The University of Massachusetts Amherst
Robert S. Cox Special Collections & University Archives Research Center
CredoResearch digital collections in Credo

Tillis, Frederick, 1930-

Frederick Tillis Papers

1970-2010
10 boxes 8 linear feet
Call no.: FS 156
Depiction of Fred Tillis, Nov. 23, 1977
Fred Tillis, Nov. 23, 1977

A composer, performer, poet, educator, and arts administrator, Fred Tillis was one of the major influences on the cultural life at UMass Amherst for forty years. Born in Galveston, Texas, in 1930, Tillis began playing jazz trumpet and saxophone even before his teens. A product of segregated schools, he graduated from Wiley College at the age of 19, and received his MA and PhD in music at the University of Iowa. As a performer and composer of unusual breadth, his work spans both the jazz and European traditions, and he has written for piano and voice, orchestra, choral pieces, chamber music, and in the African American spiritual tradition, drawing upon a wide range of cultural references. After teaching at Wiley, Grambling, and Kentucky State in the 1960s, Tillis was recruited to UMass in 1970 by his former adviser at Iowa, Philip Bezanson, to teach music composition and theory. Earning promotion to Professor in 1973, Tillis was appointed Director of the Fine Arts Center in 1978, helping to jump start some of the most successful arts initiatives the university has seen, including the the Afro American Music and Jazz program, the New World Theater, Augusta Savage Gallery, Asian Arts and Culture Program, and Jazz in July. Upon retirement from UMass in 1997, he was appointed Emeritus Director of the Fine Arts and remains active as a musician and poet.

The Tillis papers document an extraordinary career in the arts, focused on Fred Tillis’s work as a composer. Consisting primarily of musical scores along with an assortment of professional correspondence relating to his publishing and miscellaneous notes, the collection offers insight into the evolution of Tillis’s musical vision from the 1970s into the new millennium.

Background on Frederick Tillis

As a composer, performer, poet, educator, and arts administrator, Fred Tillis profoundly shaped the cultural and musical aspects of life at UMass Amherst for forty years from 1970-2010. Born in Galveston, Texas, in 1930, Tillis began to play jazz trumpet and saxophone before his teens. As a performer and composer of unusual breadth, his work spans both the jazz and European traditions, and he has written for piano and voice, orchestra, choral pieces, chamber music, and in the African American spiritual tradition, drawing upon a wide range of cultural references. Growing up in a segregated school system, Tillis enrolled in Wiley College—a college for African American students—when he was only 16, and graduated with his Bachelor’s at age 19. Immediately upon graduating from Wiley, he began to teach at the college, beginning a long career in music education. Following a year of teaching full-time at Wiley, Tills received his Master’s from the University of Iowa under Phillip Bezanson in 1952. After a four-year hiatus serving in the Army Air Core—eventually serving as director of the Air Force band—Tillis then returned to teaching at Wiley and North Texas State for four years before returning to the University of Iowa to receive his PhD. From 1964 to 1970, Tillis taught at various universities until he was recruited by his former teacher Phillip Bezanson to come teach full time at the University of Massachusetts Amherst.

While at UMass, Tillis founded numerous programs and courses of study that greatly enriched the life of music majors and the general student body at the University. In 1978, Tillis was appointed the Director of the Fine Arts Center and helped start some of the University’s most successful art initiatives, including the Afro American Music and Jazz program, the New World Theater, Augusta Savage Gallery, Asian Arts and Culture Program, and the Jazz in July teaching program. Tillis was a part of a generation of instructors and administrators of color—including Roberta Uno; Max Roach; and Chancellor Ralph Bromery—who helped bring non-traditional courses of study and programs to the University, greatly increasing the diversity of both its student body and curricula. Upon retirement from UMass in 1997, Tillis was appointed Emeritus Director of the Fine Arts Center and remains active as a musician and poet.

Contents of Collection

The Tillis papers document an extraordinary career in the arts and in arts administration, focused largely on Tillis’ role as a composer and poet. The collection includes a large number of original compositions, including multiple drafts over many years, allowing researchers to view his creative process over time. Some of the compositions include his “Spiritual Fantasy” series and “In the Spirit and the Flesh”, two of his most in-depth pieces, as well as compositions from before his time at UMass. There is also an assortment of professional correspondence between Tillis and his publisher, as well as miscellaneous documents detailing the development of the Fine Arts Center. Taken together, the collection offers insight to the development of Tillis’s vision and UMass cultural life as a whole from the 1970s into the new millennium.

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Series Descriptions
1956-2010 3 linear feet

The subject files in Series 1 reflect Tillis’s work as an administrator, teacher, and leader in the UMass community through lectures, correspondence, and a wide variety of administrative files. These files center around Tillis’s leadership of the Fine Arts Center and document the Center’s development, management, and its groundbreaking arts programming.

