to
Meet
in
Chicago
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Music Library Association
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No. 155 |
November–December 2008 |
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MLA to Meet in Chicago |
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‘Music in Chicago’ is Just the Start of a Fine Program Suzanne Moulton-Gertig The program for MLA’s 78th Annual Meeting will honor Chicago’s diverse musical genres, while offering sessions on technology, collection building, professional development, and addressing a wide range of other musical topics. The opening plenary session on Thursday morning, “Music in Chicago,” is sponsored by the Local Arrangements Committee, and will feature guests speaking about a variety of musical genres in the Windy City. Horace Maxile of Columbia College will deliver a presentation on blues and gospel music. Our Local Arrangements Committee has found the perfect representative for folk genres in Bob Riesman of the Old Town School of Folk Music. Chuck Sengstock, former WGN Radio newscaster and author of the new book, That Toddlin’ Town: Chicago’s White Dance Bands and Orchestras, 1900-1950, will focus on jazz and Charles Matlock from Columbia College will address house music. Music in Chicago will recur as a theme during the conference with additional sessions devoted to some aspect of the subject. The Black Music Roundtable is sponsoring a session following the opening plenary entitled “Chicago’s ‘Great Black Music’: The Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians (AACM).” On Friday afternoon, the Sheet Music Roundtable will also offer a session, “Sheet Music as Social Commentary: Chicago Sheet Music,” with speakers Donald Krummel and Kathleen Haefliger. The title of Friday morning’s second plenary session focuses on a most timely and controversial issue. The Legislative and Preservation Committees will co-sponsor “Copyright: Is There a Chance for Change?” MLA’s Eric Harbeson will introduce speakers Peter Hirtle from Cornell University, Maureen Whalen from the Getty Trust, and Tim Brooks from the Association of Recorded Sound Collections. On the user contact side of our profession, three sessions will focus on matters of teaching, information literacy, and public speaking. Member-proposed session, “The Library and the Classroom,” will feature retooling the present and future faculty in information literacy, engaging undergraduates with primary sources, and addressing information literacy for first year students by embedding the music librarian in the classroom. The Instruction Subcommittee’s Information Literacy session will be devoted this year to the music graduate student, focusing on ACRL’s information literacy standards and the graduate-level music bibliography class, along with the topic of team teaching music research and information literacy skills on the graduate level. Lastly, the Education Committee in their Educational Outreach Program will present “Public Speaking 101 for Music Librarians: I’d Rather Face a Snake on a Plane!” The Collection Development Committee will sponsor a session on “Consortial Collection Development,” and there are a number of sessions dealing with other joint digital projects, special collections, and archival preservation projects. Presentations range from the John Cage Collection at Northwestern University to the Encyclopedic Discography of Victor Recordings. The digitization of RISM manuscripts on a shoestring budget, a case study in archival preservation, a folk song index collaborative project, and a consortial music digitization for open content project will be presented. In a similar spirit, the Electronic Reference Services Subcommittee will also sponsor a session entitled “No more Paper!: An Examination of Online Sheet Music Projects.” The impact of online search engines on music research for all users and its implication for library professionals will be examined in several member-proposed sessions and presentations. We will hear from representatives from companies like Songza and Seeqpod, and examine the current trends and the impact of Internet sources (including Google offerings!) on our users and, in turn, on professional library interactions with those users. A wide and interesting array of technical services-related topics will be presented this year. The Bibliographic Control Committee is sponsoring the timely “RDA in Practice: Getting Ready for Implementation.” No, the Beatles are not back, but the Technical Services Roundtable borrows one of their famous titles in their sponsored session, “With a Little Help from My Friends: Using External Products and Services in Technical Services Workflows.” Back by popular demand, we will once again have the “BCC News Hour.” Undoubtedly