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Donald Bacon papers, 1970-1997

 Collection
Identifier: BCA-002

Scope and Contents

The Donald Bacon papers represent the work of journalist and photographer Donald Bacon, who documented the jazz scene in New England between 1970 and 1997. The collection includes articles, reviews, clippings, promotional material, programs, and flyers created and compiled by Bacon; incoming and outgoing correspondence to jazz musicians, agents, and other correspondents; photographs of jazz musicians; and recordings of interviews with musicians and jazz concerts on audio cassette.

A highlight of the collection is a group of thirty-one letters and cards Bacon received from the French jazz violinist Stephane Grappelli between 1976 and 1992, documenting Bacon’s friendship with Grappelli and his work promoting the violinist’s North American revival in the 1970s.

Articles and record reviews written by Don Bacon are noted in file descriptions; many include both the manuscript copy and the published version. A complete issue of the Boston Ledger, where much of Bacon’s work was featured, was retained and can be found in the Sandy Berman folder (Series 1, folder 70).

Bacon produced the majority of the photographs, however the collection also includes a number of stock (publicity) photographs and photos taken by other local professional photographers (usually stamped on the reverse of the image).

Dates

  • Creation: 1970-1997

Creator

Conditions Governing Access

Collection is open for research by appointment. Advance notice is required for access because materials are stored offsite. Use of audiovisual materials may require production of listening or viewing copies.

Conditions Governing Use

Berklee College of Music holds the copyright to the writings, photographs and taped interviews created by Don Bacon. The College does not hold the copyright to the other records in this collection.

Biographical Note

Donald (Don) Bacon, a resident of Lowell MA, was born on February 27, 1933 in Bound Brook, New Jersey. He served in the U.S. Air Force from 1951-1955 and in 1955 traveled to France, attending classes over the summer at the Sorbonne. In 1967 he received a Bachelor of Arts degree in English Language and Literature from the College of Liberal Arts, Boston University and later in 1973 a Master of Education, from the School of Education at the same institution. He was married to Lorraine Bacon and was the father of two children.

Bacon played drums off-and on through the late 1960’s; however his chief contribution to the jazz scene in New England was as a freelance journalist and photographer beginning around 1970. He wrote for several news organizations: the Boston Ledger (a cultural weekly newspaper), the Dispatch Times Publications (weekly newspapers in the Merrimack Valley of Massachusetts), Imagine (a monthly newsmagazine published in Waterbury, Connecticut) and What’s New (a monthly entertainment magazine that circulates in Eastern Massachusetts). He had book reviews published in Jazz Echo and a cover story on Stephane Grappelli published in Coda. He was a cofounder and staff writer for the short-lived magazine Jazz New England (1974-1975).

Bacon also taught classes in jazz history at the University of Massachusetts/Lowell and at the New Hampshire Community Technical College in Nashua, NH. A tireless promoter of jazz in New England, Don had many friends in the jazz community with whom he kept up a lively correspondence. Through his activities as a journalist, photographer and jazz enthusiast Don Bacon chronicled jazz in New England for more than 25 years before he passed away on March 19, 1997.

Extent

14 Cubic Feet (25 hollinger boxes, 14 flat storage boxes, 1 small box of negatives)

Language of Materials

English

Abstract

The Donald Bacon papers represent the work of journalist and photographer Donald Bacon, who documented the jazz scene in New England between 1970 and 1997. The collection includes writings, clippings, promotional material, and ephemera created and compiled by Bacon; incoming and outgoing correspondence to jazz musicians, agents, and other correspondents; photographs of musicians; and recordings of interviews with musicians and concerts on audio cassette.

Arrangement

Arranged into two series: 1) Vertical Files, arranged alphabetically by surname or topic and 2) Sound Recordings, retained in original order.

Of note, correspondence and photographs were physically removed from their vertical files and placed at the end of the series.

Processing Information

Processed by Thomas R. Doyle; updated and encoded by Sofía Becerra-Licha. This online finding aid was encoded with support from the National Historical Publications Records Commission (NHPRC).

Processing staff physically separated out correspondence and photographs from the vertical files. Negatives are stored separately in boxes 40 and 41.

Title
Donald Bacon papers, 1970-1997
Status
Completed
Author
Thomas R. Doyle; edited by Sofía Becerra-Licha
Date
2003/02/15
Description rules
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin
Sponsor
The digitization of this finding aid was funded by a grant from the National Historical Publications and Records Commission (NHPRC).
Edition statement
Second edition

Repository Details

Part of the Berklee Archives Repository

Contact:
Berklee College of Music
1140 Boylston St
Boston MA 02215 USA
617-747-8001