Source 0001955: June Winberg’s Reel-to-Reel Tape Collection

 

June Winberg used a reel-to-reel tape recorder to record four tapes of various material, as summarized below. When she died, these tapes passed into possession of her daughter Mary. Mary’s son Bob had the tapes digitized by a media firm around 2005. Bob prepared the index below and posted the files in January 2023.

 

Reel 1: June Winberg's Reel 1 (labeled “No. III” on box)

Notes on back of box for Reel 1:

                      “Stereo”

Left column

   “1. Ruth & Cleo  Rosary at Ruth’s

    2. [ditto marks]

      Ave Maria at Ruths House

      Esther   Glory Halellujia

      How Great Thou Art

      You Tell me your dreams

      Rosary

      Ave Maria

      Esther and Ruth Kentucky Babe

      Wispering Hope Esther & Ruth

     

      Bob came home from Rays – Tooke(?)

      from Sony – recorded

      it.

 

      had    Ruth singing 804

      cold   How great thou Art

             Sudent(?) Aite(?)

      Great judgement

Right Column

     886   Golden Gate

     895   empty”

 

   

June's sister Ruth Miller and others singing – includes:

  00:00 – 05:46: Unidentified

  05:47 – 07:52: Franz Schubert, Ave Maria

  07:53 – 09:19: Unidentified

  09:20 – 11:06: Julia Ward Howe, Battle Hymn of the Republic (Glory, Glory, Hallelujah)

  11:07 – 12:24: Carl Boberg, How Great Thou Art

  12:25 – 13:20: Charles Daniels, You Tell me your Dreams, I’ll Tell you Mine (chorus only)

  13:21 – 15:25: Rosary [based on box notes above]

  15:26 – 17:35: Franz Schubert, Ave Maria

  17:40 – 20:06: Adam Geibel, Kentucky Babe

  20:07 – 22:00: Septimus Winner, Whispering Hope

  22:07 - 23:30: June Winberg playing Schubert, Ave Maria on the organ

  23:36-54:10:   Conversation between Bob Winberg and June Winberg, including interesting exchange about lobsters

  54:10-1:03:26: Ruth Miller singing: Unidentified

  1:03:27-end:   Jumble of conversation, Bob Winberg, also Joan Winberg(?) mentioning something sitting on top of the radio

 

Reel 2: June Winberg's Reel 2 (labeled “No. I” on box)

Notes on back of box for Reel 2:

Left column:

  “got new shorts 1972

   Jacket $85.75

   new pants

  

   me playing piano on R side

   cou dear conversation also”

Right column:

  “slow 7 ½ L side

   Bob Flo & I drinking

     Bob came

     Drinking – Flo

    Came after Bingo

      Asked about

      Mocasins gave

      Me to get some

      New ones

     

      slow 1st one got”

  NOTE: This entire reel has conversation in the background

  00:00 - 00:42     Conversation between Bob Winberg and Florence Stuhr(?)

  00:42 - 04:10     June Winberg playing the piano: Christian Sinding, Rustle of Spring, Op. 32, No. 3

  04:10 - 04:28     Conversation between Bob Winberg and Florence Stuhr(?)

  04:28 - 05:36     June Winberg playing the piano: Piece #1 (Gershwin?)

  05:36 - 05:50     Bob Winberg talking about Jack with Florence Stuhr(?)

  05:47 - 06:53     June Winberg playing the piano: John Schonberger, Whispering

  07:05 - 09:26     June Winberg playing Lara's Theme from Dr. Zhivago (arrangement unidentified)

  09:26 - 09:31     Bob Winberg speaking with Florence Stuhr(?)

  09:31 – 12:51     June Winberg playing the piano: W.C. Handy, St. Louis Blues

  12:53 - 13:46     June Winberg playing the piano: Piece #3 (Descending passage from the high registers, harmonically sounds like Chopin))

  13:45 - 13:49     June Winberg playing fragment of Piece #11 (played fully in later reels)

  14:12 - 16:11     June Winberg playing the piano: Piece #4 (Impressionism/Jazz, Debussy? Gershwin?)

  16:11 - 18:18     June Winberg playing the piano: Piece #4 continued

  (Stop/Record)

  18:13 - 19:50     June Winberg playing the piano: Piece #5 (Hymn)

  (Stop/Record)

  19:50 - 20:14     June Winberg playing the piano: Piece #6 fragment (Jazz, chromatic harmonies - Gershwin?)

  20:15 - 20:34     Bob Winberg asks someone (Florence Stuhr?) if he was 25 years younger, and she was 20 years younger, would she go out on a date with him? She points out that they were both married 25 years ago, which dates this tape to after 1964 (NOTE: Florence and Pete were married in 1934, Bob and June in 1939)

  20:34 - 22:04     June Winberg playing the piano: Piece #7 (Slow Jazz). Florence Stuhr(?) talking about Bob Winberg going back to his old hair style.

  22:04 - 22:14     Florence Stuhr(?) talking about Bob Winberg telling her to go get a new outfit

  22:14 - 23:56     June Winberg playing the piano: Piece #8 (Slow Jazz, rising chromatic passage, sounds improvisational - Gershwin?)

  (Stop/Record)

  23:57 - 24:05     Bob Winberg talking about getting his driver's license

  24:05 - 30:35     June Winberg playing the piano: Piece #9 (Impressionism/Jazz: Debussy? Gershwin?)

