mums128 Sidney Finkelstein Papers, 1914-1974 Finding Aid Finding aid prepared by Linda Seidman and David Goldberg. Encoding funded by The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. Special Collections and University Archives, W.E.B. Du Bois Library, University of Massachusetts Amherst
Amherst, MA
2002

University of Massachusetts Amherst. All rights reserved.

 Finding aid encoded using Perl scripts and edited in XMetal 2.0. Encoded by Eric Cartier. 2002-08-14 Finding aid written in English. 2005-09-23 mu11 converted from EAD 1.0 to 2002 by v1to02-5c.xsl (sy2003-10-15). Special Collections and University Archives, W.E.B. Du Bois Library, University of Massachusetts Amherst Sidney Finkelstein Papers, 1914-1974 Finding Aid Manuscript Number 128 Compiled by Linda Seidman and David Goldberg December 1986, 2001 Encoding funded by The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.

2002 University of Massachusetts Amherst. All rights reserved.

 Collection Overview Finkelstein, Sidney Walter 1909-1974 Sidney Finkelstein Papers 1914-1974 MS 128 11 boxes (5.5 linear ft.) Special Collections and University Archives, W.E.B. Du Bois Library, University of Massachusetts Amherst Noted critic of music, literature, and the arts, as well as a writer and an active member of the Communist Party U.S.A. Includes letters to and from Mr. Finkelstein; original manuscripts of reviews, articles, essays, and books; legal documents, educational, military, and personal records, financial papers, contracts, photographs, and lecture and course notes. English. Biographical Note

Sidney Finkelstein, born in Brooklyn, New York on July 4, 1909, received his Bachelor's degree from City College in New York in 1929 and his A.M. from Columbia University in 1932 before he became a renowned critic of music, literature, and the arts. In 1955, he earned a second master's degree from New York University. During the 1930s he served as a book reviewer for the Brooklyn Daily Eagle and worked for the United Postal Service. In the 1940s he joined the music staff of the Herald Tribune and also served as a music reviewer for several other publications including New Masses, Masses and Mainstream. Finkelstein became active in the Communist Party U.S.A. (CPUSA) where he served as the party's leading musical and cultural theoretician. Finkelstein applied his interpretation of Socialist Realism in several books on arts and culture, the most famous being Jazz, a People's Music (1948). Between 1951 and 1973 he served on the staff of Vanguard Records, a New York based record label that specialized in jazz and classical recordings. In 1957 he was called to testify before the House Un-American Activities Committee for his Communist party affiliation. Finkelstein died in Brooklyn, New York on January 14, 1974.

1909 Born July 4, Brooklyn, NY 1929 B.A., City College 1930s Book reviewer, Brooklyn Daily Eagle 1932 A.M., Columbia University 1940s Music staff, The Herald Tribune; also music reviewer, New Masses, Masses and Mainstream, and other publications 1951-1973 Staff, Vanguard Records 1955 M.A., New York University 1957 Called to testify before House Un-American Activities Committee 1974 Died, January 14, Brooklyn, NY; survived by two brothers Scope and Contents of the Collection

The Sidney Finkelstein Papers (1914-1974) are organized into 3 series: Biographical (1914-1969), Correspondence (1934-1974), and Writings (1949-1973, n.d.). Biographical materials include legal documents, educational, military, and personal records, financial papers and contracts, photographs, and lecture and course notes. Correspondence includes letters both to and from Mr. Finkelstein and consists primarily of informal discussions of his works and the writings of others on related topics. Finkelstein's writings constitute the bulk of the collection and include original manuscripts of reviews, articles, essays and books he wrote during his career. Finkelstein's writings cover a broad array of topics and include discussions of jazz, classical music, music criticism, aesthetics, literary criticism, profiles of the work of individual artists, and Socialist Realism and its relevance and application to cultural studies.

Partial List of Correspondents 1946 Axelrod, Eric 1970 Cameron, Angus--of Knopf 1965 Capouya, Emile 1955 Cazden, Norman 1964 Cohen, Robert Sonné--physicist 1955, 1956 Downes, Olin--critic 1964 Gelbin, Gertrude--editor, Seven Seas n.d. Hille, Waldemar 1956, 1965 Kent, Rockwell and Sally 1948 Lask, Tom--New York Times Book Review 1965, 1966 Lawson, John Howard 1970 Lowenfels, Walter 1964 Lumer, Hyman--editor, Political Affairs 1969 Markin, Ann 1966 Richmond, Al 1972 Russell, Ross 1966 Selsam, Millicent and Howard 1971 Schneerson, Grigon 1947 Siegmeister, Eliew--composer 1948 Smith, Harrison--Saturday Review 1953 Tamura, Toshio 1948 Thomson, Virgil--composer 1959 Veiaus, Abraham--Syracuse Univ. 1966 _______, John Organization of the Collection

This collection is organized into three series:

Series 1. Biographical, 1914-1969 Series 2. Correspondence, 1934-1974 Series 3. Writings, 1949-1973

The collection is open for research.

