Summer hours at the Music Library begin on Thursday, May 9. We will be open 9 am to 5 pm, Monday through Friday.

You can check hours for all of the UB Libraries at http://library.buffalo.edu/hours/.

For those of you who are graduating, our warmest congratulations. For those of you returning, see you in the fall! Best wishes to all for a rejuvenating, productive, and musical summer.

The music image is a manuscript of Sumer is icumen in, British Library Harley MS 978, f.11v. See the British Library’s online exhibit for the full-page image and more information.

Portrait of Earl Hines, New York, N.Y., ca. Mar. 1947, by William P Gottlieb.
Photograph from the William P. Gottlieb Collection at the Library of Congress.

An exciting new addition to the Music Library is the Mosaic Records issue, Classic Earl Hines Sessions 1928-1945. (CD19362/68)  This seven-disc set chronicles some of the most important recordings made by Hines as a leader of his own big band, as a soloist, and as a featured performer with ensembles such as the Sidney Bechet Trio. Earl Hines was one of the single most important innovators in the history of jazz piano playing. Freeing the development of piano jazz from the strict distinctions of blues, ragtime, and stride, Hines cultivated a unique style that blended elements of all three plus a linear approach to melody, “trumpet style” octaves, and a rhythmically loose left hand.  He was a major influence on a range of artists including Art Tatum, Teddy Wilson, and Nat King Cole. Taken from the masters, as well as some commercially-released 78s of Hines’s original recordings with OKeh, Victor, Brunswick, Vocalion, Bluebird, and Signature, the set picks up immediately after the conclusion of Hines’s tenure in Louis Armstrong’s Hot Five, and extends through the late 1940s when Hines had to disband his orchestra for economic reasons.

Among the many highlights on the set are Hines’s solo tracks including the initial post-Armstrong “Blues in Thirds,” “A Monday Date,” and his 1940 recording of “Body and Soul,” described by jazzweekly.com as “overwhelmingly lovely.” One of the strengths of the Mosaic set is the experience of following the development of the Hines big band’s many incarnations, and consequently the overall development of jazz from the 1920s to the 1940s. Although the classic line-up featuring Dizzy Gillespie and Charlie Parker could not be preserved on recording due to the American Federation of Musicians strike, other important musicians who performed with Hines are represented in the set, including Billy Eckstine, Oscar Pettiford, and Ray Nance.

If you like what you hear on the Mosaic set, and want to explore more of Hines’s work, ask at the circulation desk for CD6800, Louis Armstrong Volume IV: Louis Armstrong and Earl Hines, featuring arguably Hines’s most famous performance, “West End Blues.” For a late-career recording ask about Earl Hines Plays Duke Ellington, (CDX217/18).

With my background in the study of popular music, I have been working in the UB Music Library on developing the holdings of our popular music collection with the addition of albums, books, documentaries and concerts from popular artists and music scenes. Each of the items acquired by the library help to frame popular music over the past four decades and include seminal albums and artists that encapsulate specific times periods, from the 1960 to the 2000s. One of the newest items in our collection is Richard Matson’s Towncraft: Notes from a Local Scene, (DVD 934/36).

Local scenes are often an intricate network of basement shows, high school band competitions and open mic nights that fan the flames of stardom within the radius of metropolitan hubs such as New York, Chicago or Los Angeles. For that reason (among a pile of others) the music scene of Little Rock, Arkansas started in the mid-1980s, its flourishing throughout the 1990s and onward into the new millennium is a case study in do-it-yourself scene building. Towncraft: Notes from a Local Scene has director (and Little Rock native) Richard Matson interviewing local scene members that tell the tale of handmade zines, teenager-owned record shops and rock bands that, instead of looking outward for inspiration, found energy within local hangouts and appropriated public spaces—public parks with electric hookups became spaces for shows while benefit concerts worked towards a compilation album of local bands in the early 1990s that would gain national attention. The evolving soundscapes of the music scene are used here to frame the image of Little Rock and the independent labels, musicians and style that has flourished since.

The UB Music Library’s copy of Towncraft includes the 104 minute film with a 60-page booklet of commentary from Matson and fellow members of the Little Rock scene and a two disc, forty song soundtrack of bands that had their start out of the Little Rock scene. The film is a must-watch for fans of independent music and researchers that delve into subcultures and popular music studies as audience members are privy to the inner workings of a community from its inception to the present day.

Former faculty member Allen Sigel passed away March 15 2013. Mr. Sigel began service on the Music Department faculty in 1953 as a part-time instructor. He joined the faculty full time in 1960 when he retired from his position as principal clarinetist of the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra. He retired from the faculty in 1992. Mr. Sigel was a composer and author in addition to being a clarinetist.  He wrote three pedagogical works for clarinet: Clarinet Articulation, Clarinet Masterwork Etudes: Mastering the Masterworks, and Twentieth Century Clarinetist.