  30:35 - 32:13     June Winberg playing the organ: Piece #10 (Fast, like a carnival ride, flawed recording)

  (Stop/Record)

  32:13 - 32:24     June Winberg playing organ: Piece #10 continued

  32:24 – end       June Winberg playing the organ set to harpsichord, Ethelbert Nevin: Water Scenes Op. 13 No. 4 – Narcissus (played 3 times on piano on the next reel)

 

Reel 3: June Winberg's Reel 3

Notes on back of Reel 3: “me Playing Ruth & Cleo singing”

  00:18 - 03:19     June Winberg playing the piano: Ethelbert Nevin: Water Scenes Op. 13 No. 4 – Narcissus

  03:20 - 05:31     June Winberg playing the piano: Piece #12 (Jazz, Gershwin?)

  05:31 - 06:23     [blank]

  06:23 - 18:26     June Winberg playing the organ: poor recording quality

  18:45 - 22:06     June Winberg playing the piano: starting in the middle of Christian Sinding, "Rustle of Spring", Op. 32 No. 3

  22:34 - 31:45     June Winberg playing the piano: Piece #13 (low register, slow stepping chords - Chopin? Rachmaninoff?, Debussy?)

  (Stop/Record)

  31:45 - 32:41     Conversation, recording flawed -- machine is recording too slow

  32:41 - 34:00     Conversation continues with machine fixed and now recording at correct speed - Females - June Winberg and Florence Stuhr?

  34:00 - 36:39     June Winberg organ, Piece #14 (two females singing - Ruth Miller and unidentified, perhaps June singing along while she accompanied?

  36:39 - 37:00     Dialogue between singers about entrance points

  37:14 - 40:00     June Winberg playing the organ: Piece #14 (continued)

  40:36 - 45:29     June Winberg playing the piano: Ethelbert Nevin: Water Scenes Op. 13 No. 4 – Narcissus

  45:30 - 53:20     June Winberg playing the piano: Piece #13

  53:50 - 1:01:31   June Winberg playing the piano: Christian Sinding, "Rustle of Spring", Op. 32 No. 3 - some performance, lots of practice        

  1:01:38 - end     June Winberg playing the piano: Ethelbert Nevin: Water Scenes Op. 13 No. 4 – Narcissus

 

Reel 4, Side 1: June Winberg's Reel 4, Side 1

Notes on back of Reel 3: “recorded from her old records; Ruth singing on Br(?) paper”

  00:00 - 00:54     Ruth Miller singing: Piece #15 (with organ accompaniment); two people talking about shutting off the machine

  01:35 - 01:43     Ruth Miller singing: fragment of Piece #16

  01:59 – 04:24   Ruth Miller singing: Piece #16 (with organ accompaniment)

  04:24             Abrupt change in recording quality

  04:24 - 07:22     Ruth Miller singing: Piece #16 continued ("thy will be done, thy kingdom come . . . .")

  07:40 - 10:30     Ruth Miller singing: Piece #17 (with organ accompaniment)

  10:40 - 14:56     Ruth Miller singing: Piece #18 (with organ accompaniment)

  15:03 - 17:18     Ruth Miller singing: Piece #19 (with choral accompaniment)

  17:27 - 21:30     Ruth Miller singing: Piece #20 (with choral accompaniment, then part of a chorus with organ accompaniment)

  22:22 - 26:13     Ruth Miller singing: Piece #21 (with piano accompaniment)

  26:28 - 32:15     Ruth Miller singing: Piece #22 (with orchestral and choral accompaniment)

  32:41 - 38:54     Ruth Miller singing: Piece #23 (with orchestral and organ accompaniment)

  38:55 - end       Ruth Miller singing: Piece #24 (with organ accompaniment)

 

Reel 4, Side 2: June Winberg's Reel 4, Side 2

Notes on back of box for Reel 4:

  00:30 - 05:04     Ruth Miller singing: Piece #25 (with organ accompaniment)

  05:45 - 08:25     Ruth Miller singing: Piece #26 (with piano accompaniment)

  08:26 - 14:37     Ruth Miller singing: "O Holy Night" (with orchestral accompaniment)

  14:45 - 17:27     Ruth Miller singing: Piece #27 (with organ accompaniment)

  17:49 - 21:49     Ruth Miller singing: Piece #28 (with organ accompaniment)

  21:52 - 24:43     Ruth Miller singing: Piece #29 (with organ and choral accompaniment)

  21:50 - 30:00     Ruth Miller singing: Piece #30 (with organ accompaniment, and then a choral piece)

  30:30 - 35:26     Ruth Miller singing: Piece #31 (with organ accompaniment)

  35:37 - 36:54     Piece #32 (piano). From the sound of a scratchy record, this seems to be a recording of a record made to the tape via microphone.

  36:55 - 38:30     Ethelbert Nevin: Water Scenes Op. 13 No. 4 – Narcissus. From the sound of a scratchy record, this seems to be a recording of a record made to the tape via microphone.

  38:32 - 42:00     Piece #33 (piano). From the sound of a scratchy record, this seems to be a recording of a record made to the tape via microphone.

  42:00 - 42:24     Piece #34 (singing group with piano accompaniment). From the sound of a scratchy record, this seems to be a recording of a record made to the tape via microphone.

  42:24 - end       Piece #35 (singing group with piano accompaniment). From the sound of a scratchy record, this seems to be a recording of a record made to the tape via microphone.