of interest to all will be both subcommittee and member-proposed sessions with enticing titles like “Search, Hack, Mix, Create, Innovate, Communicate: Technology Solutions for Music Libraries,” and “Virtual Collaboration with Real Life Results: Using Virtual Collaborative Tools to Strengthen Your Staff and Service.” We will also be updated on work at IU on the Variations Digital Music Library as they create a new digital model for live performance recording and delivery. In another direction altogether, we will learn about one of our colleagues’ experiences conducting music research in Italy. Another member-proposed program will update members on International Research and Documentation Projects that will include projects familiar to music librarians like RILM, RIPM, and RIdIM. The Social Responsibilities Roundtable will present a session on “Music and Social Change: Settlement Music Schools to Songs of Protest”; the Women in Music Roundtable will offer the session, “American Women: Composing, Conducting and ... Singing the Blues”; and the Jewish Music Roundtable theme for this year is “New Music: Composition, the Downtown Scene and New Directions.” Finally, a member-proposed session addresses “Preserving America’s Black Gospel Heritage.” Our own MLA Business Office will take the opportunity to offer information and introduce new service features to members in the late afternoon on Friday, and earlier, during the midday, don’t forget to visit the Poster Sessions, which have become a popular venue for colleagues sharing their recent projects. The 2009 MLA annual meeting truly has something for everyone. Whether you are a first time attendee or an old timer to the association, we look forward to seeing you in Chicago this year, where all in the MLA family welcome you home.
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Chicago Welcomes You to the Windy City Bob Acker On behalf of the Chicago Local Arrangements Committee, I welcome one and all to Chicago for the MLA annual conference, February 18–21, 2009. MLA has not met in Chicago since the summer of 1976, in conjunction with the annual ALA conference that summer, at the dawn of my professional career. This was the last time that MLA met twice in a year. Chicago has a lot to offer: excellent dining opportunities, including ethnic restaurants of almost every description; great museums, such as the Art Institute of Chicago, the Chicago History Museum, and the Field Museum of Natural History; and of course, access to great music—not only classical music, but jazz, blues, and folk genres among others. In addition to world-renowned classical music institutions such as the Chicago Symphony and Lyric Opera, Chicago is home to many other professional and amateur performing groups; one is the Newberry Consort, which will be having a special concert Friday evening featuring music from the Howard Mayer Brown Collection owned by the Newberry Library. The conference hotel is the Chicago Marriott Downtown Magnificent Mile Hotel, located at 540 N. Michigan Avenue in the heart of the Magnificent Mile and only a few blocks from the downtown Loop area. Hotel reservations should be made by phone: 1-800-228-9290. Room rates are $168 (single or double), $30 for each additional person, plus 15.4% tax. Guest rooms are provided with coffee makers and hairdryers. Rollaway beds and cribs are available. Wired internet is available in guest rooms at a cost of $14.95 per day. Free wireless is available in the hotel lobby and on the second floor (The hotel's restaurant and business center are on the second floor.). Valet parking is available at the hotel at a rate of $39.00 per day, self-parking is $26.00 per day. Valet and self-parking both include in & out privileges. The LAC has been busy organizing a number of activities which we hope you will attend. Wednesday tours include a 3.5 hour architectural bus tour, as well as tours of the Chicago Symphony Archives and the Newberry Library. Thursday evening we’ll be hosting an open house at a local jazz bookstore. Friday evening you can attend the Newberry Consort event previously mentioned. Saturday’s banquet entertainment will be provided by renowned bluesman Billy Branch and his Sons of Blues band. Stay tuned for updates on our Web page (http://www.mla2009.org/; there’s a link from the MLA home page) and for further information in the conference mailing. Y’all come! |
Did You know? Chicago may be known as the “Windy City,” but that name does not derive from the weather. (Well, at least not completely!) The name apparently is related to the “long-windedness” of Chicago politicians of the late 1800s. To read more about this nickname, as well as other interesting facts about Chicago, visit the Encyclopedia of Chicago (online at http://www.encyclopedia.chicagohistory.org/ ). |
