Message from the Chair
Updated NEMLA By-Laws
Spring 2015 Meeting Minutes
Fall 2015 Meeting Preview
Seeking Nominations
Noteworthy News
NEMLA Officers
Publication Information
Message from the Chair:
Dear NEMLA members,
It is a pleasure to greet you as the new Chair of NEMLA!
I would like to start by thanking Jennifer Hunt, our outgoing Past Chair, and Kerry Carwile Masteller, for her leadership and service as Chair this past year. I am grateful that Kerry will remain on board another year in the Past Chair position. I would also like to thank our outgoing officers, and welcome Laura Stokes our newly-elected Vice-Chair and Program Chair, who is working hard on our Fall NEMLA meeting at the College of Holy Cross planned for Friday, October 16th.
Please join me in thanking Sarah Funke Donovan, our outgoing Secretary/Treasurer, and Erica Charis our outgoing Newsletter Editor, for their service to NEMLA. I would like to congratulate
and welcome our new officers: Sharon Saunders, Secretary/Treasurer and Maryalice Perrin-Mohr, Newsletter Editor/Social Media specialist. You can see a complete list of current NEMLA Officers on our website.
This past March we had a very informative and engaging Spring meeting on a host of topics at Smith College. Many thanks to Marlene Wong, not only for hosting but also putting together
such a interactive morning session on ukulele history and publishing, and for including a brief lesson with the Ukulele Meister, Stuart Fuchs, a.k.a. “Stukulele.” The afternoon sessions on saving analog sound formats and on the composer Eugenie Göring were also fascinating to watch. Christopher Schiff, our Member at Large, will give a more detailed account of this meeting in this newsletter.
For those who missed the Spring meeting or who would like to review any of these sessions, please see Brendan Higgins’s video recording, 2015 NEMLA Spring Meeting. You can also see a great selection of photos from the meeting taken by Erica Charis, our NEMLA photographer. Finally, last but not least I would like to thank the Program Committee, including Ilana Revkin, Anne Adams and Laura Stokes, for such a well-planned meeting.
The NEMLA board met in June and discussed a range of topics such as our recent survey, suggestions for updating the website, and ways to engage our members in current committees, as well as how to attract new members to the board. Speaking of membership: are you interested in being more involved with NEMLA? We have several committees:
- Publications Committee
- Instruction Committee
- Education and Outreach
- Technical Services
- Nominating Committee
- Program Committee
Many of these committees need new members! Please email Kerry at kmastell at fas. harvard dot edu with your interests, and she will direct you to committees with openings.
I hope to see you at our Fall meeting at the College of the Holy Cross in Worcester. I will repeat this reminder in September newsletter; please let your library staff and interns know that first time
attendees are free, and that financial assistance is available for travel and lunch through the First Time Attendees Program if needed.
I am looking forward to serving you in the coming year and hope you will all feel free to send me your thoughts and vision for NEMLA. I look forward to seeing many of you in Worcester!
Zoë Rath
NEMLA, Chair
Reference Librarian
Stan Getz Library
Berklee College of Music
zrath@berklee.edu
Updated NEMLA Bylaws
NEMLA, Spring 2015
Approved Bylaws Revisions
Music Library Association, New England Chapter Bylaws
Bylaws last amended October 6, 1979
Last revised March 20, 2015
Note: These revisions were formulated at the NEMLA Executive Board meeting in July 2014. They were discussed, voted on, and approved by the NEMLA membership following the spring 2015 membership business meeting (for the text highlighting revisions see the December 2014 issue of Quarter Notes). We reproduce here in full the new bylaws text with changes incorporated.
ARTICLE I. NAME
This organization shall be known as the New England Chapter of the Music Library Association.
ARTICLE II. PURPOSE
The purpose of this Chapter shall be:
- To bring together for exchange of ideas and discussion of problems all persons in the region interested in music libraries and collections, and to stimulate professional activities among the members.
- To initiate and encourage studies aiming to improve the organization, administration, and contents of such libraries and collections.
- To endeavor to establish communication with libraries not affiliated with the Music Library Association to determine how the Chapter may be meaningful to the individual library.
- Outreach to public libraries and generalist librarians charged with music reference and collection development and music cataloging (detailed under Article VIII.A.)
