LINCOLN’S QUICK STEP, THE PIC NIC POLKA, “THE DRUMMER BOY OF SHILOH” AND MORE: BOUND VOLUME OF LARGELY CIVIL WAR-ERA PARLOR MUSIC
(CIVIL WAR). (MUSIC). [Sammelband of 37 Pieces of Civil War-era Sheet Music]. Various places: Various publishers, 1830-1881. Folio (10-1/2 by 13-1/2 inches), contemporary three-quarter brown morocco, black morocco gilt centerpiece to front board, marbled endpapers.
Excellent collection of 37 pieces of l9th-century American engraved sheet music, many published during and dealing with the Civil War, bound for a contemporary owner.
"An examination of sheet music reveals something of the inner life of the American citizenry in a way distinguishable from diaries and newspaper accounts, while also more intimate than the historian's descriptive synthesis… To actually see the music and sing it ourselves transports us to that place and time for a moment" ("Historic American Sheet Music," Duke University Library). This sammelband (composite volume) contains 37 pieces of engraved sheet music for the piano published from the 1830s to the 1880s, but most published during the Civil War. Such pieces as "Brother, Tell Me of Battle," "Sleeping for the Flag," "Our Country's in Danger and Calls for You Now," "The Nameless Graves Where Our Heroes Lie," "Just Before the Battle," "The Drummer Boy of Shiloh," "Come Home, Father" and "Mother, is the Battle Over?" are no longer popular standards, but still witness to a divided, emotionally turbulent nation's attempts to cope with the realities of war through song. The 1864 campaign song "Abraham the Great and General Grant His Mate," the dance piece "President Abraham Lincoln's Quick Step" and the "National Funeral March"—with a chromolithographic portrait of the slain president on the front wrapper—all suggest the compiler's Union sympathies (although "I'm Going Home to Dixie" also appears, albeit bearing a New York, 1881 imprint). Several selections not related to the war are included, including such songs as "Each Hour of Life to Thee I Turn," "The Moon's on the Lake," "A Sister's Faithful Love," "O Give Me a Home By the Sea" and two selections by Handel. Dances, too, including "The Pic Nic Polka" and "The Crystal Schottisch," are represented. Altogether, the volume offers a compelling, personal perspective on American life and culture during a crucial era. Morocco-gilt ownership label of Ione Shockley to front board, with owner's signature to front wrapper of "Lincoln's Quick Step." Occasional pencil markings.
Scattered light foxing, soiling and offsetting. A few front wrappers trimmed close. Occasional small abrasions. Occasional marginal restoration. Boards lightly soiled. A unique volume in excellent condition.