For Your Listening Pleasure Want to listen to some of the performers featured at the annual meeting this year? The Newberry Consort has links to audio selections, including a YouTube video, at their Web site. To hear Billy Branch, go to his Web site (http://billybranch.com) and click on the link “Billy on Myspace.” |
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Anna Alfeld, Bloomington, IN |
Jessica Lubofsky, Rancho Palos Verdes, CA |
| MLA News | |
CDS expands Résumé Review Service Be sure to check out the new year-round Résumé and Cover Letter Review Service! The service, which previously was available in conjunction with the annual meeting, is now available as a Web-based service. Information can be found by going to the Employment & Educationpage of MLA Web site and clicking on the review service link. This page includes not only instructions for using the service but also an application form for those who might be interested in becoming reviewers! The Résumé and Cover Letter Review Service is brought to you by the Career Development and Services Committee. Newsletter Task Force Seeks Input The Newsletter Task Force has been charged with making recommendations concerning the future of the MLA Newsletter. To aid in our discovery process we invite you to complete a short online survey, available via the MLA homepage. The survey will be available until December 31, so please don't delay! If you have any questions or have comments about the Newsletter not addressed by the survey, please don't hesitate to contact the chair, Kirstin Dougan at dougan@illinois.edu.
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| Chapter Reports | |
| Mountain–Plains
Janet Bradford Mountain–Plains (MPMLA) members congregated in Provo, Utah for their annual spring meeting on May 15–17, 2008. Early arrivals enjoyed a lasagna dinner hosted by Irene Halliday at her lovely home in Highland on Thursday evening. Friday morning, Scott Duvall, Assistant University Librarian at BYU, gave a hearty welcome to attendees following registration, bagels and juices. Sessions that day were held in the seminar room of the Music/Dance section of the Harold B. Lee Library. Myrna Layton moderated the Friday morning session starting with a paper by Anita Breckbill (University of Nebraska, Lincoln) entitled “Liberated Scores from WWII in the Music Library.” Anita told the story of an American soldier who amassed a collection of scores from estates in Germany during World War II. These scores are now housed at her library. Rebecca Schroeder (Brigham Young University) followed with an overview of music acquisitions at BYU and ideas for finding unusual materials. Next, Jared Howland and Tom Wright, both from Brigham Young University, presented their findings from a comparative search/result study between Google Scholar and subject specific databases. Two students from BYU completed the morning’s lineup: Lindsay Weaver spoke about developing an online database in her presentation, “The Bibliography of Music Bibliography and Reference: Beyond Duckles.” Darcy Whetten gave her perspective as a curator with “The Crawford Gates Archive: A Case Study in Developing a Living Composer’s Archive.” Both of these students have received grant monies to participate at the IAML meeting in Italy this summer. After a relaxing lunch break, David Day (Brigham Young University) began the afternoon session with “From Indie Rock to Global Pop: Access to the Musical Press of the 21st Century.” Cheryl Taranto (University of Nevada, Las Vegas) next presented “Theodore Thomas in Chicago: The Repertoire and the Symphony.” Annie Erickson (BYU cataloger) followed by introducing attendees to many of the musical instruments on exhibit in the area. Jean Jensen (Utah State University, retired) rounded off the afternoon with “Westward Ho! Pioneer Songs Along the Way.” These presentations were moderated by Irene Halliday. Members drove up beautiful Provo Canyon Friday evening to dine at the Snake Creek Grill in Heber City. This quaint turn-of-the-century-styled restaurant is located close to Soldier Hollow, the cross-country ski and biathlon venue for the 2002 Olympics. Saturday morning, members gathered in the Library’s Conference Room for breakfast foods and pre-session conversations. Thomas Cimarusti (Texas Tech University) got the meeting underway (after some technical difficulties) with his paper entitled “A Neapolitan Collection of Paisiello Manuscripts at Brigham Young University.” Doug Jacobson (BYU cataloging assistant) presided over this session and next introduced Andrew Snow, BYU student, who read “Documenting the Legacy of M. P. Belaieff.” This paper waswritten by Daniel Heintz, a recent graduate who was touring eastern states with the chamber orchestra—he will be presenting this paper at IAML in July. Christopher Davis (Emporia State University MLIS student) followed with “Outsourcing of Cataloging.”Stephen Luttmann (University of Northern Colorado) gave insights into particular Hindemith compositions with “Paul Hindemith’s Mathis and Harmonie Works: Matters of Primacy and Tradition.” Laura McMurtrey (part-time cataloging assistant at BYU) provided pre-lunch entertainment by singing her favorite songs as well as imitating various Disney princesses. After lunch and the business meeting, some members lingered for a tree tour of campus (those who missed the in-person tour can link here for a virtual experience. | |