1957-2010 5 linear feet

Series 2 contains manuscript and printed scores for Tillis’s compositions, in many cases including multiple drafts. These compositions span a significant portion of Tillis’s musical career and reflect both the breadth of his musical inspiration and the details of his creative process in developing each composition.

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Inventory of Collection
1956-2010 3 linear feet
Academy of American Poets 1999-2000 Box 1: 1
Affirmative Action 1992-1995 Box 1: 2
Affirmative Action 1992-1995 Box 1: 3
Affirmative Action 1992-1995 Box 1: 4
Afro-American Music 1999, 2004 Box 1: 5
Afro-American Music 1999, 2004 Box 1: 6
Afro-American Music 1999, 2004 Box 1: 7
Afro-American Music 1999, 2004 Box 1: 8
Afro-American Music 1999, 2004 Box 1: 9
ALANA Honors Society Convocation Remarks 1996 Box 1: 10
America Music Center 2001 Box 1: 11
The American Music Teacher 1966 Box 2: 3
Amherst Cinema Plans 1999 Box 1: 12
Arts in India 2000 Box 1: 13
Ann Shengold 1990 Box 1: 14
Archbishop Desmond Tutu 1992 Box 1: 15
Association of American Cultures 1992 Box 1: 16
Atlantic Center for the Arts 2000 Box 1: 17
Australia/New Zealand Concert Tour 1992 Box 1: 18
Betsy Siesma Schedule 1990 Box 1: 20
Book Crafters 1999 Box 1: 21
Bright Moments Festival Concert 1994 Box 1: 22
Camille and William Cosby Center for Afro-American Culture 1999 Box 1: 23
Canadian Commission for UNESCO 1978 Box 1: 24
CCEBMS Speech 1993 Box 1: 25
CCEBMS Family Day Celebration Speech 1993 Box 1: 26
Center for African American Culture 2000 Box 1: 27
Center for Black Music Research–Columbia College, Chicago 1994 Box 1: 28
Chancellor’s Lecture 1980-1981 Box 1: 29
Charlie Young: Saxophonist 2004 Box 1: 30
Clark-Atlanta University 2000 Box 1: 31
Community Arts: Health and Healing 2006 Box 1: 32
Community Arts: Health and Healing 2006 Box 1: 33
Community Arts–Health and Healing 2006 Box 1: 34
Creativity and Modern Maturity 2000 Box 1: 35
Dance in Three Stages 2006 Box 1: 36
D’Antoinette Handy 1980 Box 1: 37
Diversity: East vs. West (Multiculturalism) 2004 Box 1: 38
E-Publications: Black Male Writers 1990 Box 1: 39
Equal Opportunity and Diversity Article 1993 Box 1: 40
Experience India Festival Project 1990 Box 1: 41
Fine Arts Center: Barrier Free Access Elevator 1999 Box 1: 19
Fine Arts Center: Episode 1978 Box 1: 42
Fine Arts Center: Email Correspondence (re: Clinton and Race) 1997 Box 1: 43
Fine Arts Center: Friends of the Arts 1982-1983 Box 1: 54
Fine Arts Center: Letterhead undated Box 1: 44
Fine Arts Center: Mullins Center 1993 Box 1: 45
Fine Arts Center: Notecards undated Box 1: 47
Fine Arts Center: Organizational Assessment 1999 Box 1: 48
Five College Dance Department 1978 Box 1: 50
Ft. Hare South Africa 2000 Box 1: 51
Ft. Hare South Africa 1999-2000 Box 1: 52
Ft. Hare University–South Africa 1999-2000 Box 1: 53
Fax from Carlos Bermudo, “Experience India Festival” 1990 Box 1: 55
Galveston Musical 1997 Box 1: 56
Gospel Music Lecture @UMass 2007 Box 1: 57
Grambling College Music Department 1966 Box 1: 58
“It’s All Music”: Billy Taylor and Estela Olevsky 1998 Box 1: 59
Jazz Today Article for Sonos 1999 Box 1: 60
Jazz Bright Moments Festival 1987 Box 1: 61
Jazz in India/Jazz in July/Jazz Yatra 1999 Box 1: 62
Jazz at Lincoln Center 1995-1996 Box 1: 63
Jazz in July Guitar Instructor 1999 Box 1: 64
John Coltrane (William Cole Dissertation) 1970 Box 1: 65
