MichaelKleff.com

Paper is truth

"However much you deny the truth, the truth goes on existing"
George Orwell

Born in Germany in 1952, Michael Kleff has had a productive career as a politician, journalist, radio producer and presenter, and author, combining his interests and focusing his work on the intersection of music and politics. Together with his wife, Nora Guthrie, Kleff splits his time between Bonn, Germany and Mount Kisco, NY, USA.

Read More About Michael Kleff

Michael Kleff working on his research collection — Photo by Anna Canoni

Michael Kleff Research Collection

The material contained in the Michael Kleff Research Collection (MKRC) has been created or collected by Michael Kleff in his professional role as radio journalist and author working on the intersection of music and politics. Kleff traveled internationally to music festivals, concerts, and events where he conducted interviews, created recordings, and captured photographs. He also collected and saved printed and ephemeral materials such as programs and ticket stubs. An avid reader and researcher, Kleff clipped or printed articles from publications related to his areas of interest, filing them in a series of vertical files (which would become the Research Files) to preserve and organize material for future research. Kleff used these audio, visual, and research materials to produce radio shows and to author books and articles on a variety of thematic topics related to music and politics from his offices in Bonn, Germany and Mount Kisco, New York, USA. Materials have been gathered from both these locations and combined to form the MKRC.

About The Collection:

The Michael Kleff Research Collection contains both digital and physical material, and includes Audio Material, Research Files, Photographs, Reference Periodicals, Reference Books, and Reference Audio-Visual Material. The strengths of the Collection are the Audio Material (most of which is available digitally), which contains interviews and radio shows created by Kleff (the bulk of the interviews remain unpublished) as well as the Research Files, which consist of paper-based materials collected by Kleff. Many of the clippings in the collection are out-of-print and have yet to be used for publication. By organizing these print materials thematically, Kleff has created rich, unique research files providing insight over time on a variety of topics or individuals.

Access and Use:

The MKRC is available by appointment for in-house scholarly research use. Archival material, including photographs, images, audio materials, and text may be licensed for publication. Contact mkrc@michaelkleff.com for licensing information and research queries. At this point, materials are not available digitally or online.

Due to the nature of the Collection, there will be duplication of topics, events, and people throughout the materials. It is therefore recommended that researchers cross-reference their topics across each series.

Unless otherwise indicated, dates are written in the day.month.year order.

Notable People within the Collection

David Amram, USA
Eric Andersen, USA
Joan Baez, USA
Harry Belafonte, USA
Ruben Blades, Panama/USA
Bärbel Bohley, Germany
Billy Bragg, England
Jackson Browne, USA
Annekathrin Bürger, Germany
Bruce Cockburn, Canada
Judy Collins, USA
Ry Cooder, USA
Barbara Dane, USA
Franz Josef Degenhardt, Germany
Ani DiFranco, USA
Donovan, Scotland
Lila Downs, Mexico/USA
Steve Earle, USA
Katja Ebstein, Germany
Ramblin Jack Elliott, USA
Mimi Fariña, USA
Bela Fleck, USA
Hubert von Goisern, Austria
Gerhard Gundermann, Germany
Arlo Guthrie, USA
Eva-Maria Hagen, Germany
Françoise Hardy, France
Chris Hedges, USA
Hana Hegerová, Czech Republic
Jaroslav Hutka, Czech Republic
Alison Krauss, USA
Stephan Krawczyk, Germany
Marta Kubisowa, Czech Republic
Ute Lemper, Germany
Peter Maffay, Germany
Miriam Makeba, South Africa
Greil Marcus, USA
Manfred Maurenbrecher, Germany
Gisela May, Germany
Kate & Anna McGarrigle, Canada
Barry McGuire, USA
Sue Mingus (Charles Mingus), USA
Tom Morello, USA
Gianna Nannini, Italy
Graham Nash, England
Ivan Novac (Laibach), Slovenia
Odetta, USA
Gisela Oechelhaeuser, Germany
Kurt Ostbahn (Willi Resetarits), Austria
Ivrica Paden (Azra), Croatia
Tomaz Pengov, Slovenia
Erika Pluhar, Austria
Leon Redbone, Canada
Achim Reichel, Germany
Tim Robbins, USA
Buffy Sainte-Marie, Canada
Ed Sanders (The Fugs), USA
Susan Sarandon, USA
Pete Seeger, USA
Stoppok, Germany
Christian Ströbele, Germany
Dieter Süverkrüp, Germany
Rachid Taha, Algeria/France
Studs Terkel, USA
Barbara Thalheim, Germany
Suzanne Vega, USA
Hannes Wader, Germany
Konstantin Wecker, Germany
Bettina Wegner, Germany
Wenzel, Germany
Brian Wilson (Beach Boys), USA
Townes van Zandt, USA

Research Files

The Research Files consist of approximately 33 linear feet paper-based materials collected by Kleff, including news clippings, correspondence, articles, promotional materials, biographical material, press releases, photographs, and song lyrics. Research Files are arranged by topic: artist name, event, theme, or location. Many Research Files also contain Kleff research notes, interview transcripts, and radio scripts related directly to the topic (see Audio Material Finding Aid for related content). The Research Files series also includes three oversized boxes of paper materials, including posters and artwork from various international festivals and events, some of which do not exist elsewhere. Kleff utilized these Research Files regularly in his work and many contain decades of collected reference materials and notes.

Most topics, events, or artists covered in the Research Files also appear in other areas of the Collection, particularly in the Audio Materials, which may contain recordings of concerts, events, or interviews. Researchers should consult other parts of the MKRC to locate related materials.

The Research Files Finding Aid also contains Reference Periodicals (1950s – 2020s)

Reference Periodicals have been arranged by title into archival boxes.

