British Library cyber incident review published

Following the October 2023 ransomware attack on the British Library’s systems, the Library has issued a cyber incident review document. It outlines what is known about the origins of the attack. It describes obstacles to restoration of services, and summarises lessons learned that have relevance for other cultural institutions.

IAML Annual Study Weekend (ASW) 5-7 April 2024

Bookings have now closed for the IAML ASW taking place in Leeds on Friday 5th April until Sunday 7th April 2024. You can find details about the draft programme on the IAML UK & Ireland website. The IAML Events & Training Committee look forward to welcoming you to Leeds!

The British Library: Thoughts on how to help our Patrons

One of our colleagues has recently blogged to remind patrons that librarians in other institutions are ready and willing to help where they can. Read ‘The Library’s doing Nothing? Don’t You Believe it!’ Do you have other suggestions you could share?

IAML Congress in Stellenbosch, 23-28 June 2024

Are you one of the lucky individuals contemplating attending next year’s Congress? Can we remind you that the application period is open for Outreach travel awards for the IAML Congress in Stellenbosch, South Africa. The deadline for applications is Friday 23 February 2024. IAML Outreach Fund Funding was set up in 1998 to assist music librarians…

Fortune teller fish

Strange Discoveries

Have you ever found something tucked into a library book that is really just bizarre? Here’s a Friday find from a library which shall remain nameless …

Eric Cooper

We are very sad to pass on the news that Eric Cooper died last night, at the age of 97. Some of you will remember him as he was a tremendous influence from the early days of IAML, both in the UK andinternationally, particularly in the fields of public libraries and sound recordings. You may…

Slide showing picture of the young Samuel Coleridge Taylor

‘After the Show is over’

Well, it happened! Suddenly, after all the planning and the meetings and the tweetings and everything else, Congress is over. Transport problems due to industrial action? All behind us now. It certainly felt like a resounding success – if you would like to share your reflections on the whole week, or part of it, please…

Cambridge Buses, Congress Registration

Over on Facebook, there are questions! (Congress delegates might like to follow the IAML23 Cambridge FB page.) QUESTION:- Is there a recommendation for public transport in Cambridge? Are there special tickets? ANSWER:- Look out for the Universal bus too which runs between the station, West Road (where the Congress site, Gonville and Caius accomodation and…

Message to IAML 2023 Delegates from Henle!

We had an enthusiastic email from our Silver Sponsors Henle Verlag today – and we’re happy to share it! At the Faculty of Music in Cambridge July 30th – August 4th 2023 Dear librarians, There are only 2 weeks to go, and we will have the chance to meet in Cambridge. We are very much…

Less than a month to Congress!

Right now, in four weeks’ time, you could be looking forward to sessions on ‘Daily work, collections and good practices in music performance archives’; or ‘Work catalogues and complete editions’; or ‘Research topics in music copyright’. Or maybe a RISM workshop? It’s not too late, if you haven’t booked yet. Go to IAML2023.org to get…

Congress mascot awaits dinner

Are you Booking Dinner?

If you’re attending Congress, then this is something you need to know! Booking for Congress Farewell dinner at King’s College, & the Full package (which includes Farewell dinner) will close this weekend (1st July). So, if you haven’t already booked for dinner at King’s, please do so before then. Apart from that deadline, full basic…

Industrial Action affecting Travellers to Britain

If you’re attending the IAML Congress in Cambridge (31 July – 4 August), we should warn you there are strikes threatened. Many of you are seasoned travellers, and will be keeping up with the news already. You’ll appreciate that situations can change – keep an eye on the news for unexpected updates! Read on, right…

Barbican Music Library unveils Bust of Sir Simon Rattle

Barbican Music Library was delighted to host the unveiling of a bronze bust of Sir Simon Rattle on 15th June, the evening of the conductor’s final concert as the London Symphony Orchestra’s Music Director. The event featured a number of speeches, and music was provided by the Fibonacci Quartet. The bust was live-sculpted by Frances…

Theatre History, anyone?

