The story of a book: Karen's blog, True Imaginary Friends.
What happens when you get a book contract? Here's one woman's story. (Of course, our stories are all different. What's yours?)
Monday, 30 April 2012
Composer Wanted
More info on Scottish Music Centre website:-
Opportunities
Poet Donald Campbell seeks Composer
Poet and playwright Donald Campbell, best known for his many plays, including The Jesuit and The Widows of Clyth, is looking for a composer to work with him on his new project.
This project is an English translation of the classic Gaelic poem, The Birlinn of Clanranald by Alasdair McMhaister. More info ...
Come on, Royal Conservatoire of Scotland composers - anyone ready to seize this opportunity?
Sunday, 29 April 2012
Musica Scotica
'Whittaker' attended the Musica Scotica conference yesterday, and very good it was, too.
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| Some of Kenneth Elliott's output |
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| Kenneth Elliott (from Scotsman obituary) |
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| Sally Beamish - British Council website |
If you weren't there, you missed a treat. But there will always be next year! Keep a look-out for it.
Friday, 27 April 2012
Do you use social bookmarking?
Diigo and Delicious are just two ways of saving your favourite websites "in the cloud" - in other words, save them on the web so you can access them anywhere, any time, on any web-enabled device.
See how 'Whittaker' (oh, okay, Karen McAulay) uses it to store useful websites that might come in handy at a later date. Just scroll down this page to find the block of Diigo links. Enjoy!
- http://diigo.com
- http://www.diigo.com/user/karenmca (Karen's Diigo links)
- http://www.delicious.com/
Wednesday, 25 April 2012
Historic bagpipe recordings: Piper's heaven
At the request of course leader Josh Dickson, eight new piping CDs were obtained from The Bagpipe Library at The Bagpipe Place. These allow students to listen to historic early recordings. (See the list here ...)
Have you encountered The Bagpipe Place yet? If you're curious, why not visit the website?
http://www.thebagpipeplace.com/
Which leads you to:
The Bagpipe Store,
The Bagpipe Museum,
The Bagpipe School, and
The Bagpipe Library.
To a piper, this must surely be somewhere near heaven!
Have you encountered The Bagpipe Place yet? If you're curious, why not visit the website?
http://www.thebagpipeplace.com/
Which leads you to:
The Bagpipe Store,
The Bagpipe Museum,
The Bagpipe School, and
The Bagpipe Library.
To a piper, this must surely be somewhere near heaven!
How's your social networking?
'Whittaker' has just had lunch with the Thesis Whisperer, aka Inger Mewburn of RMIT University, Melbourne. Having tweeted and emailed, and provided a few blogposts about the library side of research for Inger's The Thesis Whisperer research support blog, it was fantastic to have the opportunity to meet up in real life. (I did my bit for Scotland - Inger now knows what haggis tastes like!)
Apart from having the opportunity to discuss research matters, it was great just to have the chance to network. The remarkable thing, though, is that twenty years ago we wouldn't have even known each other existed.
Oh, and I've offered to write another blogpost - on crowdsourcing. When I've posted the book manuscript and written up my IAML(UK and Ireland) paper, I shall get started on that. Watch this space!
Apart from having the opportunity to discuss research matters, it was great just to have the chance to network. The remarkable thing, though, is that twenty years ago we wouldn't have even known each other existed.
Oh, and I've offered to write another blogpost - on crowdsourcing. When I've posted the book manuscript and written up my IAML(UK and Ireland) paper, I shall get started on that. Watch this space!
Singing workshop with Karine Polwart
Karine Polwart at Kirriemuir ...
THE next weekend singing workshop organised by Angus Folk will be with Karine Polwart on Saturday, May 26 in The Guide Hall, The Roods, Kirriemuir. More info ...Karine Polwart website
The Most Incredible Thing
The most incredible thing is that the Whittaker Library at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland HAS the CD of the Pet Shop Boys ballet, The Most Incredible Thing (score by Tennant/Lowe).
Hope you're impressed! Find it here.
Hope you're impressed! Find it here.
Tuesday, 24 April 2012
What's new in the Library?
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| Acquired recently |
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| This rarity needed rebinding! |
Short courses at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland
Planning for the summer holidays?
Come and enjoy a short course led by our expert team at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland. More info here ...
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Come and enjoy a short course led by our expert team at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland. More info here ...
Piano I (30 July – 3 August: 5 days)
Piano II (6-10 August - 5 days)
£450/£850 for both
Fali Pavri, Aaron Shorr and a
team of guest artists including our International Fellow in Piano Steven
Osborne.
Jazz Performer (30 July – 3 August :5
days) /£450
Tommy Smith, Alyn Cosker, Tom
MacNiven, Paul Harrison, Chris Grieve, Mario Caribe and Kevin MacKenzie
Chamber Ensemble (6-10 August : 5days) /£450 per
trio, £600 per quartet and £100 per performer thereafter.