Judith Tolnick 1990 Box 1: 66
Kensington Avenue School “ARTSTART” Collaborative 1996 Box 1: 67
Leadership Hexagon for Rotary Club 1993 Box 1: 68
Lively Arts 2000/South Africa Program 2001 Box 1: 69
Conference At Babson undated Box 2: 2
Miscellaneous Notifications ca. 2000 Box 2: 6
Monday Oct. 5, 1992 Newspaper 1992 Box 2: 7
Multicultaral Arts Council: Umass 1998 Box 2: 8
Music in Bangkok, Thialand 1986 Box 2: 5
New World Theater Records Catalogue 2008 Box 2: 11
News Clippings: Tillis, Holmes, Taylor, Roach 1982-1984 Box 2: 9
Newspaper Clippings 1992 Box 2: 10
North Carolina Arts Council 1993 Box 2: 12
Nursing 2003 Box 2: 13
Office of Internet Technologies (O.I.T) 1995 Box 2: 14
P&P Publications: Forms, Orders 1993-1999 Box 2: 15
P&P Publications: Forms, Orders 1993-1999 Box 2: 16
P&P Publications: Forms, Orders 1993-1999 Box 2: 17
P&P Publications: Forms, Orders 1993-1999 Box 2: 18
P&P Publications: Forms, Orders 1993-1999 Box 2: 19
P&P Publications: Forms, Orders 1993-1999 Box 2: 20
P&P Publications: Forms, Orders 1993-1999 Box 2: 21
Post Retirement and Re-Appointment 1978 Box 2: 22
Provost Office: Affirmative Action 1993 Box 2: 23
Provost Office: Music and Dance 2004 Box 2: 24
Recording Concert: Fred Tillis 1994 Box 2: 25
Rockefeller Foundation Grant 1979 Box 2: 26
Salaries 1995 Box 2: 27
Sankofa Festival: Mary Ann Lombardi d1 Harlem Renaissance Jam 2008 Box 2: 30
Sheridan Books Inc. 2002 Box 2: 29
SIU Visiting Professors 2004 Box 2: 31
South Africa Trip 2005 Box 2: 32
South Africa Trip 2005 Box 2: 33
Southern Music Publishing Co. 1971 Box 2: 34
Soviet Union and Poland Concert Tour 1990 Box 2: 35
Springfield Symphony Orchestra Band 1998 Box 2: 36
Springfield Symphony Orchestra Band 1998 Box 2: 37
Steven High 1990 Box 2: 38
String Instruction Program in Music Education undated Box 2: 4
Terry Jenoure-Black Musicians Project 1999 Box 2: 39
Texas Music Education Association Convention 2006 Box 2: 40
Tillis, Frederick: Miscellaneous Letters 1970 to 2010 Box 1: 46
Tillis, Frederick: Wiley College 1960 Box 1: 49
Tillis, Frederick, Sgt.: Official Records (Dept. of Defense) 1956 Box 2: 28
UMass Amherst Summer Sessions 2005 Box 2: 41
UMass Fine Arts Center Notecards undated Box 2: 42
Vantage Press Subsidy Publishing Program undated Box 2: 1
1957-2010 5 linear feet
54 Miscellaneous Poems undated Box 3: 39
Academy of American Poets/Poetry Pilot 1994 Box 3: 8
Administration Miscellaneous 1973 Box 6: 50
Affirmative Action undated Box 6: 55
Akiyoshidai Diary 2000 Box 4: 1
All Hail to Massachusetts 1977 Box 7: 7
Alleluia undated Box 19: 1
Alleluia for Mixed Chorus 1968 Box 26: 1
American Composers Alliance 1997 Box 26: 2
Assorted Poems undated Box 3: 19
Assorted Poems for Lecture (Inc. Neruda) undated Box 3: 26
Atlanta Promotional Magazine and Pamphlets 1992 Box 25: 1
Au-Midori: For the Inaugural Concert of Dr. Franklyn G. Jenifer 1991 Box 21: 1
Autumn 1973 Box 7: 1
Autumn Concerto for Trumpet (Score in C) 1973 Box 0: 5
Bach’s Offering and Sinner Please 1992 Box 25: 2
Bittersweet Harvests 2004 Box 4: 2
Bittersweet Harvests 2004 Box 4: 3
Blow out the Candles of Your Cake 1994 Box 19: 2
Bolero 1995 Box 4: 4
Bolero 1995 Box 15: 1
Bolero for Mixed Chorus 1995 Box 5: 1
Bolero for S.A.T.B & Piano 1995 Box 19: 3
Caprricio for Viola and Piano 1960 Box 19: 4
Cards and Greetings 1996-1997 Box 3: 30
Celebration Grand March 1966 Box 23: 1
Celebration Grand March 1966 Box 23: 2