| Beyond MLA | |
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Apply for ARSC Research Grants by February 28 ARSC members and non-members alike are eligible for grants in amounts up to $1000. Grant funds can be used to underwrite clerical, editorial, and travel expenses. Funds may not be used to purchase capital equipment or recordings, to perform operations on sound recordings, to reimburse applicants for work already performed, or to support projects that form part of a paid job. Grant recipients must submit documentation of their expenses before reimbursement. All grant funds must be disbursed within eighteen months of the grant award. Grant recipients are required to submit brief descriptions of their projects for publication in the ARSC Journal, and are encouraged to submit articles about their projects, for possible publication in the Journal. Research Grant Applications shall include:
Applications should be sent in the form of four paper copies to: Grants Committee Chairman Applications for the next grant cycle must be received by February 28, 2009. More about the Newport MOUG Meeting
Our thanks for your contributions! | |
| Members’ Publications | |
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Please send citations for items published or premiered in the past calendar year to the column editor, Gary Boye, via e-mail or snail mail at the address below. Please follow the citation style employed below. You must be a current MLA member to submit citations. Dr. Gary R. Boye Books Articles and Chapters Dougan, Kirstin (University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign)
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| Calendar | |
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23–28 January 2009 15–21 February 2009 9 March 2009
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| Photo Credits | |
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Cover photo: The John Hancock Center, the third-tallest building in Chicago, stands tall on North Michigan Avenue, home of the famous Magnificent Mile. © Cesar Russ REALVIEWS™ Photography; courtesy Chicago Convention & Tourism Bureau. | |
My, two years goes by quickly! In this, my last President’s Report to you, I am naturally thinking back to the first one that I wrote eight newsletter issues ago. At that time, we had just had a wonderful joint conference in Pittsburgh with the Society for American Music, and I was also trying to find a place of honor in my office for the gavel that Bonna Boettcher (our Past-President, and one hard act to follow) had forced upon me. Unfortunately, most of the space in my office had been taken up by the seven very large boxes of Presidential files she had shipped to me some months earlier. Our President-Elect, Ruthann McTyre, will be writing the next President’s Report, as well as looking for a place in her office for the gavel I turn over to her in Chicago.
Before Pittsburgh we had begun a thorough-going evaluation of our administrative structure, the results of which are currently being implemented. By the time the Chicago conference is completed, we should have in place all the changes the task force recommended. However, we do not want to assume that all will be perfect at that point. The Board of Directors has been committed to the idea that MLA should become a more flexible organization, one that can address new issues in a timely fashion and not be constrained by its structure. This is not to say that we will have no order within MLA, but that we will be able to address members’ needs as they arise. I hope that this type of evaluation will be an ongoing process in MLA as we continue to improve our infrastructure, enhance our computing abilities, think about how we communicate with one another, create new committees and task forces to address timely issues, and, support our members in the early, middle, and latter stages of their careers. While Presidents and Boards can suggest ideas, set directions, and communicate ideas, ultimately it is the membership of the association that drives the agenda. Our members are the essential assets of our association.