ARTICLE III. MEMBERSHIP AND DUES
- Membership in this Chapter shall be open to all members of the Music Library Association and persons and institutions interested in the activities and objectives of this chapter.
- Full membership is granted upon payment of annual dues to the Secretary/Treasurer.
- The membership year shall be from September 1 to August 31.
- Honorary membership will be extended to members who have received the Music Library Association Citation Award or have shown exceptional service at the chapter level.
ARTICLE IV. OFFICERS
- There shall be a Chair who shall preside at all meetings, appoint committees (see Article VIII for exception), and perform the duties customary to this office. The term of office shall be one year, after which the Chair shall succeed to the office of Past-Chair.
- There shall be a Vice-Chair/Chair-Elect who shall be responsible for programs and perform the duties of the Chair in the latter’s absence. The Vice-Chair/Chair-Elect shall also serve as an ex-
officio member of the Education & Outreach Committee. The term of office shall be one year, after which the Vice-Chair shall succeed to the office of Chair. - There shall be a Past-Chair who shall appoint and chair the Nominating Committee and perform other duties as necessary. The term of office shall be one year.
- There shall be a Secretary/Treasurer who shall record the minutes of all meetings and preserve all official records and reports of the Chapter; notify the members of all meetings at least two weeks in advance; keep an up-to-date membership list; conduct any correspondence of the Chapter as may be required; collect dues; make authorized expenditures; maintain Chapter accounts and report on status of these accounts at each board meeting; prepare an annual budget; and perform duties customary to this office. The term of office shall be two years.
- There shall be a Member-at-Large who shall act as liaison to relevant professional organizations in New England (such as the New England Library Association (NELA),the six state library
associations, the New England chapter of ACRL (ACRL/NEC), and the New England chapter of the American Musicological Society) primarily to promote information exchange and outreach. The Member-at-Large shall also serve as Chair of the Education & Outreach Committee. The term of office shall be two years. - The Board may appoint non-voting, special officers for a two year term of service renewable at the board’s discretion. Except when otherwise specified, special officers may serve no more than
four consecutive years. - A) All officers shall be members in good standing of the Chapter. B) The Chair and Vice-Chair/Chair-Elect shall be members of the national association.
- Terms of office shall commence immediately following the Spring meeting.
- No officer shall be eligible for more than two consecutive terms in the same office.
ARTICLE V. ELECTIONS
- Officers shall be elected by a plurality of the ballots cast. Ballots shall be distributed to members at least four weeks before the Spring business meeting. Ballots will be collected online and
collated by the Secretary/Treasurer. A majority vote of the Executive Board shall break a tie. - Should an office become vacant mid-term, the Chair, in combination with the Executive Board, will appoint a NEMLA member to fill the position until the next election.
ARTICLE VI. MEETINGS
- There shall be a minimum of two meetings a year.
- There shall be a business meeting in the Spring of each year.
- Meetings shall be called by the Executive Board with at least two weeks’ notice.
- A quorum shall consist of a majority of members present at any meeting.
- The Executive Board shall determine appropriate honoraria for guest presenters at the meetings; NEMLA members do not receive honoraria for presenting.
ARTICLE VII. EXECUTIVE BOARD
There shall be an Executive Board consisting of the elected officers, the Past-Chair, the Archivist, and the Newsletter and Web site editors. Only the elected officers and Past-Chair are voting members of the Executive Board.
ARTICLE VIII. COMMITTEES AND ROUNDTABLES
ARTICLE VIII.A. COMMITTEES
- The Standing Committees shall be the Nominating Committee, the Program Committee, the Instruction Committee, the Publications Committee, the Technical Services Committee, and the Education & Outreach Committee. Except when otherwise specified, committee chairs and members may serve no more than two consecutive terms. Service as a member does not preclude subsequent service as chair for two additional terms. Members may be reappointed after being off a committee for one year.
- A) Nominating Committee
- The Nominating Committee shall consist of at least three members, appointed and chaired by the Past-Chair, and shall present to the Executive Board a slate of candidates for office at least six weeks before the Spring business meeting
- Members of this Committee may not serve for consecutive terms.
- All candidates for office shall be members in good standing of the Chapter and shall fulfill all other eligibility requirements as set forth in Article IV.
