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Archive: 2017 (54 Posts)

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What’s New on BARD

Posted by: Juliette Appold

Let’s look at some new additions to BARD. Next to our most recent music appreciation catalog, we have added flavors from Norway (Grieg), Italy (Pergolesi), Poland (Chopin), France (Ravel and Debussy), and the US (Carole King). There’s more to come, so please keep checking by exploring the link Music Collection and then clicking on Recently …

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Going with “Ahmal” Once Again

Posted by: Gilbert Busch

“Oh, no—opera!” I thought as the recording of Amahl and the Night Visitors started. I was perhaps a fourth grader at the Western Pennsylvania School for Blind Children in Pittsburgh then, hearing this one-act opera for the first time. Although I could not always understand the words, I had to admit that the mother’s operatic …

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American Composers and Musicians from A to Z: B (Part 2 – Bischoff, John W.)

Posted by: Katie Rodda

John Bischoff was an American composer and organist who worked at the First Congregational Church in Washington, D.C. from 1874 until his death in 1909. Blind since the age of two, Bischoff attended the Wisconsin School for the Blind and later studied singing and organ before moving to Washington, D.C. His obituary from the May …

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Day of Infamy

Posted by: Mary Dell Jenkins

Today is an anniversary of special significance for many U.S. citizens.  There have been two previous posts by Katie Rodda about the impact of war on music (Veterans Day and Armistice Day and The Music and Sounds of the Vietnam Era) relating how music affected the era and events. Lasting approximately two hours, the attack …

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Tactile Staff Notation

Posted by: Donna Koh

Today’s post is about the braille books in our collection that explain to blind readers how staff notation (print music) works. In case you are wondering why blind musicians need to know staff notation, two important reasons come to mind. First, music teachers who are visually impaired must be able to help their sighted students …

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American Composers and Musicians from A to Z: B (Part 1 – Beach, Amy)

Posted by: Juliette Appold

Have you ever noticed that there are many composers whose last names start with the letter B? Let’s choose one who has an anniversary. This year the music world celebrates Amy Beach’s 150th birthday. Amy Marcy Cheney Beach was born in Henniker, New Hampshire, on September 5, 1867. From her earliest childhood, she showed extraordinary …

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Remembering the Father of the Blues

Posted by: Gilbert Busch

Today’s blog celebrates the career of W.C. Handy. Born in Florence, Alabama on November 16, 1873, William Christopher Handy became interested in music at an early age. His father, a minister, felt that music was an unwise career choice for him and, indeed, the young Handy experienced years of poverty and homelessness at first. But …

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Call for Participation: NLS Digital Braille Music Repository

Posted by: Juliette Appold

Are you a braille music reader or know someone who is? Wouldn’t you like to find more braille music scores online, in one place? We have some great news for you: The Music Section at the Library of Congress’ National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped (NLS) is developing a Digital Braille Music …