CANTI JAVA

As everyone knows, Civil War books can be a goldmine. We recently aquired a few boxes of Civil War related items. The book pictured above sold for 200.00. It is a scarce history of the 75th Indiana Regiment. The woman who bought it saw the picture of her Great-grandfather in the ad and bought it for that reason. He was not a major figure in the book, but the picture was so representative of the period, that we included it. The woman said she had two other pictures of him, but they were both from his later life, after he was quite sick.




We have also started the lifelong task of organizing the sheet music collection. We have an entire two room filled with this stuff. We aquired 6 pallets of music from the New Haven dealer we got many books fro last summer. We finally have it all moved upstairs and that was a huge chore. Thanks to the YIHS kids for moving alot of thoses boxes up the stairs.

We have a nice bound Folio of Popular tunes from the early 1850's listed this week on ebay. The pages are thick like they are maybe Hemp paper.
The book comes from a woman named Mary Darrow. Hmmmm. wonder who she was.

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The music all came from Lincoln Square Music in New York City. They apparently had an auction when they closed some decades ago. The music has been packed and sitting there all this time until we liberated it.

A major collection that has emerged from this morrass is a massive quantity of Masses, especially requiems. Hundreds of masses for every Saint and Feast imaginable. Also a huge number of very unique cantatas. Adaptations of the words of Whitman, Joyce, Frost and many other literary luminaries.


My favorite from the Cantatas is the Infamous "Coffee Cantata" written by J.S. Bach in 1732. While Voltaire may hav drank 3 gallons of Java a day, Bach's habit seems to have been a bit less severe. In the 1730's it was still quite risque to have coffee in the house. I think it is the perfect Cantata for our Age. We may try to stage it in the summer if we can find a pianist.

David Rovics is playing in Viroqua Manana. I can't wait. If you've never heard his music check it out for free at:

http://davidrovics.com/

"When eating an elephant take one bite at a time."
--Buddhist proverb