Celebration Grand March 1996 Box 19: 5
Celebration Grand March 1966 Box 8: 13
Celebration Grand March (Various Parts) 1966 Box 26: 3
China: Shades, Shadows and Scenes undated Box 8: 19
China: Shades, Shadows and Scenes undated Box 17: 1
Chord Progressions for Harmony Class (Ear Training, Tillis Originals) 1976-1995 Box 5: 2
Collegian Clippings 1981 Box 3: 14
Come Rain or Come Shine undated Box 4: 5
Come Sunday 1966 Box 6: 19
Common Bonds in Chancellor’s Lecture undated Box 5: 3
Composition for Lena and Lenny (Quincy Jones) undated Box 7: 24
Concerto for Piano 1977, 1986 Box 7: 14
Concerto for Piano (Jazz Trio) 1979 Box 16: 1
Concerto for Piano (Jazz Trio) 1982 Box 24: 1
Concerto For Trio Pro Viva 1980 Box 8: 10
Concerto for Trio Pro Viva 1980 Box 19: 6
Concerto for Trio Pro Viva 1980 Box 19: 7
Concerto for Trio Pro Viva 1980 Box 23: 3
Concerto for Trio Pro Viva 1980 Box 26: 5
Concerto for Trio Pro Viva undated Box 26: 4
The Cotton Curtain 1966 Box 27: 1
The Cotton Curtain 1966 Box 27: 2
Department of Music and Dance 1976 Box 5: 5
Department of Music Miscellaneous Notes 1980 Box 5: 4
Designs for Orchestra 1963 Box 27: 3
Designs for Orchestra 1963 Box 27: 4
Designs for Orchestra 1963 Box 27: 5
Designs for Orchestra 1963 Box 27: 6
Drafts of Poems 1993 Box 3: 35
Dream Catcher Photos undated Box 3: 15
Early 2000s Compositions (Weary Traveler/Winter) 2003 Box 8: 3
Ebony Bookshelf 1966 Box 5: 28
F.A.C Note Cards undated Box 6: 54
Facsimiles undated Box 5: 6
Faculty Recital 1969 Box 9: 3
Fade in the Water undated Box 6: 47
Falling undated Box 7: 2
Fantasy of Chantez Les Bas 1990 Box 5: 7
Fantasy on a Scheme by J.S Bach 1987 Box 5: 8
Fantasy on a Scheme by J.S Bach 1987 Box 9: 2
Fantasy on a Theme undated Box 4: 6
Fantasy on a Theme by Julian Adderley (A Little Taste) 1975 Box 6: 15
Fantasy on Chantez Les-Bas 1990 Box 26: 6
Fantasy on Sunday in Egypt’s Land 1997 Box 9: 1
Fantasy on Sunday in Egypt’s Land 1997 Box 17: 2
Fantasy on Sunday in Egypt’s Land 1997 Box 23: 4
Festival Journey 1992 Box 15: 2
Festival Journey 1992 Box 15: 3
Festival Journey 1992 Box 16: 2
Festival Journey 1992 Box 17: 3
Festival Journey 1992 Box 24: 2
Festival Journey 1992 Box 25: 3
Festival Journey 1992 Box 25: 4
Festival Journey undated Box 4: 9
Festival Journey undated Box 26: 7
Festival Journey 1992 Box 9: 4
Festival Journey 1992 Box 18: 1
Festival Journey undated Box 8: 1
Festival Journey Master Copy 1992 Box 26: 8
Festival Journey Master Copy 2006 Box 4: 7
Festival Journey Susan Watunabe Transcription 2006 Box 4: 8
Festival Journey: Outbursts, Thunder, Clouds and Mists undated Box 8: 5
Fine Arts Center Correspondence 1978 Box 6: 17
Fine Arts Center Press Releases 1981 Box 5: 11
First Drafts of Poems undated Box 3: 2
Five Fantasies on Primary Colors 1994 Box 4: 10
Five Fantasies on Primary Colors 1999 Box 5: 9
Five Pieces for Younger Orchestras undated Box 5: 10
Five Spirituals 1976 Box 9: 5
For Victims and Survivors of September 11th 2001 Box 8: 12
For Victims and Survivors of September 11th 2001 Box 14: 1
For Victims and Survivors of September 11th 2001 Box 14: 2
For Victims and Survivors of September 11th 2002 Box 16: 3
For Victims and Survivors of September 11th 2001 Box 9: 6
For Victims and Survivors of September 11th 2001 Box 26: 9
For Victors and Survivors of September 11th 2001 Box 24: 3
Fort Devens Army Music Festival 1977 Box 18: 2
Four Corners of the World 2005 Box 4: 11
