Merle Alcock
Merle Alcock, born Merle Tillotson, (February 6, 1884 - March 1, 1975) was an American contralto who sang with the Metropolitan Opera in 236 performances from 1919 to 1929, officially signing in with them in 1924. |
Birth and Death Data: Born Andover (unincorporated community in Missouri), Died March 1, 1975 (Phoenix (seat of Maricopa County, largest city in, and capital of, the State of Arizona, United States) )
Date Range of DAHR Recordings: 1909 - 1928
Roles Represented in DAHR: contralto
Notes: Born Merle Tillotson; wife of tenor Bechtel Alcock. Victor ledgers give her address as 42 West 12th Street, New York City.
= Recordings are available for online listening.
= Recordings were issued from this master. No recordings issued from other masters.
Recordings (Results 1-25 of 87 records)
| Company | Matrix No. | Size | First Recording Date | Title | Primary Performer | Description | Role | Audio |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Victor | B-22696 | 10-in. | 4/22/1919 | Gentle Annie | Merle Alcock | Female vocal solo, with orchestra | vocalist, contralto | |
| Victor | B-22697 | 10-in. | 4/22/1919 | 'Tis all that I can say | Merle Alcock | Female vocal solo, with orchestra | vocalist, contralto | |
| Victor | B-22698 | 10-in. | 4/22/1919 | Suo-gan | Merle Alcock | Female vocal solo, with orchestra | vocalist, contralto | |
| Victor | B-22699 | 10-in. | 4/22/1919 | The meeting of the waters | Merle Alcock | Female vocal solo, with harp and orchestra | vocalist, contralto | |
| Victor | B-22800 | 10-in. | 4/23/1919 | Goodbye, sweet day | Merle Alcock | Female vocal solo, with orchestra | vocalist, contralto | |
| Victor | B-24180 | 10-in. | 6/23/1920 | Sad at heart | Merle Alcock | Female vocal solo, with orchestra | vocalist, contralto | |
| Victor | B-24355 | 10-in. | 7/26/1920 | I cannot sing the old songs | Merle Alcock | Female vocal solo, with orchestra | vocalist, contralto | |
| Victor | B-24624 | 10-in. | 10/14/1920 | I have a dream | Merle Alcock | Female vocal solo, with orchestra | vocalist, contralto | |
| Victor | B-25200 | 10-in. | 4/12/1921 | Caresses | Merle Alcock | Female vocal solo, with xylophone and orchestra | vocalist, contralto | |
| Victor | B-25201 | 10-in. | 4/12/1921 | Monastery bells | Merle Alcock | Female vocal solo, with bells, celeste, chimes, and orchestra | vocalist, contralto | |
| Victor | B-25513 | 10-in. | 8/15/1921 | The old road | Merle Alcock | Female vocal solo, with orchestra | vocalist, contralto | |
| Victor | B-25514 | 10-in. | 8/15/1921 | Ship o' dreams | Merle Alcock | Female vocal solo, with orchestra | vocalist, contralto | |
| Victor | B-25578 | 10-in. | 9/27/1921 | The Virgin's lullaby | Merle Alcock | Female vocal solo, with orchestra | vocalist, contralto | |
| Victor | C-25585 | 12-in. | 10/5/1921 | The radiant morn hath passed away | Lyric Quartet | Mixed vocal quartet, with orchestra | vocalist, contralto | |
| Victor | B-25586 | 10-in. | 10/5/1921 | Rock of ages | Lyric Quartet | Mixed vocal quartet, with orchestra | vocalist, contralto | |
| Victor | B-25792 | 10-in. | 12/5/1921 | Rock-a-bye baby | Merle Alcock | Female vocal solo, with violin, harp, and orchestra | vocalist, contralto | |
| Victor | B-25793 | 10-in. | 12/5/1921 | My trundle bed | Merle Alcock | Female vocal solo, with orchestra | vocalist, contralto | |
| Victor | B-26459 | 10-in. | 5/9/1922 | Violets | Merle Alcock | Female vocal solo, with violin and orchestra | vocalist, contralto | |
| Victor | B-26460 | 10-in. | 5/9/1922 | Not a sparrow falleth | Merle Alcock | Female vocal solo, with orchestra | vocalist, contralto | |
| Victor | B-27019 | 10-in. | 10/11/1922 | My task | Merle Alcock | Female vocal solo, with celeste and orchestra | vocalist, contralto | |
| Victor | B-27020 | 10-in. | 10/11/1922 | The little sandman | Merle Alcock | Female vocal solo, with orchestra | vocalist, contralto | |
| Victor | B-27098 | 10-in. | 12/4/1922 | Grass and roses | Merle Alcock | Female vocal solo, with orchestra | vocalist, contralto | |
| Victor | B-27378 | 10-in. | 1/8/1923 | Sweet spirit, hear my prayer | Merle Alcock | Female vocal solo, with orchestra | vocalist, contralto | |
| Victor | B-27752 | 10-in. | 4/12/1923 | Hold thou my hand | Merle Alcock | Female vocal solo, with violin and orchestra | vocalist, contralto | |
| Victor | B-28128 | 10-in. | 6/18/1923 | We'd better bide a wee | Merle Alcock | Contralto vocal solo, with orchestra | vocalist, contralto |
Citation
Discography of American Historical Recordings, s.v. "Alcock, Merle," accessed December 26, 2025, http://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/113828.
Alcock, Merle. (2025). In Discography of American Historical Recordings. Retrieved December 26, 2025, from http://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/113828.
"Alcock, Merle." Discography of American Historical Recordings. UC Santa Barbara Library, 2025. Web. 26 December 2025.
DAHR Persistent Identifier
External Sources
Wikipedia: Merle Alcock
Linked Open Data Sources
LCNAR: Alcock, Merle, 1890-1975 - https://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/no2007149584
Wikidata: Merle Alcock - https://www.wikidata.org/entity/Q42064563
VIAF: https://viaf.org/viaf/68724828
MusicBrainz: Merle Alcock - https://musicbrainz.org/artist/a79d82d5-d202-405a-b5e6-22d2f73d3530
Wikipedia content provided under the terms of the Creative Commons BY-SA license
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