Appalachian Region adapted by composer John Jacob Niles. All material, except two, is the work of John Jacob Niles. 
             Many of the scores are dedicated to Josephine Heintz Geritz, rehearsal pianist for the LA Philharmonic and friend of John Jacob Niles. Niles gifted the scores to her while he stayed at her house in the 1940s. 
         
         
             Related Archival Materials note 
             82M9, John Jacob Niles papers, 1900-1980, University of Kentucky Special Collections. 
         
         
             Biographical note 
             Josephine Heintz Geritz, pianist, lecturer, and piano instructor, was born in Los Angeles, California, on July 7, 1899. She studied piano with several prominent teachers including Polish Romantic composer Sigismond Stojowski, Hungarian-American pianist Alexander Raab, Ann J. Eachus, and Paolo Galileo. She also studied harmony with music educators Carolyn Alden Alchin and Vincent Jones, and orchestration with conductor Walter Henry Rothwell. In 1916 Josephine Geritz began teaching piano. Over the course of her career she trained many professional pianists and composers; one of her most famous students was American composer James Newton Howard. Josephine Geritz worked with the Los Angeles Philharmonic as a symphonic reviewer and rehearsal pianist. On March 26, 1927, she married Hungarian-born artist Franz Geritz. The couple was known for hosting many visiting artists, including Ernest Hemingway, at their Los Angeles home. 
             John Jacob Niles, composer, performer, and author, was born in Louisville in 1892. Coming from a musical family, Niles began to play the dulcimer at an early age. As a teenager he worked with a surveying team in eastern Kentucky. During this time he kept a notebook in which he recorded lyrics and music of old folk songs known in the area. Niles served as a U.S. Army pilot in World War I and made numerous reconnaissance flights until he suffered serious injuries in a plane crash. After the war he studied music at the University of Lyon and the Schola Cantorium in Paris. Niles completed his musical education at the Cincinnati Conservatory of Music. He renewed his search for folk songs in Appalachia as he accompanied noted photographer Doris Ulmann on her travels through the mountain region. He set traditional songs in new arrangements and composed many original songs. 
             Fletcher, Russell Holmes. 
                 Who's who in California . California: Who's Who publications, 1943. 
         
         
             Frost, Richard B. 
             Niles, John Jacob, 1892-1980 
             Appalachian Region. 
             Composers 
             Folk Music. 
             Music--Appalachian Region 
             Sheet music. 
         
         
             
                 
                     John Jacob Niles 
                     Series I. 
                     1937-1952 
                 
                 
                     Scope and Contents note 
                     Comprises piano sheet music in handwritten and facsimile form that document folk music from the Appalachian Region and original scores by John Jacob Niles. 
                 
                 
                     
                         Handwritten musical scores 
                         Subseries A. 
                         1944-1948 
                     
                     
                         
                             
                             1 
                             1 
                             1944-1945 
                         
                         
                             
                                 
                                     Green Beds 
                                 1 
                                 1 
                                 1-3 
                                 1944 June 23 
                             
                             
                                 Scope and Contents note 
                                 Played with 2 pianos. Gathering of three copies of 
                                     Green Beds . Text of song taken from a folk song titled 
                                     Green Beds  and adapted by John Jacob Niles. Dedicated to Josephine Geritz. Third copy is not in John Jacob Niles' hand. 
                             
                         
                         
                             
                                 
                                     The Story of the Bee 
                                 1 
                                 1 
                                 4 
                                 1944 August 
                             
                             
                                 Scope and Contents note 
                                 Played with 2 pianos. Adapted from the folksong 
                                     Do Take Care of the Bee Boys . Dedicated to Josephine Geritz of Los Angeles Hollywood. No manuscript source prior to this copy. 
                             
                         
                         
                             
                                 
                                     The Little Mohee (My Little Mohee) 
                                 1 
                                 1 
                                 5 
                                 1944 August 13 
                             
                             
                                 Scope and Contents note 
                                 Piano solo for 2 pianos. Family folk song adapted by John Jacob Niles. Dedicated to Josephine Geritz of Hollywood California. Written notes above portions of the music include 
                                     The sailor comes to grief through the vamping of a gay young female with low standards  and 
                                     The Salvation Army comes to pray for the sailor . 
                             