- B) The Program Committee shall be chaired by the Vice-Chair and shall plan the meetings of the chapter. The committee shall consist of three additional members who are appointed by the Chair on a rotating basis, each serving a two year (i.e., four-meeting) term. The composition of the committee must reflect the interests of both technical and public services for both public and academic library sectors.
- C) The Publications Committee shall be appointed by the Chair and shall oversee all publications activities, including the Chapter newsletter, directory, and Web sites.
- D) The Instruction Committee shall facilitate and promote the regional discussion of issues and standards related to information literacy in music librarianship, by:
- Serving as a networking tool to connect information literacy instructors, instruction designers, and instruction administrators at various institutions.
- Hosting open discussions at NEMLA meetings, and assisting to enhance activities that touch upon information literacy issues which are provided by other NEMLA Committees.
- Assisting in the distribution of information, dissemination of guidelines, and sharing of individual resources (libguides, learning outcomes, webcasts, etc.) with/to interested institutions and individuals in New England, particularly to those individuals who are unable to attend national MLA meetings or are unaffiliated with NEMLA.
- Working with the NEMLA Program Committee to plan NEMLA sessions or programs.
- E). The Technical Services Committee shall facilitate and promote the regional discussion of issues and standards related to technical services in music librarianship, by:
- Serving as a conduit to connect those seeking technical services knowledge with appropriate local technical services experts.
- Hosting open discussions at NEMLA meetings, and assisting to enhance activities that touch upon technical services issues which are provided by other NEMLA Committees.
- Assisting in the dissemination of information and guidelines provided by the Music Library Association’s Bibliographic Control Committee to interested institutions and individuals in New England, particularly to those individuals who are unable to attend national MLA meetings or are unaffiliated with NEMLA.
- Working with the NEMLA Program Committee to plan NEMLA sessions or programs.
- F) The Education & Outreach Committee shall devise and coordinate activities related to professional and continuing education for music librarianship within the New England
region, by:- Working with the NEMLA Program Committee to plan NEMLA sessions or programs which generally deal with topics in greater depth or with a stronger emphasis on practicality than in the general sessions of the semi-annual meetings.
- Investigating, developing, and providing education initiatives to groups which fall outside of, but which are related to, NEMLA by presenting workshops on the basic precepts of music librarianship through the sponsorship of library schools
or other regional library associations and councils. Target groups might include librarians and library staff working with music materials who are not members of NEMLA, and other groups not presently identified. The committee should
determine how NEMLA’s mission can be promoted within the region through representation at regional library meetings (e.g. NELA, ACRL/NEC New England), career fairs (e.g. Simmons, Berklee College of Music), or state library
association meetings in the regional meetings. - Ensuring that NEMLA membership options are promoted at outreach events.
- The Education & Outreach Committee shall be chaired by the Member-at-Large. The Program Chair shall be ex-officio member of the committee. Additional committee members shall be appointed by the NEMLA Chair. Members should represent a broad spectrum of library professional staff from public, academic, and special libraries, from as many of the New England states as possible.
2. Other committees may be appointed by the Chair as deemed necessary.
ARTICLE VIII.B. ROUNDTABLES
- Definition: Roundtables are assemblies of members of the Chapter that convene at the Chapter’s semi-annual meetings to exchange ideas on topics not specifically addressed by the standing committees of the chapter. Each roundtable is led by a Coordinator appointed by the NEMLA Chair, in consultation with the Board. Coordinators shall be appointed for an initial term of two years, with the possibility of reappointment for no more than one succeeding term. Normally there are no other officers and no specified membership.
- Authorization: the NEMLA Chair may authorize the establishment of a roundtable for a term of four years after receiving letters of support from three members of the Chapter identifying a common area of concern. Renewal of the authorization for an additional four-year term requires
two letters of support. The letters are due to the Chair by Aug. 31 of the year of expiration. Roundtable authorizations expire Dec. 31. A roundtable may be dissolved by the Chair if it appears that it no longer serves a need or that its work could be carried on more effectively by a committee of the Chapter. If a roundtable fails to have a minimum attendance of four participants for two consecutive years, that roundtable shall be retired.
