Robert Sutherland Lord Papers 1890-2013

Arrangement

Repository
ULS Archives & Special Collections
Title
Robert Sutherland Lord Papers
Creator
Lord, Robert Sutherland, Dr.
Collection Number
UA.90.F101
Extent
18 Linear Feet
Date
1890-2016
Abstract
This collection consists of the personal and professional papers of Dr. Robert Sutherland Lord, a prominent organist based at the University of Pittsburgh. As one of the few students of Jean Langlais, Dr. Lord became a prominent scholar on nineteenth and twentieth century French organ music and the foremost authority on French organist and composer, Charles Tournemire. Dr. Lord served as the chapel organist at the Heinz Memorial Chapel in addition to his teaching responsibilities in the Music Department and was responsible for both the 1971 and the 1995 renovations of the chapel organ. Over Dr. Lord's 37 year tenure with the University of Pittsburgh he gave approximately 160 organ concerts, his most popular classes attracted over 800 students per year, and he played for over 4,000 weddings.
Language
English .
Author
Dominique Luster and Jim Cassaro.
Publisher
ULS Archives & Special Collections
Address
University of Pittsburgh Library System
Archives & Special Collections
Website: library.pitt.edu/archives-special-collections
Contact Us: www.library.pitt.edu/ask-archivist
URL: http://library.pitt.edu/archives-special-collections

Access Restrictions

No restrictions.

Acquisition Information

Gift from the Lord family on December 15, 2014.

Arrangement

The collection is arranged into nine series as follows:

Series I. Biographical Material

Series II. Correspondence

Series III. Writings and Notes

Series IV. Research Files

Series V. Departmental and Administrative Files

Series VI. Professional Associations

Series VII. Printed Materials

Series VIII. Photographic Materials

Series IX. Audio Material

The collection is arranged into nine series as follows:

Series I. Biographical Material Series II. Correspondence Series III. Writings and Notes Series IV. Research Files Series V. Departmental and Administrative Files Series VI. Professional Associations Series VII. Printed Materials Series VIII. Photographic Materials Series IX. Audio Material

Biography

Dr. Robert Sutherland Lord (1930-2014) was a prominent organist based at the University of Pittsburgh. Dr. Lord was born and raised in Marblehead, Massachusetts, and began studying organ at the age of five. By age 12, he was regularly playing at the Clifton Lutheran Church in Marblehead. Dr. Lord received his bachelor's degree in Music from Dartmouth College in 1952 and his Master's and Ph.D. in History of Music from Yale University in 1960. Dr. Lord's organ education was shaped by prominent musical figures from an early age, beginning with Maurice Longhurst in 1948. For his dissertation study, Dr. Lord moved to Paris, France, to study organ improvisation with Jean Langlais, who was one of the few students of Charles Tournemire; Touremire in turn was a student of César Franck. Dr. Lord was exceptionally proud of this musical lineage and under their instruction he performed at the Basilica of Sainte-Clotilde in Paris, the Cathedrals of Notre-Dame in Paris and in Chartres, and at King's College in Cambridge. Later in his professional career, Dr. Lord took a sabbatical in order to learn Bach and Reger in Hamburg, Germany with Heinz Wunderlich.

After graduating from Yale, Dr. Lord taught at Davidson College in North Carolina before being hired by the University of Pittsburgh for the Heinz Memorial Chapel Organist position in 1962. Dr. Lord received tenure in 1963 and began teaching a full course load in addition to his performance responsibilities. Over the following three decades, Dr. Lord took up a number of administrative roles within the Music Department including Director of Graduate Studies from 1975 to 1978 and Chairperson from 1984 to 1987. In addition to performing approximately 160 organ concerts, Dr. Lord published extensively on Tournemire. His first major publication was Liturgy and Gregorian Chant in L'Orgue Mystique of Charles Tournemire, which was published in 1984. In 1989, he was commissioned by the director of the music library at the Bibliothèque Nationale de France to undertake the analysis and eventual publication of a musical manuscript of Tournemire's that originally extended over 1,300 pages. This book, Catalogue of Charles Tournemire's 'Brouillon' [Rough Sketches] for L'Orgue Mystique, BNF., Mus., Ms. 19929, was finally published in 2014, one month before his death.

One of Dr. Lord's most recognized achievements was spear-heading both the 1971 and the 1995 organ renovations in Heinz Memorial Chapel and the 1965 organ renovation in the Henry Clay Frick Fine Arts Building.

Alongside his professional academic career, Dr. Lord was actively involved in the music community, particularly the American Musicological Society, the Organ Historical Society, and the American Guild of Organists. In a more personal capacity, Dr. Lord served as the organist and choirmaster at Christ Episcopal Church in the North Hills for 22 years and served as the first Chairman of the Board of the Northland Public Library.

Dr. Lord retired from teaching in 1999 and gave a final concert in Heinz Chapel that was attended by almost 600 students, faculty, and staff. By his request, Dr. Lord remained the Head Organist for Heinz Chapel long after his formal separation from the University. Dr. Lord died on July 24, 2014, at the age of 84.

Copyright

The University of Pittsburgh holds the property rights to the material in this collection, but the copyright may still be held by the original creator/author. Researchers are therefore advised to follow the regulations set forth in the U.S. Copyright Code when publishing, quoting, or reproducing material from this collection without the consent of the creator/author or that go beyond what is allowed by fair use.

Previous Citation

Robert Sutherland Lord Papers, 1890-2013, UA.90.F101, University Archives, Archives Service Center, University of Pittsburgh

Preferred Citation

Robert Sutherland Lord Papers, 1890-2013, UA.90.F101, University Archives, Archives & Special Collections, University of Pittsburgh Library System

Processing Information

This collection was processed by Dominique Luster and Kyle Conway in 2015.

Scope and Content Notes

This collection documents the professional career of Dr. Robert Sutherland Lord as an organist both within the University of Pittsburgh and in the greater music community. The collection begins with general biographical information about his personal life and offers insight into his family. The bulk of the collection contains personal, professional, and University related correspondence and materials from Dr. Lord's work as the University Organist at Heinz Chapel, his research files, and his collection of performance records. These records span a wide variety of document types and formats including books, sheet music, correspondence, teaching files, programs, and audio recordings.

Significant materials include photos, rare books, and sheet music composed by either Tournemire or Langlais; correspondence with the Frick and Heinz families; letters and blueprints concerning the Heinz Memorial Chapel and the Frick Fine Arts Building organ renovations; unpublished book and article manuscripts; and a number of audio recordings that feature both his concerts in Heinz Chapel and his weekly program series on WQED-FM called "Lord on Bach." Other materials found in this collection consist of Dr. Lord's performance records in various churches which are primarily in the form of weekly church bulletins. However, the most involved body of materials in this collection are Dr. Lord's research files on Tournemire.

Subjects

    Corporate Names

    • University of Pittsburgh. Music Department
    • Heinz Memorial Chapel (University of Pittsburgh)

    Personal Names

    • Lord, Robert Sutherland, Dr.
    • Longhurst, Maurice
    • Tournemire, Charles
    • Langlais, Jean

    Genres

    • Organ music

    Other Subjects

    • organs (aerophones)
    • Music -- Pennsylvania -- Pittsburgh
    • University of Pittsburgh

Container List