Reference Periodicals consist of 22 linear feet of periodicals (journals, magazines) relating to music which Kleff collected both as a music fan and in his capacity as a journalist and author. The bulk of the periodicals have been bound. Many of the periodicals in this Collection are currently out of print. Some are available elsewhere digitally, while others exist only in print and can be accessed through the MKRC.

Research Files Finding Aid

MKRC Research Files — Photo by Michael Kleff

MKRC Research File Boxes with Michael Kleff — Photo by Tiffany Colannino

MKRC Research Files Periodicals — Photo by Michael Kleff

Michael Kleff's Audio Recordings — Photo by Michael Kleff

Audio Material

Audio Materials includes audio content created or recorded by Michael Kleff, such as interviews, radio shows, and concert recordings.

Analogue recordings have been digitized; all recordings are available in digital format.

Researchers should first consult the Audio Materials Finding Aid to locate audio recordings related to their subject. Most topics, events, or artists covered in the Audio Material also appear in other areas of the Collection, particularly in the Research Files, which may contain handwritten documentation supporting the recorded Audio Material. Researchers should consult the Finding Aid to locate related materials.

Audio Material Finding Aid

Michael Kleff and Ramy Essam — With Ramy Essam, Rudolstadt Festival, 2018
Photo by Silvia Hauptmann

Featured Audio Clips within the Collection

Photographs

Photographs consist of approximately 2,500 photographs taken by Michael Kleff at various events, concerts, festivals, or during interviews. The bulk of the photographs were taken during the 1980s – 2010s. Most of the photographs have never been published.

Many of the Photographs in the collection are available digitally, while a portion remains accessible only through print copies. At this time, the photographs have not been fully described; however, date, location, and subject information is available for most photographs.

Below is a sampling of photographs from the Collection. Click to enlarge and for caption.

A Finding Aid for the Photographs collection is coming soon.

Joan Baez and Mimi Farina - Newport 1985

Harold Leventhal Collection

Harold Leventhal at his desk — Photo by Silvia Otte

The items in the Harold Leventhal Collection (HLC) were shared by Leventhal with researcher Michael Kleff during the decades that Kleff and Leventhal collaborated on special projects, including biographical projects, concerts, and related work.

Biography:

Harold Leventhal (1919 – 2005) was an American concert promoter and music manager. He was born in New York and spent several years abroad in India where he served with the Signal Corps in India during World War 2, which had a profound impact on his life. The bulk of his professional career was spent in New York, except for several months he spent working as a music promoter in Hollywood California (1949). The HLC consists primarily of documents created by Leventhal from 1949 – 2003, and include materials generated as a result of his work as a concert promoter and music manager, as well as documents relating to his personal interests.

About the Collection:

The HLC is of value to researchers studying the life and work of Harold Leventhal, the progression of world and folk music in the United States, the intersection of music, politics, and the law in the United States, or any of the many artists represented in the materials.

Of note in this collection are the following individuals:

Arkin, Alan	Gilbert, Ronnie	Madame Regine
Baez, Joan	Guthrie, Arlo	Manson, Jeane
Brackman, Al	Guthrie, Marjorie	Mouskouri, Nana
Brel, Jacques	Guthrie, Sarah Lee	Odetta
Campbell, Paul	Guthrie, Woody	Richmond, Howard (Howie)
Cash, Johnny	Hays, Lee	Robinson, Earl
Celeste, Nicole	Hellerman, Fred	Robinson, Tiny
Davis, Rev. Gary	Houston, Cisco	Seeger, Pete & Toshi
Dietrich, Marlene	Jackson, Mahalia	Sosa, Mercedes
Dylan, Bob	Kameron, Pete	Tremaine, Judy
Elliott, Jack	Kostmayer, Pete H.	Walker, Sammy
Fonda, Jane	Leadbelly	Young, Israel
Gilbert, Marion	Linda, Solomon

Harold Leventhal and Nehru — With Jawaharlal Nehru in Calcutta, India, 1946

In addition, the HLC expands beyond the central scope of documenting the folk and world music scene in the United States from 1940s – 2000s to cover other subject matter, importantly Leventhal’s involvement and interest in India. Of special note is a copy of Leventhal’s personal journal spanning the full time he was in the US Army, serving in the Signal Corps in India from March 8, 1944 through April 14, 1946. Also noteworthy are the several pieces of published and unpublished original writing by Harold Leventhal including writings about his time in India, a manuscript outline for a book tentatively titled “The Myth of Atrocity: The Story of the Black Hole of Calcutta” (1967), and an unproduced film treatment under agreement with Warner Bros. entitled “Intensive Care/Private Patient” (1983).

The bulk of the HLC consists of photocopied material. There are some original documents in this collection, mainly promotional materials, telegrams, correspondence, and photography.

Harold Leventhal and Jacques Brel — With Jacques Brel, Plaza Hotel, New York, USA, 1965 – Photo by Daniel Kramer

Original material in this collection includes a folder of personal correspondence between Harold Leventhal and Marion Gilbert (1949) and a folder of business correspondence between Harold Leventhal and Herbert Leventhal regarding Harold’s work at Lewis Music, Inc in Hollywood, California, and the various songs and artists he was promoting at the time (1949). Other noteworthy original items include promotional materials (concert flyers, posters, announcements, and tickets), photography, and publications. For the most part, the publications have been re-housed in folders and arranged within Business Papers series. Publications about a specific individual of subject may be housed within that respective folder.

Related Collections:
The Harold Leventhal Collection held at the Woody Guthrie Center was also processed by Archivist Tiffany Colannino, and contains similar types of materials as this collection, with a focus on materials relating to Woody Guthrie. There appears to be little, if any, overlap between the two collections. The two collections share the same provenance. Finding Aid is available via the Woody Guthrie Center.

Harold Leventhal Collection Finding Aid