 Preferred Citation

Cite as: Sidney Finkelstein Papers (MS 128). Special Collections and University Archives, W.E.B. Du Bois Library, University of Massachusetts Amherst.

Acquired from: Maynard Solomon, 1986.

 Books Written by Finkelstein 1947.Art and Society. New York, International Publishers. 1948.Jazz, a People's Music. New York, Citadel Press. 1952.How Music Expresses Ideas. New York, International Publishers. 1954.Realism and Art. New York, International Publishers. 1960.Composer and Nation: the folk heritage of music. New York, International Publishers. 1965.Existentialism and Alienation in American Literature. New York, International Publishers. 1968.The Sense and Nonsense of McLuhan. 1969.The Young Picasso. 1970.How Music Expresses Ideas , Revised and Enlarged edition. 1973.Who Needs Shakespeare?. New York, International Publishers.

Processed by Linda Seidman and David Goldberg, 1986, 2001.

 Search Terms Finkelstein, Sidney Walter, 1909-1974--Archives. Finkelstein, Sidney Walter, 1909-1974--Correspondence. Cohen, R. S. (Robert Sonné)--Correspondence. Hille, Waldemar, 1908- --Correspondence. Kent, Rockwell, 1882-1971--Correspondence. Gorton, Sally Kent, 1915-2000--Correspondence. Lawson, John Howard, 1894- --Correspondence. Richmond, Al, 1913-1987--Correspondence. Selsam, Millicent Ellis, 1912- --Correspondence. Siegmeister, Elie, 1909- --Correspondence. Thomson, Virgil, 1896- --Correspondence. Veinus, Abraham--Correspondence. Communist Party of the United States of America--History--20th century--Sources. Critics--United States--Archives. Criticism--United States--History--20th century--Sources. Music--History and criticism--Sources. Musical criticism--United States--History--Sources. Art criticism--United States--History--20th century--Sources. Communist aesthetics--History--Sources. Communism--United States--History--Sources. Culture--Study and teaching--United States--History--20th century--Sources. Socialist realism--History--Sources. Photographs. Manuscripts. Cohen, R. S. (Robert Sonné) Hille, Waldemar, 1908- Kent, Rockwell, 1882-1971. Gorton, Sally Kent, 1915-2000. Lawson, John Howard, 1894- Richmond, Al, 1913-1987. Selsam, Millicent Ellis, 1912- Siegmeister, Elie, 1909- Thomson, Virgil, 1896- Veinus, Abraham. Series 1: Biographical 1914-1969 1 1 Legal documents and other personal records 1914-1957 1 2 Education, records of 1925-1955 1 3 Military records 1942-1947 1 4 Publishing contracts and related materials 1947-1969 1 5 Photographs 1 6 Course outline: Philosophy of Art 1 7 Lecture notes and course outline Series 2: Correspondence 1934-1974

See attached partial list of correspondents

 1 8 Letters from SF 1949-1966 1 9 Letters to SF 1934-1954 1 10 Letters to SF 1955-1964 1 11 Letters to SF 1965-1974 Series 3: Writings 1949-1973 1 12 Student paper by SF: The Imagery of Picasso's Blue Period 1 13 Student paper by SF: The Philosophy of Art of Frank Lloyd Wright 1 14 Masters thesis: Picasso (fragment) 1 15 Notebooks 1 16 Melville/Pierre notes 1 17-24 Book reviews by SF 1 25 (Combined with folder 16) 1 26 Is Jazz a National Expression or an International Folk Music? 1 27 On jazz (fragment) 1 28 On American music 1 29 On opera 2 30 Music and Music Criticism: A New Look 2 31-33 Myths and Realities of the Arts c. 1949 2 34 Psychoanalysis and the Arts 1951 2 35 On realism, especially Charles White (fragment) 2 36 On Charles White's paintings 2 37 Realism in Art, review of c. 1954 2 38 Realism in Art, article about & SF response 2 39 On Arnold Hauser's "The Social History of Art" (fragment) 2 40 Dialectical Materialism and the Arts 2 41 On John Dewey's "Art as Experience" 2 42 On Tagore's play "The King of the Dark Chamber" (fragment) 2 43 On two articles regarding young intellectuals 2 44 The Art and Science of C.P. Snow c. 1961 2 45 Composer and Nation, letters re: review of 1961 3-5 46-71 Dialectics of Art/Form and Freedom 6 72-73 Notes on Greece/Spain: High Renaissance architecture, Spanish Colonial architecture, Romanesque sculpture 6 74 On Henry James' "The Sacred Fount" 1960 6 75 James: Introduction to Princess Cassanassima 7 76-84 Dialectical materialism & Art/ What Is Art? 8-10 85-93 The Literary Influence of Existentialism/ The Literature of Alienation 1965 8-10 94-95 Media & the Arts: The Sense and Nonsense of McLuhan 1968 8-10 96 McLuhan Book - published versions 8-10 97 On Beauty and Truth 11 98 How Music expresses Ideas 1970 11 99-100 Who Needs Shakespeare? 1973