Robert Irvine, Jacqueline Shave
and Jane Atkins
Classical Singing
(20-25 August : 6 days) /£495
Stephen Robertson with guest
teachers Timothy Dean, Professor Christopher Underwood, Helen Lawson, Mark
Hathaway and guest artists Judith Howarth (soprano) Clare Shearer
(mezzo-soprano) Iain Paton (tenor) and Julian Tovey (baritone)
Monday, 23 April 2012
Stephen Broad - new book on Messiaen
Check availability here.
Wednesday, 18 April 2012
Lucy In New Orleans
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| Lucy Robertson, Performance Librarian |
http://LucyInNewOrleans.blogspot.com
Here's the website for MOLA (Major Orchestra Librarians' Association)
Tuesday, 17 April 2012
Centre for Research in New Music, University of Huddersfield
There's plenty of new and exciting stuff going on at the Centre for Research in New Music, in the University of Huddersfield.
Why not take a look? The Whittaker Library plans to obtain the Huddersfield new music recordings in the near future.
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| University of Huddersfield http://www.hud.ac.uk/ |
Why not take a look? The Whittaker Library plans to obtain the Huddersfield new music recordings in the near future.
Performance research fellowships
AHRC funding for post-doctoral fellowships into musical performance. More here...
Whittaker's pics
Whilst in Cardiff, 'Whittaker' visited Ty Cerdd, the Welsh music information centre, in the Wales Millenium Centre. (Did you expect holiday snaps? Oh, fie!)
And of course, collected one of 14 Excellence Awards on behalf of the Whittaker Library - all very exciting! Here's a quick picture to tide us over until we have the certificate framed and displayed.
Returning to the reality of daily life in the Whittaker Library at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, Whittaker discovered that inanimate objects can now speak. The plants had 'I am not thirsty' notes attached, and one of the books had decided that retirement was long overdue. It's nowhere near 67 yet, but it really looks past its best, so we can understand its self-promotion to the 'Library in the sky'.
If you're curious what Karen was talking about, down in Cardiff, do take a look at her powerpoint presentation on Crowdsourcing the Celtic Bard. Not content with her researches into the Scotish Minstrel (sic!), she now knows a fair bit about his Welsh cousins ...
Wednesday, 11 April 2012
Scottish minstrels and Welsh bards - 'Whittaker' went to Cardiff
Scottish minstrels and Welsh bards
'Whittaker' (Oh, okay - Karen McAulay) has just returned from Cardiff where UK and Irish music librarians held the IAML(UK and Ireland) Annual Study Weekend this year.
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| Edward Jones's collection |
Diigo list - Welsh music links
As promised to the delegates - and IAML (UK and Ireland) members who weren't able to attend - here's the link to my PowerPoint.
NB I'm afraid there is no written 'script', but I hope to write up my talk for publication in Brio in due course.
Sunday, 8 April 2012
A selection of Scottish music links for trad and contemporary musos
See if there are any links here that you haven't come across before!
Irish music: a selection of useful websites
Take a look at this selection of weblinks, predominantly relating to Ireland's traditional music.
Friday, 6 April 2012
Welsh music - a selection of useful links to the music of our Celtic cousins
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Cardiff University Information Services - Welsh ballads website.
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Edward Williams (1747-1826), stonemason, writer, literary forger. Contributed to C18th cultural renaissance in Wales. Bardism. Gorsedd of Bards (he established ceremony).
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Digital access back to Vol.1, 1939. Vol.XV (1967) pp.31-54, Daniel Huws, 'Ancient National Airs of Gwent and Morganwg
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Vol.2 of Edward Jones' Musical and Poetical Relicks of the Welsh Bards. 1802.
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PBworks wiki for collaborative discussion of late 18th and 19th century Welsh songbooks. Administrator Dr Karen E McAulay
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List of late 18th and 19th century Welsh songbooks for group exploration, part of Crowdsourcing the Bard project.
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Tiki-toki timeline, Nov 2011
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Benjamin Zephaniah takes a new post at Brunel University. He sees himself as a latter-day bard, or "griot" (African word) - a poet and political activist who speaks his work - part of the oral tradition.
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Very influential poem, inspired many more writings on bardic themes. Role of bard championing liberty, and many images recur in later poetry etc.
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Charity Dove drew my attention to this useful weblink. I'd come across the People's Collection Wales, but not this particular niche.
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Lady Llanofer, the bee of Twent. Research by Helen Forder. Book forthcoming, soon. Spring 2012.
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Harp makers. Includes clip from BBC programme about Telynau Teifi.
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Welsh music supplier
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Successor to the Welsh "Gathering the Jewels" cultural heritage website.
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Associated with Culturenet Cymru
Easter arrangements
Whittaker Library
at the
Royal Conservatoire of Scotland
Easter closing:
We close at 3 pm on Friday 6 April.
Re-open at 9 am onTuesday 10 April
- Drama Librarian Alan Jones has been on vacation this week, but is back on Tuesday 10 April.
