The music collections contain several divisions including: Judaica Collection, Davis Collection, General Sheet Music Collection, and Cantorial Collections. The collection is eclectic and is currently being organized for easy access and practical use. The contents of the collection can be used as resource material for research, professional development, reference material, and concert repertoire for vocal and instrumental performances.

Collections are located on the second and fifth floors of the FAU Wimberly Library. Included are more than 30,000 musical documents in print, Russian music books and scores, classical piano scores, scholarly Jewish reference material, Jewish music encyclopedias, musical scores, manuscript scores, Yiddish theatre arrangements and orchestrations, historical Yiddish sheet music and synagogue hymnals dating back to the late 19th century. Historical Jewish music is being added to the collection regularly.

Richard Beattie Davis
Music Collection

Nineteenth century editions of classical, choral, orchestral and piano music, and the only US archives of English composer, artist, and designer, Thomas B. Pitfield.

Published 2008!
The Beauty of Belaieff by Richard Beattie Davis

Personal Collections

Music from Rabbi Hyams, Rabbi Abraham Rose, Cantor Zvi Aroni, Cantor Asher Herman, Cantor Saul and Ida Meisels, Cantor Stuart Kanas, Cantor Shabtai Ackerman and composer Joe Merman.

Jewish Music Journals

Various Jewish Publications from organizations such as the Cantors Assembly, Hebrew Union College, and Jewish Theological Seminary.

Anthologies of Cantorial
& Choral Music

Music by Efros, Idelssohn, Baer, Birnbaum, Kavetsky, Wodek, Low, Lewendowski, Zilberts, Rosenblatt, Schorr, Rossi, Naumberg, and Sulzer; secular vocal and instrumental music, Cantorial solos and recitatives, Liturgical music for Cantor and choir, Yiddish songs, complete piano-vocal scores from operettas and the Yiddish theatre of Goldenfaden, Rumshinshky, Secunda, and others.

Yiddish Sheet Music

The largest component of the printed collection; nearly 10,000 song titles from Yiddish Theatre, Yiddish and Hebrew Art Songs, Folk Songs, and Recital Songs. The National Yiddish Book Center recently donated approximately 3000 pieces of sheet music.

Music Books

Jewish music, ethnomusicology text, Cantorial instruction manuals, Jewish music encyclopedias, history and biographies on various classical composers from Russia, France, Germany, and others.

Classical Scores

First editions of orchesteral music by Beethoven, Mozart, Haydn, Hummel, Tchaikovsky, Pitfield, and others; chamber music with scores and parts available for performance; publications of Bessel and Belaieff.

Published & Manuscript Scores

Orchestral and band compositions, music from the Yiddish Theatre, manuscripts from live radio broadcasts, Israeli songs, Children's songs, Chassidic songs, and journals.

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Now in a period of dynamic growth, the Music Collections are particularly interested in original manuscripts of Klezmer orchestra, band, and vocal arrangements written between 1875 and 1960. These arrangements were not routinely published, and were often lost or discarded. We wish to preserve, restore, and perform these marvelous period works, so reflective of Jewish culture.

If you have hand written orchestrations, or printed arrangements, please consider placing these treasures in our collections.