Four Corners of the World 2005 Box 4: 12
Four Corners of the World 2005 Box 4: 13
Four Corners of the World 2005 Box 4: 14
Four Corners of the World 2005 Box 10: 1
Four Corners of the World 2005 Box 16: 4
Frederick C. Tillis Scoring 1987 Box 5: 13
Frederick Tillis Correspondence 1975-1980 Box 5: 12
Frederick Tillis Email Correspondence and Contracts 2005 Box 4: 15
Frederick Tillis Original (For Flute) undated Box 10: 4
Freedom 1968, 2004 Box 10: 2
Fugal Fantasy on Bach 1959 Box 11: 1
George Gershwin undated Box 6: 3
Grant and Financial Records undated Box 5: 14
Greeting Cards/Correspondence 1993 Box 3: 33
Grievance Between Dr. Marston and Fred Tillis 1990 Box 5: 15
Guardians of Jazz undated Box 6: 34
Harlem Echoes 1997 Box 6: 56
Holiday Cards from Tillis undated Box 3: 3
Holiday Correspondence 1990 Box 3: 4
I (Alone Sometimes) Not Alone 1986 Box 3: 24
I’m Not Safe Poem 1993 Box 3: 43
If I Can Help Somebody (Spiritual Fantasy No. 21) 2000 Box 6: 14
Images of Mind and Heart 1990 Box 3: 22
Images of the Blue Earth 1990 Box 5: 16
Images of the Blue Earth undated Box 3: 1
Images of the Mind 1987 Box 3: 21
Impressions by John Coltrane undated Box 6: 30
In Memory Of undated Box 6: 9
In Memory of R.M Copeland “One” for Ray 1984 Box 5: 20
In the Spirit and the Flesh 1982 Box 7: 9
In the Spirit and the Flesh 1983 Box 10: 3
In the Spirit and the Flesh 1985 Box 8: 21
In the Spirit and the Flesh 1985 Box 18: 4
In the Spirit and the Flesh 1985 Box 27: 7
In the Spirit and the Flesh 1985 Box 27: 8
In the Spirit and the Flesh 1989 Box 3: 5
In the Spirit and the Flesh 1989 Box 3: 12
In the Spirit and the Flesh undated Box 15: 4
In the Spirit and the Flesh undated Box 23: 5
In the Spirit and the Flesh undated Box 23: 6
In the Spirit and the Flesh 2006 Box 4: 16
In the Spirit and the Flesh undated Box 8: 18
In the Spirt and the Flesh Poetry/Table of Contents 1980-1990 Box 3: 11
Japan Concert Tour 1988 Box 6: 52
Jazz in July Workshop and Music undated Box 6: 18
Jazz in July: University without Walls 1983 Box 21: 2
Jazz Suite on Themes from Peter and the Wolf undated Box 5: 17
Jazz Suite on Themes from Peter and the Wolf undated Box 21: 3
Jazz Times 1987 Box 26: 10
Jitterbug Waltz by Fats Waller undated Box 6: 26
Jordu, Arranged by Fred Tillis undated Box 7: 22
Kcor Variations 1977 Box 7: 13
Land of the Rising Sun by Ted Dunbar 1987 Box 6: 2
A Latin American Suite for String Quartet 2006 Box 4: 17
Latin Fringe 1994 Box 19: 8
A Latin Tinge Suite for Jazz Sextet 1986 Box 5: 18
Let Us Break Bread Together 1995 Box 11: 2
Let Us Break Bread/Bolero Music Notebook undated Box 8: 14
Liberty Medical Arts Buildings 1995 Box 3: 38
A List of Selected Works undated Box 5: 19
Little David undated Box 7: 12
Little David for Voice and Piano 1995 Box 11: 3
Lonely Woman by Margo Guryan and Ornette Coleman 1961 Box 6: 4
Lonesome Train Poetry 1989 Box 3: 28
Magazine/News Articles for Bernstein Festival of American Music 1978 Box 3: 44
Mass Cultural Council 1998 Box 3: 46
Mass Cultural Council 2003 2003 Box 3: 45
Memorandum 1978 Box 6: 33
Memorial on a Theme by Charles Mingus (Good Bye Pork Pie Hat) 1979 Box 17: 4
Memorial on a Theme by Charles Mingus (Good Bye Pork Pie Hat) 1979 Box 17: 5
Memorial on a Theme by Charles Mingus (Good Bye Pork Pie Hat) 1979 Box 18: 3
Memorial on a Theme by Charles Mingus (Goodbye Pork Pie Hat) 1973 Box 7: 18
Metamorphosis on a Scheme undated Box 5: 21