Activities: All roundtables hold two meetings a year convened by the Coordinator during the semi-annual meetings of the chapter. Roundtable meetings and other roundtable activities may be announced in the NEMLA newsletter and listed in the programs of the semi-annual meeting. Roundtables are encouraged to participate in developing programs for NEMLA meetings
ARTICLE IX. PARLIAMENTARY AUTHORITY
The rules contained in Robert’s Rules of Order shall govern this Chapter in all cases to which they are applicable.
ARTICLE X. DISSOLUTION
In the event of the dissolution of the Chapter the records of its activities and its assets, if any, shall become the property of the national organization of the Music Library Association.
ARTICLE XI. AMENDMENTS
- Proposed amendments shall be submitted to the Executive Board for consideration at least eight weeks before the meeting of the Chapter at which it is requested that the proposal be presented.
- Upon approval by the Executive Board texts of the proposed amendments shall be distributed to Chapter members at least four weeks before presentation for discussion at the meeting.
- Ballots and texts as revised at the meeting shall be distributed to Chapter members in a timely manner, generally in the next issue of the chapter newsletter. Ballots will be collected online and collated by the Secretary/Treasurer.
Spring 2015 Meeting Minutes
The Spring 2015 NEMLA Meeting convened in at Smith College on Friday, March 20th. Though the meeting convened less than 10 hours before the vernal equinox, intrepid attendees were treated to one last reminder of the seemingly endless New England Winter. Still, amidst the flurries, sunny music and warm camaraderie reigned.
After greetings from NEMLA’s Chair Kerry Masteller, our host Marlene Wong, and the Director of Smith College Libraries, Christopher Loring, we took a turn toward Jiminy Cricket and George Harrison. The morning session concentrated on the “Third Wave” of ukulele popularity in the United States. A panel discussion on the current state of the ukulele featured “Jumpin’” Jim and Liz Beloff of Fleamarket Music, NEMLA’s Marlene Wong, Downtown Sounds music store proprietor and ukulele club leader Joe Blumenthal, Faith Kaufmann of Northampton’s Forbes Library, and ukulele virtuoso Stuart Fuchs. The ensemble covered every imaginable angle on the instrument – economics, sociology, history, and how to play. Blumenthal spoke of sales of the eminently affordable instrument as a populist moment in music. For as little as $50, a budding uke enthusiast can get started with the instrument – or so can a library on a tight budget! That is how Faith Kaufmann started the ukulele (now extended to other portable instruments) lending program at Forbes Library. The experiment led Marlene Wong to start her own uke lending program at Smith, and both the public and academic programs are thriving.
Leading us through the history of the increasingly popular instrument were “Jumpin’” Jim and Liz Beloff of Fleamarket Music. The Beloffs keyed their history first to their extensive collection of ukulele sheet music from the early twentieth century, giving a nod to Cliff “Ukulele Ike” Edwards whose ukulele inflected version of Singin’ in the Rain was a hit in 1929 and whose voice was immortalized as Jiminy Cricket in Disney’s Pinocchio. Following the short-lived, Arthur Godfrey inspired, “second wave” of ukulele popularity in the 1950s, current, “third wave,” interest in the instrument owes much to the publications of the Beloffs themselves. Their many compilations of uke music have provided instruction and song books and ukulele tabs for the modern repertoire, making new converts to the instrument and inspiring some of the biggest names in popular music — among them Eddie Vedder (Jumpin’ Jim played a significant role in his Ukulele Songbook) and the Beatles’ George Harrison.
Our morning session ended with a demonstration of virtuoso ukulele and a lesson from Stuart Fuchs, who spoke of his ukulele-centered music therapy practice. Fuchs’ facility and control of the instrument was evident as was his range of styles: everything from the comic which is so frequently associated with ukuleles to an impromptu snippet of Bach. The combined ukulele collections of the two libraries (augmented with instruments from Downtown Sounds) were distributed amongst attendees in an excellent demonstration of how quickly one can learn the basics and start making music. In addition to NEMLA’s crop of excellent string players, the ensemble was filled-out by ringers from Northampton’s AEIOUkes.
The NEMLA business meeting was conducted over lunch. Changes to the by-laws were approved which are intended to make it easier to replace officers who cannot fill out their terms and unelected
committee chairs. Board election results were announced, with Laura Stokes of Brown University becoming our new Vice-Chair/Chair-Elect, and Sharon Saunders our new Treasurer. The meeting ended with the transfer of the Chair’s gavel from Kerry Masteller to our new chair Zoe Rath.
