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Performing pieces when publisher is unknown

Author: hcg_clarinet
Date: 2025-08-03 03:56

Hello! Hoping for some guidance here on a piece I want to play but am at a dead end for.

I performed Three Faces of Woman by Jeanne Shaffer for a faculty recital a few years ago and I loved the piece and hoped one day I could play it with orchestra. Currently, I have the option to play something with an orchestra in the spring for a concert featuring women composers and I'd like to do this piece, but I can't seem to find where to rent/buy it (I only own the piano reduction)

I originally purchased from Van Cott, so I can't ask them. Worldcat has it in the library so I reached out to the listed publisher there (MMB Music), but they said they have not carried or published music in 15 years and that Kaiser bought out the catalogue in 2008. I contacted Kaiser but they didn't have record of it (they took my name and contact, but it has been over 2 months since we corresponded. I then reached out to Elizabeth Vercoe of Arsis Press (which has been out of business), but she didn't have any information on the heirs of Shaffer to refer me to.

Is this a lost cause? A couple of universities have at least the score in their library (according to Worldcat). I just don't know if there's a way I can legally play this piece (since I'm assuming borrowing the score and making parts or borrowing the parts from the schools is likely illegal). Any ideas are appreciated!

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Re: Performing pieces when publisher is unknown

Author: kdk
Date: 2025-08-03 04:48

There is this mention in Wikipedia:
"Her [Jeanne Shaffer] Three Faces of Woman was recorded in orchestral arrangement by Richard Stoltzman and the Warsaw Philharmonic Orchestra."
You may already have found this reference.

The implication is that she didn't publish it for orchestra, and that the "orchestral arrangement" is proprietary, owned either by Stolzman or the Warsaw Phil.
Depending on how badly you want to track this down, you might try to contact both and see if the performance materials are available. As an orchestra librarian I've gotten materials for several compositions/arrangements that our music director found on YouTube and wanted to perform with our orchestra. I found that, if the music had been preserved, the rights holders were usually very receptive to renting or even just giving us digital copies of the materials for a specific performance.

Karl

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