The Music Library holds the Allen Sigel Collection of Scores, 1946-1998 which contains approximately 27 compositions by Allen Sigel. Many of them exist in multiple versions. There are also ten works by other composers in arrangements by Sigel. A description of the collection is available online at:

http://purl.org/net/findingaids/view?docId=ead/music/ubmu0032.xml

Eberhard Blum

Eberhard Blum was a Creative Associate at the Center of the Creative and Performing Arts 1973-1976, and 1978-1979. Eberhard passed away March 5 2013 in Berlin. Mr. Blum was an extraordinary flutist who devoted his career to bringing contemporary music to an international audience. Throughout his career Eberhard Blum explored ways in which visual, musical, theater, and language arts could interact. He was well-known for his performances of difficult text works such as Kurt Schwitters Ursonate and a German translation of John Cage’s 45’ for Speaker. Eberhard Blum was also productive as a graphic artist. A few examples of his visual art are contained within his memoir, Choice & Chance: Bilder Und Berichte Aus Meinem Leben Als Musiker. In addition to the memoir, the Music Library also holds more than two dozen recordings by Eberhard Blum, including the 2012 release of a live performance June 12 2000 at June in Buffalo of Morton Feldman’s Crippled Symmetry with Nils Vigeland and Jan Williams.

Leonard Bernstein, Music Director of the New York Philharmonic from 1957-1969; Photograph from Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division

The following post was written by one of the Music Library’s student workers, Daniel Weaver, a recent graduate of the Department of Library & Information Studies and a current MA student in the Music Department.

The New York Philharmonic Digital Archives is an outstanding resource for anyone seeking easy access to primary sources on topics ranging from the history of the New York Philharmonic itself, 20th-century performance practice, or the working methods of conductors such as Leonard Bernstein or Arturo Toscanini. The Philharmonic, with the sponsorship of the Leon Levy Foundation, recently digitized its entire collection of documents from The International Era, 1943-1970. The formats available for viewing at the New York Philharmonic Digital Archives website include scores marked and used by conductors, parts marked and used by musicians, and programs of concerts, images, and business documents recounting the history of the Philharmonic—totaling 1.3 million pages.

Over 300 composers are represented by 1,780 marked scores. The pages of parts marked by Philharmonic musicians total to 520,000. Additionally, there are over 3,000 programs, over 3,000 business and planning folders, and over 16,000 images. Researchers can search by keyword in any one or all of these formats, while also narrowing their particular search by inclusive dates. Search results can be further narrowed by composer/work, soloist, venue, season, etc. The documents cover the time period 1943-1970. Subsequent digitization projects will cover earlier eras.

To enhance your experience viewing the primary sources available at the Digital Archives, you may wish to visit the Music Library and check out a wide selection of complementary materials. For instance, compare the recordings (CD 3185/86) of Leonard Bernstein conducting Haydn’s “Paris” Symphonies with the scores of these works personally marked by the conductor; read the Music Policy Committee’s discussion of the possible cancellation of Glenn Gould’s next appearance with the Philharmonic in the aftermath of his interpretation of Brahms’s Piano Concerto no. 1. If you wish to hear a recording of that famous performance, ask for Record 14697/98; or, browse the program for the opening night concert conducted by Bernstein at Philharmonic Hall on September 23, 1962 while listening to an LP recording of the concert, (Record 17996/97). To hear a wide-ranging overview of performances throughout the Philharmonic’s history ask about the five volumes of New York Philharmonic, The Historic Broadcasts, beginning at CD 3850/51. For a comprehensive discography of Philharmonic recordings, consult New York Philharmonic: The Authorized Recordings, 1917-2005: A Discography, (ML156.7 N49 N67 2006).

• Sunday, March 10: CLOSED
• Monday March 11-Friday March 15: 9 am-5 pm
• Sunday March 17: 5 pm-9 pm (late open)

We resume our regular schedule Monday March 18.

For a complete list of hours for all UB Libraries, please see http://library.buffalo.edu/hours/

Have a great break!

Are you lucky enough to attend one of these local broadcasts and want to prepare? Are you interested in learning more about the repertoire performed? Can’t attend but are intrigued? The Music Library has scores, libretti, recordings, and videos for most of the upcoming opera and ballet performances that you can use to prepare or explore. Here are some resources for upcoming performances. All the librettos below include include translations with the original language, and the CDs listed include librettos, too. As always, we are happy to help you find these or anything else.

