The Devil and Daniel Webster

4079541Douglas Moore papers 4079541Rare Book and Manuscript Library

Butler Library, 6th FloorColumbia University, Mail Code 1127535 W. 114th St.New York, NY 10027Business Number: (212) 854-5153Fax Number: (212) 854-1365rbml@libraries.cul.columbia.eduURL:

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Finding aid is online

This finding aid was produced using ArchivesSpace on 2026-02-16 20:20:35 -0500.Description is written in: English, Latin script.Describing Archives: A Content Standard2010-02-17Legacy finding aid created from Pro Cite.2017-09-28XML document instance created by Catherine C. Ricciardi.2019-04-12XML document instance updated by Catherine C. Ricciardi with information in digitized items in Box 83.2019-05-20EAD was imported spring 2019 as part of the ArchivesSpace Phase II migration. Rare Book and Manuscript Library Douglas Moore papers Moore, Douglas, 1893-1969 4079541 MS#0896 English /repositories/2/resources/4994 45 linear feet 100 document boxes, 7 half document boxes, 16 flat boxes, 4 phonograph record boxes, 2 CMI boxes, 1 mapcase folder 1883-2018 1907-1969 Douglas Stuart Moore (1893-1969) was an American composer, educator, and author. His best known works include the operas The Devil and Daniel Webster (1937-1939), The Ballad of Baby Doe (1953-1956), and Giants in the Earth (1949-1950), which won the Pulitzer Prize for Music in 1951. The papers include clippings, correspondence, course and lecture materials, librettos, photographs, programs, publicity materials, recordings, and scores. Arrangement

This collection is arranged into twelve series and several subseries.

Restrictions on Access

The following boxes are located off-site: Boxes 43-58, 64-105, 107-108, 113-123, 126 & 127, CMI 124-125. You will need to request this material from the Rare Book and Manuscript Library at least three business days in advance to use the collection in the Rare Book and Manuscript Library reading room.

Restrictions on Access

Some unique time-based media items have been reformatted and are available onsite via links in the container list. Commercial materials are not routinely digitized. Email rbml@columbia.edu for more information.

Restrictions on Access

Box 83 is currently restricted, as the materials require conservation treatment.

Scope and Content

Douglas Stuart Moore (1893-1969) was an American composer, educator, and author. His best known works include the operas The Devil and Daniel Webster (1937-1939), The Ballad of Baby Doe (1953-1956), and Giants in the Earth (1949-1950), which won the Pulitzer Prize for Music in 1951. The papers include clippings, correspondence, course and lecture materials, librettos, photographs, programs, production information, publicity materials, recordings, scores, and sketches.

Scope and Content

The collection includes a wide range of materials documenting Moore's work as a composer. The collection includes manuscript scores, published scores, outlines, recordings, and sketches. These materials document Moore's compositions from his early work at Hotchkiss School and at Yale University, as well as his professional career. Moore also kept a register of all his compositions, arranged chronologically. The register includes the date of composition for each work, lists of all performances of which he was aware, and includes notes on recordings and publications. In addition, the collection includes clippings, correspondence, librettos, photographs, programs, publicity materials, and texts related to his works and to the performances of his works.

Scope and Content

Moore's professional career at Columbia University and his work with professional organizations is also documented his papers. There is material relating to the curriculum and administration of Columbia University's Music Department, which Moore chaired from 1940-1962, as well as course binders and other lectures notes. There is also correspondence related to Moore's membership in the Century Club, the MacDowell Association, and the National Institute of Arts and Letters, and to his editorship of the Prentice Hall Music series.

Scope and Content

There is also documentation of Moore's professional writing. The papers include articles, clippings, and manuscripts of articles, books, and reviews written by Moore.

Scope and Content

The papers also include personal, biographical, and school materials. This collection includes appointment books, awards, biographical materials, diaries, holiday cards, photographs of Moore and of Moore's friends, school materials, memorabilia, and materials related to Moore's activities at Yale University and in the Navy. The material from Yale University includes photographs and programs documenting his activities with the Dramatic Association and the Elizabethan Club, as well as materials related to his friendship with poet Archibald MacLeish. The collection also includes articles, clippings, dissertations, and theses about Moore, as well as recorded interviews with Moore and some of his colleagues and friends.

Scope and Content

The papers also include family materials. Moore's correspondence with his mother, Myra D. Moore, is particularly valuable due to its length and frequency. Moore habitually wrote to his mother every week, and their correspondence documents their activities over a large span of time (1906-1933). There is also a smaller amount of correspondence, as well as clippings, diaries, photographs, and other materials related to Moore's wife, Emily Moore, and other family members.

Scope and Content

The papers include a small amount of material from other individuals. These items include inscribed books and scores, as well as articles and clippings about Moore written by others. In addition, Lewis J. Hardee, who wrote his master's thesis on Moore, donated his research material and original interviews to be included with the Moore Papers: these form Series XI of the papers.

Preferred Citation

Identification of specific item; Date (if known); Douglas Moore papers; Box and Folder; Rare Book and Manuscript Library, Columbia University Library.

Terms Governing Use and Reproduction

Permission from the Moore family is required to make photocopies or other copies of musical scores. Otherwise, single photocopies may be made for research purposes. The RBML maintains ownership of the physical material only. Copyright remains with the creator and his/her heirs. The responsibility to secure copyright permission rests with the patron.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Papers: Source of acquisition--Moore, Mrs. Douglas and family, etc. Method of acquisition--Gift.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

1991 Addition: Date of acquisition--03/07/91. Accession number--M-07-03-91.

Biographical Note

Moore studied at Yale University (B.A., 1915, B. Music, 1917) with D.S. Smith and Horatio Parker. He composed several songs at Yale, including the fight song "Goodnight, Harvard." After he left Yale, Moore served in the Navy as a lieutenant during World War I. After his discharge, Moore studied music in Paris with Vincent d'Indy, and later studied with Nadia Boulanger and Charles Tournemire. In 1921, Moore became Director of Music and organist at the Cleveland Museum of Art, and also studied with Ernest Bloch. From 1923-1925, he served as organist at Adelbert College, Western Reserve University. And in 1925, Moore won a Pulitzer Traveling Fellowship, and spent a year in Europe.

Biographical Note

Moore joined the faculty at Columbia University as Professor of Composition in 1926. He remained at Columbia until his retirement in 1962, also serving as Chair of the Music Department from 1940-1962.

Biographical Note

Moore published two books, Listening to Music (1932) and From Madrigal to Modern Music (1942).

Biographical Note

Moore was also a prominent spokesman for composers and musicians in the United States. He became active in the American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers (ASCAP) and served as Director from 1957-1960. He was elected as a member of the National Institute of Arts and Letters in 1941, and later served as vice president and president. Moore's diverse positions, including the Secretary of the Alice M. Ditson Fund, allowed him to help numerous European musicians escape to the United States during World War II. For example, Moore arranged a stipend from the Ditson Fund for composer Bela Bartok to transcribe the folk songs in his collection. Moore established the Columbia Opera Workshop through the Ditson Fund, as well as an annual festival of contemporary music at Columbia University.