Alan Jones, the Performing Arts Librarian responsible for Drama at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, flags up this online SIBMAS event, Mon 12 June: Standing Room Only: Curating A Wealth of #TheatreHistory with Limited Resources. It may well be of interest to performance librarians! Tickets: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/standing-room-only-curating-theatre-history-with-limited-resources-tickets-607660527997 Featuring Curators/ Librarians:-

Librarian as Detective – a Webinar about Special Collections and Archives!

Our final webinar in the IAML (UK & Irl) Webinar Series was entitled ‘The librarian as detective: bringing our archives and special collections to life – or, Nicholson lost and found’ and took place on 1st June. This event has now happened. But you can get lots of CPD by attending IAML 2023 in Cambridge…

IAML 2023 in Cambridge – Early Birds

Just to remind you that Early Bird booking for IAML 2023 will close at the end of May. To book at a reduced rate, and to book early for your trip of choice and concert, please book sooner rather than later. We’re looking forward to seeing as many delegates as possible, and are thrilled to…

Gerald Fnzi was born here - plaque in City of Westminster

C.B. Oldman prize 2022 (for 2021 publications)

The Oldman Prize is awarded by IAML (UK & Irl) to an author or joint authors of a work deemed to have made a significant contribution in the area of music bibliography or musicology in the year prior to its being awarded. Gerald Finzi’s Letters, 1915-1956, edited by Diana McVeagh.  (Woodbridge: The Boydell Press, 2021). …

Bodleian Library

E.T. Bryant Prize awarded to Andrew Frampton

The award was for Andrew’s MA dissertation in Library and Information Studies, UCL 2022, THE BIBLIOGRAPHIC TREATMENT OF HISTORIC MUSIC COLLECTIONS: CASE STUDIES FROM OXFORD AND BERLIN The key criterion of the E.T. Bryant Memorial Prize is to have made a valuable contribution to the field of music information studies. The recipient of this year’s…

Decolonisation – for Music Librarians

The next webinar in the IAML (UK & Irl) Webinar Series is around decolonisation and diversity and will take place 18th May at 10am. Details can be found on the IAML website here: https://iaml-uk-irl.org/events/webinar-decolonisation-and-diversity/

Status Quo exhibition at Barbican Library

Celebrating Seven Decades of Quo at Barbican Music Library

Barbican Music Library’s current exhibition, Celebrating Seven Decades of Quo, is the first ever public exhibition dedicated to one of the UK’s most enduring and successful rock bands: Status Quo. The exhibition focuses on telling their story through music and memorabilia, including original handwritten lyrics to ‘Caroline’ and ‘Down Down’, along with tour-related posters, photographs,…

Ian Ledsham bursary fund for the IAML international conference in Cambridge

The IAML international congress will be hosted in Cambridge this year, and the Music Libraries Trust is pleased to announce it will be providing a number of bursaries for IAML (UK & Irl) members to attend. Bursaries might be full or part depending on the number and the needs of applicants. Applications for bursaries are…

A man on a punt forms the first initial of 'IAML' advertising a Congress in Cambridge.

IAML Congress 2023, Cambridge UK

The preliminary programme for the IAML Congress 2023 (Cambridge, 30 July-4 August) is now available on the IAML website. Please check back for updates in the coming weeks. More about the exciting series of accompanying events and tours, and practical information about registration, travel and accommodation, can be found on the Congress website. The early…

IAML Outreach Fund – but hurry!!

A message from our parent organisation (‘Big’ IAML) about support for attending the international Congress in Cambridge this year:- The deadline for applications for the IAML Outreach Fund (Support for attendance at IAML congresses) is 1 April 2023. Applications to the fund may be made by music librarians, archivists and individuals working with music collections whose papers/posters have been accepted for the…

Forthcoming Events: News from our Events & Training Committee

Daniel Jones successfully delivered our first webinar for 2023 on PRS. A big thank you to Daniel for delivering an enlightening webinar. It was great to see everyone. We’ll alert members when the recording is available. We’re pleased to announce our next 2 webinars. Please have a look:- Make Music Day – Speaker Rob Guest (Co-Director,…