mshm212 Potter papers, 1900-1984 (bulk 1910-1957) Finding Aid Encoding funded by The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. Mount Holyoke College Archives and Special Collections

South Hadley, MA

Finding aid generated in MARC format from database, then encoded using Perl scripts and XSL stylesheet. 2003-05-20 Finding aid written in English. 2005-09-23 mshm212 converted from EAD 1.0 to 2002 by v1to02-5c.xsl (sy2003-10-15). Mount Holyoke College Archives and Special Collections Potter papers, 1900-1984 (bulk 1910-1957) Finding Aid MS 0789 Encoding funded by The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.

Collection Overview Potter, Harrison, 1891-1984. Potter papers 1900-1984 1910-1957 MS 0789 LD 7092.8 Potter 1 box (5 linear in.) Mount Holyoke College Archives and Special Collections

South Hadley, MA

Potter, Harrison, 1981-1984; pianist and college teacher. Mount Holyoke College faculty member, 1946-1957. Papers consist of concert programs, concert announcements and reviews, memorabilia, correspondence, concert plans, biographical information, and photographs. Primarily contains programs and reviews for concerts in which he performed as soloist or accompanist, including those in which he performed with or performed the work of Marion Bauer; also includes a few letters and a scrapbook of a more personal nature. English. Biographical Note

Harrison Potter was born on May 9, 1891 in North Adams, Massachusetts to Wells E. Potter and Mae E. Potter. He studied piano with several teachers, including David Roberts in North Adams, Felix Fox in Boston, and Isidore Philipp in Paris. He performed numerous recitals and concerts throughout the United States, both as a soloist and as an accompanist. He taught piano at several institutions, including the Felix Fox School of Pianoforte Playing, Phillips Andover Academy, Sarah Lawrence College, and Miss Porter's School. He was Assistant Professor of Music at Mount Holyoke from 1946 to 1948, and Associate Professor of Music from 1948 to 1957. He was also on the faculty of the Chautauqua, New York Summer Music School, and was Choral Director at the Chautauqua Institution from 1948 to 1952. He married Margaret Fraser. He died at ninety-three on October 3, 1984 in Holyoke, Massachusetts.

Scope and Contents of the Collection

The Harrison Potter papers consist of concert programs, concert announcements and reviews, memorabilia, correspondence, concert plans, biographical information, and photographs. The collection primarily consists of concert programs and reviews documenting his concert career between 1900 and 1974. The collection includes a few items of a more personal nature, including two letters to the editor documenting some personal opinions and a letter, in French, from a family friend inquiring about a mutual friend and extending an invitation to a son's wedding. Also of particular note is a scrapbook containing programs, postcards, and newspaper clippings relating to the 1910-1911 opera season in New York City. The concert programs in the collection consist of approximately 190 programs for recitals and concerts in which he performed as accompanist or soloist, including programs for several series of lectures on music given by Marion Bauer for which he provided "illustration," and several programs for concerts in which he performed Bauer's work. The photographs consist of a photographic postcard, possibly of him, in a general store, circa 1910s; a signed photograph from "Solomon;" and formal portraits of Harrison Potter alone and with a piano student.

Organization of the Collection

This collection is organized into seven series:

Concert Programs Concert Announcements and Reviews Memorabilia Correspondence Concert Plans Biographical Information Photographs Information on Use Terms of Access and Use

Unrestricted

Preferred Citation

Please use the following format when citing materials from this collection:

Harrison Potter Papers, Mount Holyoke College, Archives and Special Collections, South Hadley, MA.

Search Terms Potter, Harrison, 1891-1984. Bauer, Marion, 1882-1955. Mount Holyoke College - Faculty. Pianists - United States. College teachers - United States. Opera programs - New York (State) - New York. Postcard albums. Concert programs. Photographs. Letters.