The University of Chicago Library > The Hanna Holborn Gray Special Collections Research Center > Finding Aids > Guide to the Jazz Institute of Chicago Frank Gillis Collection 1920-1941
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The Jazz Institute of Chicago Frank Gillis Collection was processed and preserved as part of the "Uncovering New Chicago Archives Project," funded with support from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.
| Title: | Jazz Institute of Chicago. Gillis, Frank. Collection |
|---|---|
| Dates: | 1920-1941 |
| Size: | .75 linear feet (2 boxes) |
| Repository: |
Hanna Holborn Gray Special Collections Research Center |
| Abstract: | Frank Gillis, pianist, jazz historian, and archivist. As a pianist, Gillis played with Bobby Hackett, Red Nichols, Jack Teagarden, Doc Cenardo, and Doc Evans. Gillis served as the Director of the Archives of Traditional Music at Indiana University. The Jazz Institute of Chicago Frank Gillis Collection contains stock arrangements, which are published orchestrations for instrumental ensembles--bands or small orchestras--that enable them to perform popular songs or piano works that were previously unpublished or published only as piano or piano-vocal works. |
Open for research.
When quoting material from this collection, the preferred citation is: Jazz Institute of Chicago. Gillis, Frank. Collection, [Box#, Folder#], Hanna Holborn Gray Special Collections Research Center, University of Chicago Library
Frank Gillis was a pianist, jazz historian, and archivist. As a musician he played traditional-style jazz in the 1930s and 1940s with such greats as Bobby Hackett, Red Nichols, Jack Teagarden and drummer Doc Cenardo. Among their venues was the Ash Trumpet Club in Detroit. He also served as the regular pianist for Doc Evans in the 1950s and 1960s.
Gillis served as the Associate Director of the Archives of Traditional Music at Indiana University from 1964-1977 and Director from 1977-1981. While at IU, he was instrumental for acquiring a large number of 78 recordings. He was a member of the Society for Ethnomusicology and served as editor of its journal, Ethnomusicology.
Gillis co-authored several books, including Ethnomusicology and Folk Music: An International Bibliography of Dissertations and Theses with Alan P. Merriam (1966), African Music and Oral Data: A Catalog of Field Recordings, 1902-1975 with Ruth M. Stone (1976), Catalog of Indian Folk Music and Folklore with Neil V. Rosenberg (1970). He also wrote a thesis at the University of Minnesota, Minnesota Music in the Nineteenth Century: A Guide to Sources and Resources (1958).
Frank Gillis died in 1999 in Grand Marais, MN.
The Jazz Institute of Chicago Frank Gillis Collection contains stock arrangements, which are published orchestrations for instrumental ensembles--bands or small orchestras--that enable them to perform popular songs or piano works that were previously unpublished or published only as piano or piano-vocal works. These pieces are from 1920-1941, with the majority from the 1920s.
| Box 1 Folder 1 | "Blue Evening Blues," Art Kahn and Vic. Burton; arranged by Fred K. Huffer, 1924 |
| Box 1 Folder 2 | "Breakin the Leg," Creamer and Layton; arranged by Elmer Schoebel, 1925 |
| Box 1 Folder 3 | "Dixieland Blues," Joe Oliver; arranged by Elmer Schoebel, 1925 |
| Box 1 Folder 4 | "Dynamite," Fletcher Henderson and Jack Palmer; arranged by Elmer Schoebel, 1926 |
| Box 1 Folder 5 | "Everything is Hotsy Totsy Now," Irving Mills and Jimmy McHugh; arranged by Elmer Schoebel, 1925 |
| Box 1 Folder 6 | "Forsaken Blues," Don Morgan and Charley Straight; arranged by Alford-Colby, 1924 |
| Box 1 Folder 7 | "Gin Mill Blues," Joe Sullivan; arranged by Sullivan and Dean Kincaide, 1938 |
| Box 1 Folder 8 | "Hangin' 'Round," Jack Gardner, Fred Hamm, and Harry Harris; arranged by Elmer Schoebel, 1926 |
| Box 1 Folder 9 | "High Society," Porter Steele and Walter Melrose; arranged by Fud Livingston, 1931 |
| Box 1 Folder 10 | "House of David Blues," Elmer Schoebel, Billy Meyers, and Irving Mills; arranged by Max Terr, 1923 |
| Box 1 Folder 11 | "Hula Lou," Jack Yellen, Milton Charles, and Wayne King; arranged by Lee Terry, 1924 |
| Box 1 Folder 12 | "Insufficient Sweetie," Isham Jones and Gil Wells; arranged by Fred K. Huffer, 1924 |
| Box 1 Folder 13 | "It's Tight Like That," Thomas Dorsey and Hudson Whittaker; arranged by Mel Stitzel, 1928 |
| Box 1 Folder 14 | "Jelly Roll Blues," arranged by Mel Stitzel, 1927 |
| Box 1 Folder 15 | "Little Rock Getaway," Joe Sullivan; arranged by Bob Zurke, 1938 |
| Box 1 Folder 16 | "Lots O' Mama," Elmer Schoebel, 1923 |
| Box 1 Folder 17 | "Maple Leaf Rag," Scott Joplin; arranged by Elmer Schoebel, 1926 |
| Box 1 Folder 18 | "Military Mike," Elmer Schoebel and Frank Quartelle; arranged by Elmer Schoebel, 1925 |
| Box 1 Folder 19 | "New Orleans Stomp," Hardin and Armstrong; arranged by F. Alexander, 1924 |
| Box 1 Folder 20 | "The Pearls," Jelly Roll Morton; arranged by Elmer Schoebel, 1925 |
| Box 1 Folder 21 | "San Sue Strut," Joe "Wingy" Mannone; arranged by Elmer Schoebel, 1925 |
| Box 1 Folder 22 | "Shim-Me-Sha-Wabble," Spencer Williams; arranged by Buck Ram, 1941 |
| Box 1 Folder 23 | "Slippery Elm," Boyd Senter; arranged by Elmer Schoebel, 1925 |
| Box 1 Folder 24 | "Someday Sweetheart," Spikes and Spikes; arranged by Glenn Miller, 1924 |
| Box 1 Folder 25 | "Sweetest Gal," Walter Melrose, 1922 |
| Box 1 Folder 26 | "Tampeekoe," Louie Panico and Elmer Schoebel; arranged by Elmer Schoebel, 1926 |
| Box 1 Folder 27 | "That's A Plenty," Lew Pollack; arranged by Jimmy Dale, 1932 |
| Box 1 Folder 28 | "Tin Roof Blues," New Orleans Rhythm Kings; arranged by Carleton L. Colby, 1923 |
| Box 2 Folder 1 | "Topsy," Billy Baskette and Billy Waldron; arranged by Alford-Colby, 1924 |
| Box 2 Folder 2 | "Walkin' the Dog," Shelton Brooks; arranged by Mel Stitzel, 1927 |
| Box 2 Folder 3 | "Weary Blues," Artie Matthews; arranged by Elmer Schoebel, 1926 |
| Box 2 Folder 4 | "Where's My Sweetie Hiding?" Tommie Malie, Kick Finch, Addy Britt, and Jack Little; orch. Paul Van Loan, 1924 |
| Box 2 Folder 5 | "Who Wouldn't Love You," Benny Davis and Joe Burke; arranged by Arthur Lange, undated |
| Box 2 Folder 6 | "Willie the Weeper," Grant V. Rymal, Walter Melrose, and Marty Bloom; arranged by Mel Stitzel, 1920 |
| Box 2 Folder 7 | "Wolverine Blues," Jelly Roll Morton; arranged by Mel Stitzel, 1923 |