The Minnesota Historical Society has donated a small, oblong music manuscript book, possibly of British origin, dating from 1823. Found in a farm house near Neillsville, WI, an inscription on the inside front cover reads: "Isaac Field Book Walton 1823." Presumably, the book belonged to Isaac Field who lived in Walton and began writing in it in 1823. Preliminary investigation suggests that Walton may refer to the city in England near London, but there is no hard evidence to prove that supposition at this time. The volume contains four-part Psalm settings as well as single melodies for hornpipes and other 19th century popular and folk tunes. The book appears to contain notations in two or three different hands, suggesting that the volume may have been used by a succession of musicians through the years. We hope someone will be intrigued by this little gem and want to investigate it further and evaluate its musical significance.
Joyce Berigan Hansen and her husband Ken Hansen of Milwaukee have initiated the process of establishing a "Bunny Berigan Collection" at the Music Library. Berigan, a well-known jazz trumpeter who came to prominence in the 1930s, was born in Wisconsin. He spent formative years in Madison participating in the local music scene before going on to be a member of such notable bands as those of Paul Whiteman, Benny Goodman, and the Dorsey Brothers as well as leading his own band. Berigan is most often associated with the jazz tune "I Can't Get Started" which he popularized in his 1937 recording. The Hansens have donated 250 original 78 rpm recordings which contain performances by Berigan. Additional components of the collection will follow and include photos, paper documents and clippings, music, and more recordings. The Hansens are also the driving force behind the annual "Bunny Berigan Festival" held each May in Fox Lake, WI. Joyce Hansen is the daughter of Bunny Berigan.
Friends of the late UW-Madison alumnus Kin Lop Tse have donated his collection of nearly two thousand recordings to the Mills Music Library. The gift presentation was made during a memorial service for Tse this past fall. The collection of compact discs is primarily classical and jazz music performances released between the mid-1980s to late 1990s. Tse, a photographer, music collector and political writer, died last summer from lung cancer in his native Hong Kong. He earned a doctorate in educational policy studies from the UW-Madison in 1998. "It is a wonderful and exciting collection," says Mills Music Library Director Geri Laudati. "Tse's deep love of music is evident in the exquisite performances, many of them definitive, to be found among his recordings. This is a significant gift to our music collections." The Music Library is organizing Tse's gift as a virtual collection in the library catalog, MadCat. To see a list of what is currently available, search by guided keyword under series for "Kin Lop Tse." The recordings are also being bookplated in Tse's memory.
[The paragraph on Tse courtesy of Libraries, published by the Friends of the UW Libraries, Don Johnson, editor.]