Metamorphosis on a Scheme by J.S Bach 1972 Box 11: 4
Metamorphosis on a Scheme by J.S Bach 1972 Box 15: 5
Metamorphosis on a Scheme by J.S Bach 1972 Box 15: 6
Metamorphosis on a Scheme by J.S Bach 1972 Box 23: 7
Minority Employees 1974 Box 3: 34
Minority Graduate Student Recruitment Program 1978 Box 6: 10
Miscellaneous Compositions (Not by Tillis) undated Box 7: 29
Miscellaneous Compositions and Documents 1982 Box 5: 22
Miscellaneous Documents 1974 Box 6: 11
Miscellaneous Poems 1985-1988 Box 3: 29
Miscellaneous Sketches/Thoughts undated Box 7: 6
Misty 1983 Box 6: 16
Misty 1983 Box 6: 45
Misty 1983 Box 7: 23
Misty by Errol Garner and Fred Tillis 1983 Box 6: 37
Mood Indigo undated Box 7: 28
Moveable Position Scales for Guitar (Vincent Mitchell and Fran Ferry) undated Box 6: 38
Music Clearance Forms 1992 Box 3: 47
Music for Experimental Laboratory Ensemble, 1 and 2 1967 Box 23: 8
Music for Experimental Laboratory Ensemble, 1 and 2 1967 Box 27: 9
National Music Foundation 1997 Box 3: 32
The Nature of Things: CD and Book Cover 2006 Box 17: 6
Navarae: A Fantasy on Caravan 1979 Box 7: 27
Navarae: A Fantasy on Caravan 1974 Box 8: 8
Navarae by Tillis 1974 Box 7: 17
New England Conference of Music Theorists (Schedule) 2005 Box 7: 11
New Poems 1992 Box 6: 49
New York Times, May 14 1978, Collegian June 28 1978 1978 Box 6: 6
Niger Symphony 1975 Box 11: 5
Niger Symphony 1975 Box 16: 5
Niger Symphony undated Box 18: 5
Notes 2001 and 2002 2002 Box 5: 23
Of Moons, Moods, Myths and the Muse undated Box 5: 43
One Bass Hit by Dizzy Gillespie undated Box 7: 21
One for Ray 1984 Box 6: 41
One for Ray Mixed Chorus (SATB) 1984 Box 11: 6
Open Rag Blues 1990 Box 5: 24
Overture to a Dance 1968 Box 4: 18
Pamela Tillis Documents 1993 Box 3: 31
Passacaglia 1984 Box 6: 29
Passacoglia for Organ (in Baroque Style) 1962 Box 24: 4
Passages–Poem for Orchestra No. 4 1996 Box 18: 6
Pastorale 1974 Box 18: 7
Pastorale 1974 Box 12: 1
Pastorale 2005 Box 17: 8
Pastorale 1974, 2005 Box 4: 21
Pastorale for Wind Ensemble 1974 Box 12: 2
Pastorale for Wind Ensemble 1974 Box 4: 19
Pastorale for Wind Ensemble 2005 Box 17: 7
Pastorale for Wind Ensemble, Complete Set of Parts 2005 Box 4: 26
Pastorale II 2005 Box 16: 6
Phantasy for Viola and Piano 1962 Box 12: 3
Photos from Hampshire undated Box 7: 16
Play on Your Flute, Little Mary 1994 Box 6: 12
Play on Your Flute, Little mary 1994 Box 4: 20
Play on Your Flute, Little Mary 1994 Box 5: 29
Poem Drafts 1988 Box 3: 40
Poem for Orchestra No. 1 1996 Box 6: 28
Poem for Orchestra No. 1 1996 Box 4: 22
Poem for Orchestra No. 1 1996 Box 7: 20
Poem for Orchestra No. 1 1996 Box 12: 4
Poem for Orchestra No. 1 undated Box 17: 9
Poem for Orchestra No. 1 undated Box 25: 5
Poem for Orchestra No. 1 Bach’s Offering and Sinner Please 1996 Box 25: 6
Poem For Orchestra No. 1 Bach’s Offering and Sinner Please undated Box 5: 38
Poem for Orchestra No. 2 1996 Box 6: 46
Poem for Orchestra No. 3 (East and West) undated Box 24: 5
Poems 1983 Box 3: 7
Poems 1994 Box 3: 9
Poems 1994-1995 Box 3: 17
Poems and Notes undated Box 3: 13
Poems of 1992-1993 1993 Box 3: 36
Poems/Celebrations 1992 Box 3: 41
Poetry 1987 Box 3: 25
Poetry 1986-1988 Box 3: 6
Poetry “I Travel Alone” 1993 Box 3: 42
Poetry (Aging Queen of Liberty) 1990 Box 3: 20
Poetry (Asscension) 1989 Box 6: 51
Poetry and Poetry Plans 1999-2000 Box 4: 23
Poetry Volume V–Carngie Mellon lecture 1992 Box 6: 53
