The Alexander Borisoff Papers have been organized into two series: 1) Compositions, and 2) Working Papers. When possible, series, subseries, and file names have been derived from the original labels within the unprocessed materials. In many cases, however, no clear order was evident and the papers have been rearranged into groupings by composition title or implied topic.


This collection contains scores from throughout Borisoff’s composing career, including many original manuscripts as well as handwritten scores produced by copyists for performance use and photocopies used for reference. Some original manuscripts and conductor scores are bound, but most scores are loose, taped together, or in performance folders. Full performance sets of orchestral scores containing multiple copies of some parts were not retained in the collection; instead, representative samples were selected during processing.


The Working Papers series contains background material on Borisoff’s career and pedagogical activities, as well as documentation of performances of his work: clippings, program notes, and concert programs for “Impressions of Hawaii,” “Poeme Ancien,” and “America,” and information on the genesis of the “Liliu” project and the fraught events surrounding its composition and promotion.


Several of the bindings are weak and much of the paper is brittle, but the collection is in stable condition overall. Rusted paperclips and staples have been removed, but the tape holding together many of the scores could not be removed without significant conservation intervention, so these items have been left in their original state.


Duplicate bound scores for “Liliu” were transferred to the UHM Library’s Music Collection, where they can be viewed and checked out. Two published books were part of Borisoff’s working papers for “Liliu”: Hawaii’s Story by Hawaii’s Queen and King’s Book of Hawaiian Melodies. Borisoff may have used these books for reference or inspiration while composing “Liliu” and “Impressions of Hawaii.” Because neither item contained any unique markings or annotations, they were transferred to the University of Hawaii’s Hawaiian Collection; they can be viewed in the Hawaiian & Pacific Collection Reading Room.