The afternoon session started with “The Day the Music Didn’t Die: Saving MIT’s Analog Music Recordings.” MIT’s Peter Munstedt opened with a scenario familiar to many in the room: years of concern for (but inaction on) digitizing the library’s collection of recital and performance recordings. To jump start the project a donor was found and the Digital Audio Music Project (DAMP) was born. Munstedt emphasized that a project such as this must be a team effort. Although he indicated that he had had this on his to-do list for decades, it became part of a larger emphasis on MIT digital collections, and that allowed for the right environment to foster the project.
Enter Tricia Patterson, MIT’s National Digital Stewardship Resident. She discussed the FileMaker Pro database that was developed to inventory the collection. Cate Gallivan, the project assistant hired to
perform the inventory, discussed the importance of documenting the workflow(s), responsibilities, and processes to make the material accessible and to preserve it into the future. One huge takeaway from this session is: a well-designed project is almost certainly going to be complex. The fact that MIT is documenting this complexity in all its intricacy will, one hopes, benefit many other institutions. This is a work in process that will bear revisiting in the future.
The final presentation of the day was by Alice Abraham and concerned her research on the composer Eugenie Göring. The complex story that Alice unfolded – part archival research, part genealogy, and part mystery – mirrors the complexity of Göring’s times. A woman composer of considerable abilities, Göring’s musical manuscripts were found abandoned in a barn in Windsor, VT. Some of the mysteries surrounding her come right out of a thriller. Was she related to Herman Göring? Could she have been a German spy? Or was she a lesbian trying to live her life in freedom and seclusion?
Among the pieces of evidence pointing to the latter possibility is a piano solo cryptically titled “Amazonen Kampf” (Struggle of the Amazons). This was one of the manuscripts magnificently performed by well-known pianist and lecturer Virginia Eskin, whose realization of Göring’s piano music was enthusiastically received by the attendees.
For a fuller understanding of this story, please see Alice’s publication in The Kapralova Society Journal: http://www.kapralova.org/journal23.pdf
The day ended with tours of the Werner Josten Library, and a sumptuous reception. In addition, several attendees snuck off to the last day of the Smith Bulb Show and were transported for ever so brief a time into Monet’s garden. If you ever have a chance to see the bulb show, by all means take the opportunity. It was a perfect way to end the conference.
Respectfully submitted,
Christopher Schiff
Member-at Large
Fall 2015 Meeting Preview
College of the Holy Cross
Worcester, MA
Friday, October 16, 2015
Save the date! The Fall 2015 NEMLA meeting will be held on Friday, October 16, 2015, at the College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, MA.
The College of the Holy Cross was founded in 1843. A leading liberal arts college with roughly 2,900 students, it offers a wide-ranging undergraduate curriculum in the Jesuit tradition. The campus spans
174 acres atop of Mount St. James in Worcester, and has won numerous awards for landscaping and architecture.
More details about the presentations, hotel arrangements, and the catered lunch that will be available will be coming out on the NEMLA-L listserv shortly. We would love to see everyone at the member dinner on Thursday evening before the meeting. Stay tuned for more information through the listserv, and email Laura Stokes (laura_stokes at brown.edu) if you have any questions.
Special thanks to Alicia Hansen, who is serving as the main contact and host for Holy Cross, to Alan Karass for facilitating many aspects of the arrangements, and to the program committee, which includes
Anne Adams and Ilana Revkin.
Seeking Nominations / New Committee Members:
As of July 2015, the NEMLA board seeks new members for the following committees:
Publications Committee
Sarah Hunter, chair (shunter at bu.edu)
Instruction Committee
Carol Lubkowski, chair (lubkowski at hartford.edu)
Education and Outreach Committee
Chris Schiff, chair (cschiff at bates.edu)
Program Committee
Laura Stokes, chair (laura_stokes at brown.edu)
Nominating Committee
Kerry Masteller, chair (kmastell at fas.harvard.edu)
Please email the committee chairs if you are interested in joining!
In addition NEMLA continues to look into creating an Oral History Committee. NEMLA received funding from MLA to create an oral history, and while we have two members interested in being on this committee, we still need someone willing to chair it. If interested, please email chris schiff at bates.edu.
