Occupying much of my time over the past weeks and months has been the large sheet music collection of famed horn player, Dennis Brain (1921-1957). This collection was purchased at auction in 1998 by lawyer and keen horn player, Mark Andrews, in a bid to rescue it from dispersal. In 2023 the collection was entrusted…
Nearly two months into his role as President of the UK & Ireland branch of IAML, we asked Peter Linnitt, Librarian of the Royal College of Music, to tell us about his role at the RCM. This post is the first in a “Week in the life” series, where we will meet professionals from all…
Readers of the IAML (UK & Irl) blog will be pleased to learn of the Foundling Museum’s newest exhibition, highlighting some of the treasures from the collection of early Handel devotee, Elizabeth Legh (1694-1734). Katharine Hogg, Librarian of the Gerald Coke Handel Collection, has sent us the following to whet our appetites: Elizabeth Legh: Lover…
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. The winner of the 2024 award was announced at the branch AGM on…
With registrations now open for this year’s IAML Congress in Salzburg from 6-11 July, members of the IAML (UK & Irl) branch are encouraged to consider applying for the Ian Ledsham Bursary, awarded by the Music Libraries Trust (MLT). This year’s award of £400 will cover registration fees and some travel expenses, enabling the recipient…
The following is a guest post from Richard L. Jones, Librarian, Barbican Music Library: View this post on Instagram A post shared by Isata Kanneh-Mason (@isatakannehmason) After being contacted by Decca Records, Barbican Music Library recently hosted a filming session featuring the pianist, Isata Kanneh-Mason, which resulted in an Instagram video. A graduate of the Royal…
Malcolm Jones 30 July 1943 – 23 July 2024 Obituary by Pam Thompson There can be very few members of the UK and Ireland branch of IAML who are not aware of Malcolm’s immeasurable contribution to the work of the Association. Indeed, there are equally many beyond our two countries who know of his lifelong…
The following is a guest post from Judith Ratcliffe, Archivist, Britten Pears Arts: On 20 November the British Library held a very enjoyable and interesting afternoon to celebrate the 150th anniversary of Gustav Holst’s (1874-1934) birth. The event ‘Gustav Holst: An Archival Legacy’ put the focus on archival sources, with speakers from three institutions delving into…
The following is a guest post from Richard L. Jones, Music Librarian, Barbican Music Library: I’m Not Okay: An Emo Retrospective is the title of Barbican Music Library’s latest exhibition, the result of a collaboration with the Museum of Youth Culture. With roots in the hardcore-punk scene in 1980s Washington D.C., emo (short for ‘emotional’ or…
IAML (UK & Irl)’s popular “Music for the Terrified” course has been updated for library staff working with music collections everywhere. The day-long course covers a wide variety of topics, including: Trainers Chris Scobie (British Library), Katharine Hogg (Gerald Coke Handel Collection) and Meg Fisher (British Library) ran the course in Wiltshire at the end…
The following is a guest post from Richard L. Jones, Music Librarian, Barbican Music Library: To celebrate East and South East Asian Heritage Month, which takes place every September, Barbican Music Library hosted a workshop entitled Silk and Bamboo Music. It featured Cheng Yu (pipa – 4 stringed lute) and Li Ming (bamboo flutes). Silk…
IAML (UK & Irl) delegates have continued to share their feedback from IAML Congress 2024 in Stellenbosch. This week, the British Library’s Chris Scobie offers his reflections: It was a privilege to be able to attend the IAML 2024 Congress in Stellenbosch in June. A huge thank you and congratulations to the organising committee for…
Following our previous report on IAML Congress 2024 in Stellenbosch, more IAML (UK & Irl) members have been in touch to share their experiences of the week. First is Katharine Hogg, Librarian of the Gerald Coke Handel Collection. Katharine writes: The Congress attracted a smaller number of delegates than usual, due to its distance from…
It is with much sadness that we pass on the news of the very recent death of Malcolm Jones on Tuesday 23rd July after a stroke. Malcolm, a former Branch President (1986-1989) and Honorary Branch member, was a dedicated and most respected music librarian and Branch member; most recently looking after our performance sets catalogue…
IAML (UK & Irl) is delighted to announce the return of the ever-popular “Music for the Terrified” course, taking place in Chippenham on 24 September 2024. If you have ever felt out of your depth working with music collections, fear not! This one-day course is designed to answer basic queries about working with printed and…
The 2024 National Student Survey has once again revealed the importance of passionate, subject-specialist librarians, with three UK conservatoire libraries appearing in the top five for student satisfaction. In response to question 20 of the student survey, “How well have the library resources (e.g., books, online services and learning spaces) supported your learning?”, students offered…
Several IAML (UK & Irl) Branch members were fortunate to attend the 2024 Congress of our international organisation – “big IAML” – at Stellenbosch University, South Africa, earlier this month. Taking place in a different country each year, Congress is an exciting opportunity to hear papers from international colleagues and experts in related fields, share…
IAML (UK & IRL) is keen to find out which authorities, groups and institutions hold music performance sets and whether they are currently lending them to users or to other libraries. This will help library staff who manage interlibrary loans to know whom they can contact to request sets. It will also enable Encore21 more accurately to…
As you all know from our previous update, in 2018 custodianship of the National Brass Band Archive was transferred to Brass Bands England (BBE). The Archive is now known as the Brass Bands Archive. Over the years we have managed to get ad-hoc funding to employ a number of archive professionals to list, and catalogue…
After more than a year of work , the public library team in Kent are happy to inform you that Kent’s Encore listings are now fully up to date – both vocal and orchestral. Their systems are under maintenance, but they are able to take bookings for their sets from next week (June 2024). There…
…And all too soon the IAML (UK & Irl) ASW 2024 is over… and what a weekend it was! We (re)discovered just what a musical city Leeds is through a new book edited by Lashua, Spracklen, Ross and Thompson: “Popular Music in Leeds” published by Intellect Books; speed dated archival resources; discussed music cataloguing and…
And it’s upon us again! It’s the IAML (UK & Irl) Annual Study Weekend, where you’ll get the best chance this year of finding scores of British and Irish music librarians congregating together. If you use ‘X’ (Twitter) then the hashtag is #IAMLASW. And here’s a request. The Chair of Communications isn’t going to be…
Barbican Music Library’s current exhibition – From the Caribbean to Coventry: Plotting the Rise of Two Tone – is a celebration of one of the UK’s most influential musical and cultural movements. The exhibition was conceived by 2 Tone fans David Burke and Mark Baxter; they collaborated with consultants Rhoda Dakar (former lead singer of…
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.