Scope and Content of Collection
The Frank Mancini papers were entrusted to Lynn Sams for the writing of a biography and subsequently transferred to the ABA Research Center. The collection focuses on Mancini’s teaching and conducting career in Modesto, California, which began in the late 1920s.
A strength of the collection is the series of music programs of many of Mancini’s ensembles and guest conducting appearances. Included in Mancini’s correspondence are letters to important musicians of the time including William Revelli, Edwin Franko Goldman, and others.
A limited number of instructional materials from Mancini’s years as an educator are included: a date book, sketchbook, adjudication notes, etc. Mancini and his bands received many awards, as represented in this collection in part by his American Bandmasters Association Certificate of Membership and medals awarded to the Modesto High School Band. Audio recordings of an interview with Mancini and a performance of the Modesto High School band under his direction are also worthy of attention.
A significant portion of the collection focuses on Mancini’s legacy. The passing of Mancini and the establishment of Modesto’s Mancini Park are documented through newspaper articles, a scrapbook, and a dissertation on Mancini’s life.
This collection does not contain information on Mancini’s early career as a clarinetist with professional bands and orchestras.
There was no prescribed original order for the documents, so the order as it appears here was imposed by the processor. Therefore, not only is the overall organization of the collection that of the processor's own device, but the sequence of documents within folders and the titles of said folders are also artificial to the collection.
