Ruth Orcutt Bacon Papers
Collection
Identifier: MANUSCRIPT-M00026
The materials have been arranged into two series: 1) Compositions, which contains scores for “Concert Piece” and several short works, as well as a phonograph record, and 2) Working Papers, which contains letters, copyright notices, and sheet music for a piece Bacon recorded but did not write.
Series 1, Compositions, has been divided into two subseries: 1) Concert Piece, and 2) Other Works. Subseries 1 comprises the bulk of the series and contains manuscript scores, photocopies, and sampled orchestral part scores for Bacon’s prize-winning master’s thesis and primary work, “Concert Piece for Piano and Orchestra” (see biographical sketch for more information). On the various scores, the piece is referred to as both “Concert Piece” and “Concerto in A minor.” Also included are scores for a two-piano version composed around the same time as the original. While the piece was written and originally performed in 1927-28, some items are dated 1935 because they were used in a later performance.
Little is known about the compositions included in subseries 2, Other Works. In addition to scores, this subseries contains a recording of Meribah Moore singing songs by Bacon, accompanied by Bacon on the piano. The titles listed on the record label are “Wings,” “Signal,” and “The Return from Town.” The latter is a setting of a poem by Edna St. Vincent Millay; see the correspondence file in series 2 for an account of Bacon’s writing to Millay for permission to use the text. Although the record cannot be played, the recoverable content was digitized and can be accessed from the CD stored with the record.
Series 2, Working Papers, contains three files: 1) Correspondence, 2) Copyright Registration, and 3) Compositions Used on CD. “Compositions Used on CD” was the original file label for a folder containing sheet music for Victor Staub’s “Sous Bois.” The CD mentioned is probably “A Tribute to Ruth Orcutt Bacon” (Doremi, n.d.), which includes a recording of Bacon playing “Sous Bois.”
Series 1, Compositions, has been divided into two subseries: 1) Concert Piece, and 2) Other Works. Subseries 1 comprises the bulk of the series and contains manuscript scores, photocopies, and sampled orchestral part scores for Bacon’s prize-winning master’s thesis and primary work, “Concert Piece for Piano and Orchestra” (see biographical sketch for more information). On the various scores, the piece is referred to as both “Concert Piece” and “Concerto in A minor.” Also included are scores for a two-piano version composed around the same time as the original. While the piece was written and originally performed in 1927-28, some items are dated 1935 because they were used in a later performance.
Little is known about the compositions included in subseries 2, Other Works. In addition to scores, this subseries contains a recording of Meribah Moore singing songs by Bacon, accompanied by Bacon on the piano. The titles listed on the record label are “Wings,” “Signal,” and “The Return from Town.” The latter is a setting of a poem by Edna St. Vincent Millay; see the correspondence file in series 2 for an account of Bacon’s writing to Millay for permission to use the text. Although the record cannot be played, the recoverable content was digitized and can be accessed from the CD stored with the record.
Series 2, Working Papers, contains three files: 1) Correspondence, 2) Copyright Registration, and 3) Compositions Used on CD. “Compositions Used on CD” was the original file label for a folder containing sheet music for Victor Staub’s “Sous Bois.” The CD mentioned is probably “A Tribute to Ruth Orcutt Bacon” (Doremi, n.d.), which includes a recording of Bacon playing “Sous Bois.”
Dates
- 1927 - 1992
Condition Description
While the collection is in good condition overall, many papers are brittle and show signs of insect damage that occurred prior to accession. The record is damaged and unplayable; however, the content has been digitized and placed on a CD, which is enclosed with the original record and playable in the reading room.
Conditions Governing Access
No restrictions.
Conditions Governing Use
Copyright is retained by the authors of items in this collection, their descendants, or the repository if copyright has been signed over, as stipulated by United States copyright law. It is the responsibility of the user to determine any copyright restrictions, obtain written permission, and pay any fees necessary for the reproduction or proposed use of the materials.
All requests for permission to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted in writing to the Archives. Permission for publication is given on behalf of the University of Hawaii Library as the owner of the physical items.