                         
                         
                             
                                 
                                     The Little Mohee (My Little Mohee) 
                                 1 
                                 1 
                                 6 
                                 1944 August 13 
                             
                             
                                 Scope and Contents note 
                                 Piano solo for 2 pianos. Adapted from a family folk song sung by John Jacob Niles' father. Dedicated to Josephine Geritz of Hollywood California. Written notes above portions of the music include 
                                     The sailor meets the girl , 
                                     The sailor comes to grief through the vamping of a gay young female with low standards  and 
                                     The Salvation Army comes to pray for the sailor . 
                             
                         
                         
                             
                                 
                                     Jesus, Jesus Rest Your Head 
                                 1 
                                 1 
                                 7 
                                 1945 May 18 
                             
                             
                                 Scope and Contents note 
                                 Played with four hands at one piano. A folk carol collected from the Graham Family of Vine Grove, KY, and adapted by John Jacob Niles. Dedicated to Josephine Geritz of Los Angeles California. 
                             
                         
                     
                     
                         
                             
                             1 
                             2 
                             1945-1948 
                         
                         
                             
                                 
                                     Jesus the Christ Is Born 
                                 1 
                                 2 
                                 1 
                                 1945 June 22, July 10 
                             
                             
                                 Scope and Contents note 
                                 Played with four hands at one piano. Collected and adapted by John Jacob Niles. Dedicated to Josephine Geritz. Dated June 22, 1945 on cover and July 10, 1945 at end. 
                             
                         
                         
                             
                                 
                                     The Gypsy Laddie (The Lady and the Gypsy) 
                                 1 
                                 2 
                                 2 
                                 1947 May 2 
                             
                             
                                 Scope and Contents note 
                                 Piano solo. Child ballad collected and adapted by John Jacob Niles. Dedicated to Mrs. Josephine. Handwritten notes include 
                                     Child Ballad 200  and 
                                     Improvisations no 10 . 
                             
                         
                         
                             
                                 
                                     The Rovin' Gambler (from the Gambler Songs) 
                                 1 
                                 2 
                                 3 
                                 1947 June 16 
                             
                             
                                 Scope and Contents note 
                                 Played with four hands at one piano. Collected and adapted from folk sources by John Jacob Niles. Dedicated to Josephine. Copied in Carbondale, Illinois. Marked as the first in a series of four hands at one piano and orchestra bound. 
                             
                         
                         
                             
                                 
                                     The Carrion Crow 
                                 1 
                                 2 
                                 4 
                                 1948 
                             
                             
                                 Scope and Contents note 
                                 Piano solo. Folk nursery rhyme from the Appalachians, collected and adapted by John Jacob Niles. Lewis Henry Horton also listed as composer/arranger. Dedicated to Mrs. Josephine. Title page includes note 
                                     For young players at the piano . 
                             
                         
                         
                             
                                 
                                     I'm Goin' Away (He's Goin' Away) 
                                 1 
                                 2 
                                 5 
                                 1948 July 5 
                             
                             
                                 Scope and Contents note 
                                 Played with four hands at one piano. Dedicated to Josephine Geritz, Los Angeles California. 
                             
                         
                         
                             
                                 
                                     One Morning in May 
                                 1 
                                 2 
                                 6 
                                 1948 
                             
                             
                                 Scope and Contents note 
                                 Played with piano. Collected and adapted from folk sources by John Jacob Niles. Lewis Henry Horton also listed as composer/arranger. Dedicated to Mrs. Josephine Geritz. Title page includes handwritten note 
                                     for young people at the piano . 
                             