- Music and Academic Services Librarian Karen McAulay is on vacation from Tuesday 10 -Thurs 12 April, and attending the IAML(UK and Irl) Annual Study Weekend from Friday 13 to Mon 14 April.
Whittaker Library colleagues will help any way they can whilst their colleagues are away. Phone and email contact details available on the library webpage.
Karen will represent the Library when she receives our Excellence Award at the Annual Study Weekend. She's also looking forward to delivering a paper entitled 'Crowdsourcing the Celtic Bard' - revealing an intriguing mix of ancient sources and modern technology!
Wednesday, 4 April 2012
Sennheiser Masters of Sound
Deadline 9 April. Any musicians or budding sound-engineers interested in this?
It’s still not too late for students to enter into the Sennheiser Masters of Sound collaboration. Entry remains open until 9th April for this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to create a track with one of Britain’s biggest artists, Labrinth. Don’t miss your chance. Get involved today.
Mishnish Music Festival Mull (27-29 April)
Open competitions - and new Band Competitions. Contact stretchington72@hotmail.com before 26 April 2012. As advertised in Box and Fiddle magazine.
Red Note calls for Scores
Here's an opportunity for our composers! Click on the link for more info. Quoting from the Red Note website ...
FOR THE NOISY NIGHTS EVENT
28
May @ Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh
Composers from anywhere are invited to submit scores and materials for performance at this event with the following stipulations:
* All of the music must be written in pop music’s favourite time signature - 4/4 - throughout.
Broadcast: The Royal Conservatoire uncovered
Have you visited Broadcast yet?
Audio and video recordings streamed for you to enjoy. See what our talented staff and students have been up to recently!
Plugging Plug
Plug
23-27 April
Ah, Spring. Time for Plug, the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland's contemporary music festival. With 50-odd up-and-coming composers involved, not to mention staff composers Alistair Macdonald and Gordon McPherson, it's going to be quite a week.
Plug, the festival - more info here.
Featuring, amongst many others:-
- Alistair Macdonald (Don't miss Alistair MacDonald at 50 - Electroacoustic Plug, with the Scottish Ensemble, at 7.30 pm on Wednesday 25 April)
- Oliver Searle
- Red Note Ensemble
- Scottish Ensemble
- Richard Ayres
- Paris Conservatoire (CNSMDP)
Lucy_Kendra.jpg) |
| A must - Macdonald's birthday bash! |
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Retro Dundee blogpost about Gordon McPherson - read it here.
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| A rare early photo of McPherson |
Monday, 2 April 2012
National Archives online community
Interested in archives?
Did you know you can join the nationwide discussion community just started by National Archives?
Did you know you can join the nationwide discussion community just started by National Archives?
- National Archives website: http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/
- Twitter handle:
@UkNatArchives - National Archives community: http://community.nationalarchives.gov.uk/
Norwegian archival recordings for Easter
Anyone with a liking for historical recordings - audible bumps, scratches and all - may enjoy this offering from the archivists at the Norwegian Institute of Recorded Sound:-
'The Norwegian Institute of Recorded Sound (NIRS) follows up the great feedback we got over the last few years for our musical Advent Calendar with more old, old… old recordings, for the second edition of our Easter Musical Calendar!
Every day from Palm Sunday until Easter Monday. we will present a vintage recording from 1942 (!), with its original historical noises, where legendary singers and musicians interpret St Matthew’s Passion.
Do you wish to receive a daily reminder with the day’s link(s)? – just answer this email! and/or you can also “like” our Facebook page and thereby get notifications from there.'
IUGTE Theatre Conference Call 17-21 December, Austria
'Whittaker' received a call for papers from IUGTE, the International University Global Theatre Experience. Our thespians might find this of interest:-
This will be added to Whittaker Live's Call for Papers listing, where you'll find other conference opportunities.
"Theatre Between Tradition and Contemporaneity"
December 17 - 21Retzhof Castle - Retzhof Educational InstituteLeitring bei Leibnitz, Austria!
ABOUT THE CONFERENCE
"Theatre Between Tradition and Contemporaneity" is the professional conference researching the Bridge between Tradition and Contemporaneity in performing arts.
[This is an invitation to] professionals working in the field of music - musicians, composers, singers, music researchers, journalists and critics, music educators and teachers, music producers and promoters from all over the world interested in the research of traditional methods as applied to contemporary performing arts work.
'... great opportunity to meet potential collaborators and partners - producers, theatre managers, theatre directors, choreographers, talent managers, arts agents, festival organizers and arts publishers from different countries.
You are welcome to take part in the conference as a Speaker, Presenter, Participant, Observer!
At the moment the conference is accepting presentation proposals in any format, eg practical workshop/master class, work in progress, performance fragment not requiring special technical conditions, reading/lecture.
The presentation proposal should be sent to iugte.projects@gmail.com. For conditions and requirements, please refer to the Conference web page and registration conditions: http://www.iugte.com/projects/music
www.iugte.com
This will be added to Whittaker Live's Call for Papers listing, where you'll find other conference opportunities.