A position statement on music in public libraries entitled “Facilitators of Creativity and Life-Long Learning” is now available on the IAML website. I have co-written this document with a colleague on behalf of IAML’s Advocacy Committee. There are a number of other position statements and plenty of additional useful resources on advocacy for music libraries available on the group’s page!
My list of favorite albums of 2018 is much shorter than those in recent years. This is not so much because of a lack of good music being released, but because I spent most of my free time in the past 12 months listening to audiobooks instead (a post about this will hopefully follow soon). Whenever I decided to put on some music, however, there were mostly two albums that have been on repeat on my phone. As purely instrumental and videogame related soundtracks they might fly under your radar, so here is a little introduction to both of them that will hopefully get you interested.
This portrait of Lena Raine provides a good characterization of the soundtrack to the videogame Celeste: “Raine’s music is brilliant and sweeping, with memorable melodies and diverse instrumentation that reflect its author’s far-flung musical influences—from house to vintage RPG soundtracks and classical music.” The album works totally well by itself, at the same time the music whets the appetite to play the game. I had similar experiences before with other videogame soundtracks such as Transistor, Shovel Knight or FTL that made me play the games (each of them highly recommended!). In return, playing through the games and their storylines usually added even more layers to the experience of listening to the music, so I am already looking forward to exploring Celeste soon. As a sample from the album I recommend “Resurrection” which perfectly shows the above mentioned variety of musical styles used by Lena Raine.
Even if you only have the slightest interest in videogames, you will most likely be familiar with the Zelda franchise and some of its iconic music. Combining those well-known melodies with laid-back lofi hip hop beats, as done by Mikel & GameChops on their album Zelda & Chill, turns out to be a perfect fit. My favorite track on the album is “Oath to Order” that originates from The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask.
2017 was a great year for listening to new album releases. I found an abundance of compelling music from artists across many different genres. To continue a tradition I started in 2014, here are my favorite albums of the year in alphabetical order (this time increased to 20 instead of the usual 10):
What are your favorite albums of the year? I am curious to know!
Lange ist es her… Wo ich in New York keine Internetverbindung hatte, fehlte mir in Washington angesichts wunderschönen Wetters und eines vollen Programmes einfach die Zeit zum Bloggen. Die erste Woche in Berlin musste ich mich erstmal wieder einleben. ^^ Dafür kommt jetzt in mehreren Abschnitten der große Nachbericht mit allem, was bislang warten musste… viel Spaß damit.
Background: IFLA 2008
Das Praktikum in der Library of Congress (LoC) wäre niemals zustande gekommen, hätte ich nicht im letzten Jahr am IFLA-Kongress in Québec teilgenommen. Dort saß ich während einer der interaktiven Sessions zufällig mit Jerry Mansfield (Chair der Government Libraries Section) an einem Tisch.Bei der Poster Session im Anschluss kamen wir etwas intensiver ins Gespräch, ich erzählte ihm von meinen New York-Plänen und er bot mir spontan an, zu einem weiteren Praktikum nach Washginton zu kommen.
Jerry arbeitet innerhalb der LoC im Congressional Research Service (CRS), der direkt und ausschließlich dem Kongress zur Verfügung steht. Da ich am meisten an Musikbibliotheken interessiert bin, vermittelte er mich für das Praktikum an die Musikabteilung der LoC weiter.
Jerry und ich vor dem Kapitol
Um eine Unterkunft musste ich mich zum Glück nicht kümmern. Die zwei Wochen über kam ich bei Jerry und seiner Familie unter, die in einem großen Haus mit Terrasse und Garten in einem ruhigen Vorort von D.C. leben – nach dem eher hektischen New York mit Studentenwohnheim-Flair geradezu paradiesisch. 😉 Continue reading
LIS Traveler 