Poetry: Still Life, Nature, New England Gardens and Flowers 1993 Box 3: 18
Prelude No.8 from W.T.C (Bach) undated Box 6: 5
Publisher Clearance Form and Receipts undated Box 5: 30
Publishing Program–Vantage Press undated Box 7: 35
Quartet for Flute, Clarinet, Bassoon and Cello undated Box 26: 11
Quartet No. 13 undated Box 5: 26
Questions (Spring) 1966 Box 5: 31
Quintet for Four Wood Winds and Percussion 1962 Box 12: 5
Reflections 1983 Box 15: 7
Reflections on the Wall (For Louise) 1990 Box 5: 32
Reflections–A Balm in Gilead 1993 Box 3: 27
Ring Shout Combo 1973 Box 8: 9
Ring Shout Concerto undated Box 16: 7
Ring Shout Concerto undated Box 18: 8
Rough Draft Poem Originals 1992 Box 3: 10
Salve Salvage in the Spin 1976, 1995 Box 4: 24
Scales, Arpeggios, Quadrads, Pentatonic Relationships and Melodic Patterns 1984 Box 7: 33
Scarlett’s Web undated Box 6: 35
Seasons, Dreams, Music and Politics 1991-1992 Box 3: 23
Seasons, Symbols and Stores undated Box 5: 33
Secrets of the African Baobob Tree 1976 Box 12: 6
Secrets of the African Baobob Tree 1976 Box 13: 1
Seton Concerto for Trumpet . Box ..: 4
Sheridan Books Mail 2002 Box 6: 57
Six Afro-American Carols for Easter undated Box 6: 25
Sombrero 1990 Box 4: 28
Sombrero 1990 Box 4: 29
Sombrero 1990 Box 8: 17
Sombrero for Mixed Chorus 1990 Box 4: 25
Sombrero for Mixed Chorus 1990 Box 4: 27
Sombrero for Mixed Chorus (S.A.T.B) 1990 Box 13: 2
Someone to Watch Over undated Box 6: 27
Song for Sister Hokkaido 2008 Box 16: 8
The Song is You undated Box 7: 25
The Song is You undated Box 7: 34
Sound Patterns by Pauline Oliveros undated Box 5: 34
Spare Composition Music undated Box 18: 9
The Spirit and the Flesh Undated Copy undated Box 7: 10
Spirits Words and Images 1980 Box 3: 16
Spiritual Fantasy for Piccolo, Trumpet and Piano 2007 Box 13: 3
Spiritual Fantasy No. 1 1980 Box 8: 7
Spiritual Fantasy No. 2: Death Aint Nothing But a Robber 1998 Box 13: 4
Spiritual Fantasy No. 2 1980 Box 8: 6
Spiritual Fantasy No. 6 1982 Box 4: 33
Spiritual Fantasy No. 6 1982 Box 13: 5
Spiritual Fantasy No. 6 1982 Box 17: 10
Spiritual Fantasy No.
6
1982 Box 23: 9
Spiritual Fantasy No. 6 1982, 2005 Box 4: 32
Spiritual Fantasy No. 6 undated Box 4: 30
Spiritual Fantasy No. 6: Sinner Please Don’t Let this Harvest Pass 1982 Box 17: 11
Spiritual Fantasy No. 7 1983 Box 13: 6
Spiritual Fantasy No. 8 1986 Box 13: 7
Spiritual Fantasy No. 8: Go Down Moses 1986 Box 16: 9
Spiritual Fantasy No. 9: Sympathy 1986 Box 13: 8
Spiritual Fantasy No. 9: Sympathy 1986 Box 16: 10
Spiritual Fantasy No. 9: Sympathy 1986 Box 24: 6
Spiritual Fantasy No. 10: We Wear the Mask 1988 Box 22: 1
Spiritual Fantasy No. 11 undated Box 14: 3
Spiritual Fantasy No. 12 undated Box 4: 31
Spiritual Fantasy No. 13: By and By 1989 Box 22: 2
Spiritual Fantasy No. 14 1990 Box 22: 3
Spiritual Fantasy No. 14 1990 Box 7: 19
Spiritual Fantasy No. 17 1994 Box 5: 35
Spiritual Fantasy No. 17 1994 Box 6: 43
Spiritual Fantasy No. 17: Were You There/Mary Don’t You Weep 1994 Box 8: 2
Spiritual Fantasy No. 21 2000 Box 22: 4
Spiritual Fantasy No. 22 2000 Box 22: 5
Spiritual Fantasy No. 22 2000 Box 22: 6
Spiritual Fantasy No. 24 2002 Box 22: 7
Spiritual Fantasy No. 24: This Little Light of Mine 2010 Box 18: 10
Spiritual Fantasy No. 24 2002 Box 6: 42
Spiritual Fantasy No. 24: Soon I Will Be Done 2001 Box 8: 4
Spiritual Fantasy No. 25 2004 Box 22: 8
Spiritual Fantasy No. 26 2004 Box 16: 11