Noteworthy News
Joe Scott will retire from my position as Music Catalog / Metadata Librarian at the University of Connecticut effective July 1, 2015. Joe has served the Music Library and its collections in that capacity since December of 1976.
Without his “day job”, Joe’s choral singing schedule will be a lot more manageable as he is a member of the Vernon Chorale (CT)), the Eastern Connecticut Symphony Chorus (New London), the Immanuel Congregational Church Choir (Hartford), in addition to his own church choir. In addition to singing, Joe plans to look into family genealogy, study the WWII period of American history – hoping to learn about his dad’s service during the war, and maybe seeing more of the country by attending national ACDA conferences and NCAA Women’s Basketball Final Four tournaments.
Erica Charis is Berklee College of Music’s new Assistant Director of Assessment Programs & Planning for Learning Resources, starting June 1, 2015. Erica has held various positions at the Stan Getz Library at the Berklee College of Music over the past eight years, starting as a paraprofessional while she was still studying toward her MLS at Simmons. She is an active member of Music Library Association (MLA), the New England Music Library Association (NEMLA), the Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL), and New England Library Instruction Group (NELIG).
Erica also has a performing background, completing her BFA in Vocal Performance at York University in Toronto and performing occasionally in Boston after graduation. When not giving away library branded kazoos and running theremin trivia contests, she can often be found at creative writing workshops or poetry festivals or on the saddle of her beloved touring bicycle, Bonnie.
Paddock Music Library at Dartmouth College opened as a small departmental library when the Hopkins Center for the Performing Arts opened in 1962. It became a branch of the Dartmouth College Libraries in 1975, and relocated to a new expanded facility within the Hopkins Center in 1986.
Just this year Dartmouth completed a renovation of some of the public, non-stacks areas of the music library. Students and faculty are happy with the results, and we all look forward to a possible further expansion and relocation in the future when the Hopkins Center is expanded and renovated in its entirety.
NEMLA Officers
Chair:
Zoe Rath
Reference Librarian ILL Service
Stan Getz Library
Berklee College of Music
1140 Boylston Street
Boston, MA 02215
zrath at berklee dot edu
Phone: 617-747-8143
Vice-Chair/Chair-Elect:
Laura Stokes
Performing Arts Librarian
Orwig Music Library
Brown University
Providence, RI 02912
laura_stokes at brown.edu
Office: (401) 863-3999
Past Chair:
Kerry Carwile Masteller
Reference and Digital Program Librarian
Loeb Music Library
Music Building, North Yard
Harvard University
Cambridge, MA 02138
kmastell at fas.harvard.edu
Office: (617) 495-2794
Fax: (617) 496-4636
Secretary-Treasurer:
Sharon Saunders
Bates College Library
48 Campus Ave
Lewiston, ME 04240
ssaunder at bates.edu
207-786-8327
Member-At-Large:
Christopher Schiff
Ladd Library
Research Services
Bates College
2 Andrews Road
Lewiston, ME 04240
cschiff at bates.edu
Office: (207) 786-6274
Newsletter Editor:
Maryalice Perrin-Mohr
Archivist/Records Manager
New England Conservatory
Spaulding Library
33 Gainsborough St.
Boston, MA 02115
m.perrin-mohr at necmusic.edu
(617) 585-1252
NEMLA Archivist:
Sofia Becerra-Licha
Archivist
Stan Getz Library
Berklee College of Music
1140 Boylston Street
Boston, MA 02215
sbecerralicha at berklee.edu
Office: (617)747-8001
Web Page Editor:
Sarah Hunter
Assistant Head
Music Library
Boston University
771 Commonwealth Ave.
Boston, MA 02215
shunter at bu.edu
Office: (617)353-5810
Publication Information
New England Quarter Notes is published quarterly in September, December, March/April and June/July.
Back issues may be accessed from:
http://nemla.musiclibraryassoc.org/resources/newsletters/
Address all correspondence concerning editorial matters to:
Maryalice Perrin-Mohr
m.perrin-mohr at necmusic.edu
Inquiries concerning subscription, membership and change of address should be directed to:
Sharon Saunders
ssaunder at bates.edu
Membership year runs September to August.
Regular Personal Membership:$12.00
Student and Retired Membership:$6.00
Institutional Membership$16.00
Return to the New England Music Library Association home page.