• Giuseppe Verdi, Rigoletto. M91 V58 r D (score), IMSLP.org (scores, free resource), ML50 .V484 R54 1952 (libretto), CD 3068/69, DVD 399,  Naxos online (UB).
• Richard Wagner, Parisfal. M91;W12;p;P (score), IMSLP.org (scores, free resource), ML50.W14 P23 1986 (libretto), CD 17436/39, DVD 236/38, Naxos online (UB).
• George Frideric Handel, Giulio Cesare. M91 H19 g (score), IMSLP.org (scores, free resource), ML49.H13 H3 (libretto), CD 1839/42, DVD 361/63, DVD 419/20, Naxos online (UB).
• Pietro Mascagni, Cavalleria Rusticana.  M91 M37 c D (score), ML50.M39 C321 (libretto), CD 15097/98, DVD 534, Naxos online (UB).
• Ruggerio Leoncavallo, I Pagliacci. M91 L553 p D (score), IMSLP.org (scores, free resource), ML50; L582P32 (libretto), CD 15097/98, DVD 534, Naxos online (UB).
• Giacomo Puccini, Tosca. M91 P96 to F (score), IMSLP.org (scores, free resource), ML50 .P965 T624 1905 (libretto), CD 7899/900, DVD 868, Naxos online (UB).

If you are interested in seeing more dance performances please test out our trial subscription to Dance in Video (on-campus only), and let us know what you think!

For those interested in the broadcast schedule, screenings are offered through Ballet in Cinema and the Metropolitan Opera Live in HD.

The 85th Academy Awards Nominees have been announced! Did your favorite movie from 2012 get nominated? Your favorite original song? Who will win an Oscar?

The University Libraries invite all UB Students to enter our Oscar prediction contest. Guess who the winners will be in our selected categories and you might have a chance to win a Veho Muvi Pro Micro DV Camcorder, Oscar-winning DVDs, and more!

Entries accepted until Friday, February 22, 2013.

One entry per student.

Visit our 2013 University Libraries Oscar Contest page for detailed instructions & rules.

Dance in Video will contain five hundred hours of dance productions and documentaries by the most influential performers and companies of the 20th century. Selections cover ballet, tap, jazz, contemporary, experimental, and improvisational dance, as well as forerunners of the forms and the pioneers of modern concert dance.
http://daiv.alexanderstreet.com/

Medici.tv offers over 900 programs.
The catalogue offers:
• Filmed concerts performed by the today’s greatest names in classical music: Claudio Abbado, Daniel Barenboim, Martha Argerich, Maurizio Pollini, Anna Netrebko, Gustavo Dudamel…
• An unrivalled heritage of archive movies that bring back to life the legends of the past: Maria Callas, Herbert von Karajan, Leonard Bernstein, David Oistrakh, Mstislav Rostropovitch, Samson François, Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau…
• Inspiring documentaries on performers and composers directed by well-established names such as Bruno Monsaingeon and Frank Scheffer and movie documentaries directed by the great masters such as Alexander Sokurov and Johann van der Keuken… In addition, the catalogue offers numerous educational programs and master classes.
http://www.medici.tv/

The trials are listed on the UB Libraries page under “Find Library Materials” => Databases. Use the dropdown menu under “Browse Databases by” to select Free Database Trials.
Or just go here: http://libweb.lib.buffalo.edu/infotree/trials.asp

Please let us know what you think by dropping a line to musique@buffalo.edu.

December 1: World Aids Day

World AIDS Day, first observed in 1988, is a day dedicated to raising awareness of AIDS and HIV, the virus which causes AIDS.  CD 4457 And Trouble Came: Musical Responses to AIDS is a collection of three pieces that represent the struggle with the disease.

December 6: Saint Nicholas Day

December 6 is the feast day of Saint Nicholas, the Greek bishop whose love of secret gift-giving would become the model for the modern Santa Claus.  CD 16057 San Nicola di Bari, is a cantata by Bononcini about the life of one of the most famous saints in Christianity.

December 14: Monkey Day

Monkey Day is a tongue-in-cheek holiday inspired by creators on webcomics, celebrating the popular primate.  CD 7229, a “cartoon opera” by Peter Schat, has the title Monkey Subdues the White-Bone Demon, as heroic a tale as a monkey could wish.

December 26-31: Kwanzaa

Kwanzaa is a celebration of African heritage during the last week of December, first celebrated in 1966.  CD 4986 is a CD of Kwanzaa Music, music used in celebration of the seven principles on which the observance is based.

And, of course, we have plenty of music for Christmas and Hanukkah as well, just ask at the circulation desk, and we’ll see what we can find for you!

- Christopher Libby