Garland Encyclopedia of World Music available online

The Garland Encyclopedia of World Music, long a staple of basic research and bibliography for all aspects of world music, is now available online through the Music Library. It can be accessed from the links page of the music library web site or directly, for enrolled Cornell students, faculty, and staff at http://encompass.library.cornell.edu/cgi-bin/checkIP.cgi?access=gateway_standard%26url=http://glnd.alexanderstreet.com

Note that the interface is both pretty basic and a little confusing, so if you have any heavy research to do, the handy nine-volume set is always available at the Music Library (Ref  ML100 .G23 1998). Also, the main page of the url above adds to the confusion by showing only the “featured” volumes, which can be accessed by clicking on the cover images. All 9 volumes are available, but to get to the list, the intrepid user has to select “browse” from the toolbar under the title. The site features a search bar, which is primarily useful for searching geographic areas or ethnic groups. Because of the way the encyclopedia is structured, searching for (e.g.) instruments produces large numbers of hits of questionable value (unlike the New Grove and many other such works, the Garland Encyclopedia does not have individual articles on instruments; it discusses them within the context of the tradition, geographic area, or ethnic group in which they are used). Despite these quibbles, the Garland Encyclopedia is a phenomenal resource and having it available online makes this trove of information more widely accessible to the Cornell community.

Music Library staff perform in “Harlequin’s Capers”

Music Library staffers Beth Kelly (recorder, baroque flute) and Ken Fung (baroque violin) will be performing with members of NYS Baroque and the New York Baroque Dance Company in “Harlequin’s Capers,” a performance of French baroque dance inspired by commedia dell’arte at 3:00 pm Sunday, Nov. 18 in Bailey Hall.  Beth also performed in the lunchtime lecture/performance with members of the dance company on Thursday. Kudos to Ken and Beth for helping to make these exciting performances happen.

Inaugural Lenore Coral Memorial Lecture a success

In addition to Prof. Will’s wide-ranging and thought provoking talk, which I will not try to encapsulate here (except to note that he makes an interesting preliminary stab at problematizing Taruskin’s construction of “modernism” in 20th century performance practice), David Yearsley gave a generous introduction explaining the reasoning behind the Lenore Coral Memorial Lectures. He said that each lecture will feature a distinguished Cornell alumnus, and the lectures were named for Lenore because of her unstinting support for graduate music education at Cornell. She served as an adviser, as director of graduate studies, and for many years as chair of the musicology colloquium series. Yearsley also noted the Lenore Coral Festschrift, “Music, Libraries and the Academy (A-R Editions, 2007) edited by Jim Cassaro. Most flattering for us in the music library (and for her) he described her active role in the redesign of Lincoln Hall, making it into a “music library with a music school around it,”  which Yearsley noted was just fine with him.

Music Lib. Blog progress

Thus far, we’re getting Music Library staff started on the whole blogging idea. We’re working on ideas for content, including CD reviews, discussions of new audio and video formats, news in the music library, staff news, and musical staff participation in outside musical events. Also, I’ve got some learning to do in order to make the whole “moderation” process easier for myself; I have no interest in having to OK every post multiple times before it’s added to the list.

Other music library developments in no particular order:

• The inaugural Lenore Coral Memorial Lecture will be given today by Cornell alumnus Richard Will.  Prof. Will will deliver a talk entitled “Mozart’s _Topoi_ in Performance” in LH 124at 4:15 pm (the usual colloquium time and place.)

• Ken Fung, music tech. services supervisor extraordinaire, will be playing with the Petits Violons de Cornell, participating in the “Harequin’s Capers” performance, Sunday, Nov. 19, 3:00 at Bailey Hall.

• Cataloging of the Stasolla gift of mainly-Capitol LPs from the 50s-60s is progressing faster than we anticipated. Many thanks to Cayenna Ponchione for keeping up with the physical processing of these items. Given what I’ve been cataloging lately, I foresee Cornell becoming a 21st-century center for the study of Jackie Gleason’s musical output; what with the whole interest in space age lounge music, imagine the possibility of articles on e.g. Gleason’s appropriation of the sitar and tabla for his “Music for Today’s Lovers” project… . In all seriousness, we now have a large and growing trove of LPs that will interest practically anyone with a research interest in American popular music, from Dixieland to commercial folk groups like The New Seekers and The Kingston Trio, along with a substantial chunk or Frank Sinatra’s recorded output and unreleased live recordings, radio checks, and alternate takes.

Thanks for setting up the blog

This is a great idea, and I hope it works!

Welcome to the Cornell Music Library blog…

This should be a forum for announcements relating to the Music Library, reviews and review/essays of new (and older) Library materials of interest, and upcoming events. Also, I’d like the Music Library staff and possibly students in the Music Department to drive content and use this as a resource for news about the Music Library.