                         
                     
                     
                         
                             
                                 I Wonder As I Wander 
                             1 
                             3 
                             undated 
                         
                     
                 
                 
                     
                         Facsimiles 
                         Subseries B. 
                         1949-1952 
                     
                     
                         
                             
                             1 
                             4 
                             1949 
                         
                         
                             
                                 
                                     Lo How the Lonely Places Prosper 
                                 1 
                                 4 
                                 1 
                                 1949 April 25 
                             
                             
                                 Scope and Contents note 
                                 Played with voice (soprano) and piano or orchestra. Collected and adapted by John Jacob Niles with passages from the Bible. Dedicated to Rena, Thomas, and Little John. 
                             
                         
                         
                             
                                 
                                     The Turtle Dove 
                                 1 
                                 4 
                                 2 
                                 1949 July 4-5, August 15 
                             
                             
                                 Scope and Contents note 
                                 Played with piano and voice. Text adapted from a folk love song by John Jacob Niles. 
                             
                         
                     
                     
                         
                             
                                 Lamentation 
                             1 
                             5 
                             1950 August 29 
                         
                         
                             Scope and Contents note 
                             Oratorio for soloists, chorus, and piano. John Jacob Niles' adaptation of various texts and the Bible. Dedicated to Rena, Thomas, and Little John. 
                         
                     
                     
                         
                             
                             1 
                             6 
                             1950-1952 
                         
                         
                             
                                 
                                     I Never Had But One Love 
                                 1 
                                 6 
                                 1 
                                 1950 September 15 
                             
                             
                                 Scope and Contents note 
                                 Played with piano and voice. Text and music by John Jacob Niles. Dedicated to Gladys Swarthout. 
                             
                         
                         
                             
                                 
                                     The Little Lyking  and 
                                     Sweet Marie and Her Baby 
                                 1 
                                 6 
                                 2-3 
                                 1952 February 7, June 1 
                             
                             
                                 Scope and Contents note 
                                 Piano solos. Dedicated to Josephine Geritz. 
                             
                         
                     
                     
                         
                             
                                 I Wonder As I Wander 
                             1 
                             7 
                             undated 
                         
                         
                             Scope and Contents note 
                             Played with four hands at one piano. Collected and adapted by John Jacob Niles from singing of Annie Morgan at Brasstown, NC. Dedicated to Josephine Geritz of Los Angeles, California. Incomplete. 
                         
                     
                 
                 
                     
                         Published songbook, 
                             Ballads, Carols, and Tragic Legends from the Southern Appalachian Mountains 
                         Subseries C. 
                         1 
                         9 
                         1937 September 18 
                     
                     
                         Scope and Contents note 
                         Played with piano. Collected and adapted by John Jacob Niles. Published octavo edition by G. Schirmer in the 
                             American Folk Song Series . Stamped 
                             John de Keyser and Company Music Dealers, 625 South Grand Ave. Los Angeles, CA . Contains: 
                             Riddles Wisely Expounded , 
                             The Wife of Usher's Well , 
                             Oh! Who's Going To Shoe Your Pretty Little Foot , 
                             Never Was a Child So Lovely , 
                             The Two Corbies , 
                             Father Grumble , 
                             Sweet Jane , 
                             I Wash My Face in a Golden Vase , 
                             The Cruel Mother , 
                             Lord Thomas and Fair Ellender . 
                     
                 
             
             
                 
                     Unidentified composers 
                     Series II. 
                     undated 
                 
                 
                     Scope and Contents note 
                     Comprises sheet music in handwritten form that documents music for the piano, saxophone, and alto clarinet by unknown composers. 
                 
                 
                     
                         
                             Idle Hill of Summer? 
                         1 
                         8 
                         1 
                         undated 
                     
                     
                         Scope and Contents note 
                         Played with piano. Unknown composer, signed John Linnel? Possibly another piece written for Josephine Geritz to perform. 
                     
                 
                 
                     
                         
                             Little Piece for Saxophone, Alto Clarinet, and Piano 
                         1 
                         8 
                         2 
                         undated 
                     
                     
                         Scope and Contents note 
                         Played with saxophone, alto clarinet, and piano. Composer: John Linnie? Hassell? Dedicated to Josephine Geritz.