Library Forthcoming Events

Two dates for your diary!

We have two more events coming up in the Whittaker Library. 

Tuesday 29th January @ 5 pm

On Tuesday 29^th January at 5 pm, folklorist Margaret Bennett will be giving an illustrated talk about Celtic music in Newfoundland.  There's always a good turn-out, and a good time is had by all.  Come and join in!

Friday 26th April @ 4 pm

Looking ahead, Music and Academic Services Librarian Karen McAulay’s book, Our Ancient National Airs: Scottish song-collecting from the Enlightenment to the Romantic Era will be launched at an illustrated talk in the Whittaker Library on Friday 26^th April at 4 pm. Musicians have been enlisted.  It will be loud.  And she’s still looking for a sax quartet to play some of the louder musical examples … volunteers, please?

Airs and graces (and red-nosed faces)

Misplaced my Airs!

Laden with cold, 'Whittaker' dragged himself out of bed this morning to get on with his extra-mural musicologist obligations.  Because 'he' was fuzzy-headed, he couldn't FIND the Alexander Campbell airs that he'd carefully copied out and stowed away after 'his' last speaking engagement.  Arghh!  Must devise a better filing system at home.

Finally, 'he' found them (so the next speaking engagement is assured of musical examples!), but not before he also found his own arrangement of a few airs into a suite for flute, viola and cello.  Hmm.  Interesting.  Wonder what they sound like?  Wonder how they'd fit in at a book-launch?

New Book (pending)

Some time in 2013, there will be a book by Karen McAulay, called Our Ancient National Airs.  It's based on my PhD thesis but with the addition of a completely new chapter (with which I'm rather enamoured, but then again, I'm biased).  I want to get this into the blogosphere because, naturally, I want lots of people to read it!  Right now, I'm revising and finalising the manuscript for submission: only six weeks to go!  And I've been selecting images.  Share them here?  Not on your life!  Buy the book!

The book covers Scottish song collecting from 1760-1888.  It's not just about Alexander Campbell (though he's one of my many favourites).  It's about published and a couple of unpublished collections.  And there are English as well as Scottish collectors.  To follow the story of A Music Librarian's First Book, you can read my own personal blog, True Imaginary Friends.  I'm sure I'm blissfully unaware of what's ahead of me after Submission Day!