Spiritual Fantasy No. 33: This Little Light of Mine 2010 Box 23: 10
Spring Trio 1961 Box 25: 7
Straight, No Chaser by Thelonius Monk undated Box 6: 31
String Quartet No. 2 1960 Box 7: 31
Strutting undated Box 23: 11
Studies in Ethnomusicology 1965 Box 5: 36
Suite for String Orchestra 1998 Box 8: 11
Summering “Triptych” undated Box 7: 3
Swing Low Sweet Chariot 1990 Box 5: 37
Swing Low, Sweet Chariot undated Box 15: 8
A Symphony of Songs 1998 Box 5: 39
A Symphony of Songs 1998 Box 5: 40
A Symphony of Songs 1998 Box 5: 41
A Symphony of Songs 1996 Box 8: 16
A Symphony of Songs 1998 Box 26: 12
Take Five undated Box 7: 15
Take Five (Intro) undated Box 5: 25
Tango Sophisticate 1984 Box 7: 8
Taylor-Made Concert for Piano 1977 Box 25: 8
Themes and Variations: Jazz Improvisation 1978 Box 6: 22
Thesis by Patrick Tucker 1989 Box 6: 36
This Little Light of Mine (Spiritual Fantasy No. 24) 2002,
2010
Box 6: 13
Three Plus One 1969 Box 4: 34
Three Plus One by Fred Tillis 1969 Box 20: 2
Three Showpieces for Viola by Fred Tillis 2001 Box 20: 1
Three Songs for Chorus and Orchestra 1996 Box 8: 15
Three Symphonic Spirituals 1978 Box 22: 10
The Time Has Come 1989 Box 5: 42
The Time Has Come 2004 Box 22: 9
The Time Has Come 1989 Box 6: 40
Tradewinds Jazz Ensemble Poland-Hungary Tour 1984 Box 6: 8
Tribute to Duke Ellington undated Box 6: 1
Tribute to Duke Ellington 1980 Box 6: 39
Tribute to Duke Ellington 1980 Box 20: 3
Triptych 1994 Box 17: 12
Triptych: Wintering, Summering, Falling 1994 Box 15: 9
Twelve Songs for Voice and Piano 2002 Box 20: 4
Two Pieces for Orchestra (A Spiritual and Blues Fantasy) 1991 Box 26: 13
Two Pieces for Orchestra (Sweet Chariot and Blues Fantasy) 1990 Box 20: 5
Two Songs for Soprano 1967 Box 20: 6
Two Violin, Vioncello and Oboe Arrangement Copies undated Box 25: 9
Variants on a Theme undated Box 23: 12
Verzierungen 2003 Box 21: 4
Visions of the Promised Land undated Box 6: 48
Voices and Colors 1989 Box 21: 5
Voices and Colors undated Box 8: 20
We Wear the Mask 1988 Box 4: 35
We Wear the Mask 1988 Box 4: 36
We Wear the Mask 1988 Box 5: 44
We Wear the Mask 1988 Box 6: 44
When I Fall In Love, Victor Young 1973 Box 6: 24
Wiley College Correspondence 1964 Box 5: 27
William Grant Still Poem and Drafts 1994 Box 3: 37
Willow 1970 Box 7: 32
Willow Weep for Me (Ann Ronnell), You’d Be Nice To Come Home To (Cole Porter) undated Box 6: 21
Winter 1973 Box 6: 7
Winter 1973 Box 6: 32
Wintering 1994 Box 19: 9
Wintering on the Blue Planet 1994 Box 26: 14
Wintering on the Blue Planet 1996 Box 24: 7
Without a Song 1957 Box 6: 23
Without a Song undated Box 7: 30
Woody and Bu undated Box 7: 26
You’re Too Dangerous, Cherie “To the Victor” undated Box 6: 20
dingbat for decoration
Provenance

Acquired from Frederick Tillis, 1999 and 2013.

Processing Information

Processed by James Fahey, September 2013.

For materials related to Frederick Tillis see:

  • New World Theater Records, 1979-2010
Copyright and Use (More informationConnect to publication information)

Cite as: Frederick Tillis Papers (FS 156). Special Collections and University Archives, University of Massachusetts Amherst Libraries.

Subjects

African American composersAfrican American musiciansFine Arts Center (University of Massachusetts Amherst)JazzUniversity of Massachusetts Amherst--FacultyUniversity of Massachusetts Amherst. Department of Music and Dance

Contributors

Tillis, Frederick, 1930-

Types of material

Scores