All requests for permission to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted in writing to the Archives. Permission for publication is given on behalf of the University of Hawaii Library as the owner of the physical items.
Extent
1.67 Linear Feet (1 6-inch box, 1 13x15 flat box)
Overview
Papers of Viola “Ruth” Orcutt Bacon (1900–2003), a composer, instructor, and musician who taught at Punahou School and performed as a soloist with the Honolulu Symphony. The collection consists primarily of musical scores for Bacon’s composition “Concert Piece” but also includes other works, letters, copyright confirmation notices, and a phonographic record. Many items have been scanned and uploaded to ScholarSpace, UHM's institutional repository; see the Ruth Orcutt Bacon Papers collection.
Biographical / Historical
Ruth Orcutt Bacon (1900–2003) was born Viola Orcutt in Gillespie, Illinois. She began playing the piano at four years old and continued her music education at Forest Park University for Women in St. Louis, Missouri. She earned a master’s degree at the Chicago Musical College, studying under Percy Grainger and Ernest Richard Kroeger. In 1927, for her master’s thesis, she wrote a concerto for piano and orchestra, which she performed with the Chicago Symphony orchestra. This work, known as “Concert Piece for Piano and Orchestra,” was awarded first place in the ensemble division of the 1936 Mu Phi Epsilon National Biennial Composition Competition.
Bacon joined the music faculty at the University of Kansas, where she taught for 18 years before leaving in 1946 to work at Punahou School in Honolulu. Ruth Bacon taught music at Punahou for ten years and gave piano lessons in her Ewa home for twenty. She also performed as a soloist with the Honolulu Symphony on several occasions and accompanied many famous artists who visited Hawaii in the 1940s and ’50s.
In 1976, Bacon moved to Pohai Nani Good Samaritan Retirement Community with her husband, Burt Bacon, a former field superintendent at Ewa Plantation whom she had met and married while teaching at Punahou. Ruth Bacon became the chairwoman of her retirement community’s music association and continued to teach lessons. The Windward Community Arts Council honored Bacon in 1994 for her 80 years of teaching piano, and she continued to play well into her 90s. Bacon died February 22, 2003, at the age of 103.
Bacon joined the music faculty at the University of Kansas, where she taught for 18 years before leaving in 1946 to work at Punahou School in Honolulu. Ruth Bacon taught music at Punahou for ten years and gave piano lessons in her Ewa home for twenty. She also performed as a soloist with the Honolulu Symphony on several occasions and accompanied many famous artists who visited Hawaii in the 1940s and ’50s.
In 1976, Bacon moved to Pohai Nani Good Samaritan Retirement Community with her husband, Burt Bacon, a former field superintendent at Ewa Plantation whom she had met and married while teaching at Punahou. Ruth Bacon became the chairwoman of her retirement community’s music association and continued to teach lessons. The Windward Community Arts Council honored Bacon in 1994 for her 80 years of teaching piano, and she continued to play well into her 90s. Bacon died February 22, 2003, at the age of 103.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Donated to the University of Hawaii Music Collection (c/o Gregg Geary) by Bacon’s granddaughter, Ruth Brydon, in April 2003. Transferred to Archives in 2015.
Separated Materials
A note from the time the collection was donated mentions the inclusion of “1 out of print Hawaiian opera” and “Percy Grainger notes,” but these items were not found during processing and their present location is unknown.
Condition Description
While the collection is in good condition overall, many papers are brittle and show signs of insect damage that occurred prior to accession. The record is damaged and unplayable; however, the content has been digitized and placed on a CD, which is enclosed with the original record and playable in the reading room.
Processing Information
No original order was evident when the materials were transferred to Archives, so an arrangement based on content type was devised.
Processing of the Bacon Papers was completed by Katherine Fisher, volunteer, in June 2015.
Processing of the Bacon Papers was completed by Katherine Fisher, volunteer, in June 2015.
Repository Details
Part of the University of Hawaii at Manoa Libraries Repository
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