 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Eileen
Date: 2007-06-08 20:14
I am on the Board of a community orchestra which has doubled in size over the past year from 22 players to 45. The biggest headache/growing pain has been how to distribute/collect rented or borrowed parts from such a large group. We are meeting in a few weeks to create a policy to take care of the library problems. I was wondering if anyone playing in a similar group has any input about what has/has not worked for them.
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Author: glin
Date: 2007-06-08 22:56
Having been a librarian, I will add my thoughts:
1)It's a tough job and much underappreciated.
2)Absolutely, organize your library and determine where it will be stored. A database program like Access can be helpful.
3)Get support. Strength in numbers by way of a library committee and section leaders to help distribute and collect music.
4)You must have an agreement with the conductor on collecting and distributing music. Often, you will need to cut into rehearsal time.
5)Document music in and music out. It's tedious, but it's the only way your going to track the music. There's nothing worse than having missing parts.
I quit after a year and a half; it was too much for me to take.
Good luck!
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Author: shmeon
Date: 2007-06-09 15:53
I'm currently the music librarian for the San Francisco Symphony Youth Orchestra. As you can imagine, an orchestra full of high school kids (no matter how good they are) always lose there music. The solution: always have back up parts ready and do not give them originals. It is a tough job.... very tough at times. I agree with other posts here that a system must be put in place. For example, the SF Youth orchestra isn't even allowed onto Davies Hall Stage until the stage crew is done with chairs and stands...AND I'm done setting up the folders. No one is allowed to take any parts home unless I make an extra part specifically for the musician. After each rehearsal I collect all the folders and make sure they're all accounted for. A database program is good to keep track of what pieces are in the library and also to keep track of who has what part etc. Good luck!
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Author: larryb
Date: 2007-06-11 00:01
Keeping track of the music, especially rented/borrowed parts, will always be a headache and constant nightmare. I'm currently trying to keep track of all the parts to Cosi fan Tutte that were borrowed from the local library orchestral collection.
At first, I thought I'd copy all the parts and then distribute the copies - after all, the clarinet part is only 18 pages. Then I saw the string parts - 30 pages or so of cello music, etc. So I bit the bullet and distributed the originals. I just have to hope I get them all back at the end of the run.
I do know a manager of a community orchestra who religiously copies parts and then requests them back to be destroyed after performance.
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Author: Hank Lehrer
Date: 2007-06-11 02:48
Hi,
Check my link above and look down a little bit to the copying of music posts. I think some readers may be in for a surprise on what is allowed and what is not.
HRL
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Author: EEBaum
Date: 2007-06-11 05:39
Regarding copying...
As a composer, if you buy/rent a copy of a piece of mine, I assume that only one ensemble will be in possession of the piece at a time, and that said ensemble will do what is necessary to ensure that they have the piece performed. I will happily sell replacement parts, but I will just as happily save myself the time and effort if you want to take the backup responsibility upon yourself. You have one set of parts for the piece, you play it as one ensemble. As long as you don't copy the parts for another ensemble (and thus two ensembles are now playing it for the price of one), I could care less. I find that fair. You have an ensemble's worth of the piece, you do an ensemble's worth of playing and maintaining parts. I would be more upset if an ensemble can't play my music because someone's dog messed on the bari sax part than if the performance goes on without a hitch because they made a copy.
If you're playing a piece of music that I, personally, didn't write (which is nearly infinitely more likely), the thread Hank linked to is a decent starting point for navigating the legalities.
-Alex
www.mostlydifferent.com
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Author: larryb
Date: 2007-06-11 14:46
Yes, the copying should be as an aid to the specific performance.
I think it would be preferable to mark up a photo copy of a part, as opposed to adding additional markings to a public library's original. Some of the parts are a mess.
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Author: davyd
Date: 2007-06-12 19:15
I'd like to think I'm respecting the spirit, if not the letter, of the copyright rules, but in these litigious times, that's probably just wishful thinking.
When I hand out material, I make a note of which part (the parts are all numbered; if they aren't, it's easy enough to do that) is given to which player. When it's collection time, if for example Violin II #3 is missing, I know right away who to chase down.
There are usually not enough string parts for everyone. I hang on to one of each string part and use it to make additional copies as needed (players tend not to take this kind of initiative). If the material was rented, or borrowed from the city library, these copies are recycled afterwards. This seems wasteful (particularly with long pieces), but there's nothing else to do.
If we bought the selection, I will typically copy all the non-string parts and hand out the copies, retaining the originals. String parts are handled as above.
If a rented piece is out of print, I will copy all the parts, not allowing the rentals to go anywhere. Replacement costs are so high for this kind of material that paying to replace even one lost original is more expensive than mass copying.
All of this requires a considerable amount of planning and preparation. Fortunately, my conductor has been trained to understand this, and he doesn't expect me to hand out things immediately.
We don't have an office. We do however have an account with the local UPS Store. Having rented and ordered material mailed there, rather than to the conductor's house, means that I can pick it up and get it ready independantly.
A big challenge involves what I'll call "tourists": nice people who show up for one or two rehearsals full of enthusiasm, but who, for whatever reason, are never seen again. I prepare a few photocopied sets of string parts specifically to give to them; if these copies are not returned, it's no great loss.
No strategy works for everyone. One member of the group is a patent attorney, and frowns on photocopying; he equates it with armed robbery. He has not however proposed any alternative solutions that would be workable.
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