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Category: Braille

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Getting the Word Out

Posted by: John Hanson

This blog, NLS Music Notes, serves many different purposes, but a general one is getting out the word on the Music Section and the services that it provides. But there are other avenues for outreach. One is exhibiting at conferences of one sort or another.  Last year Music Section blogger Amanda Smith wrote about her …

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Stevie Wonder, Braille, and Accessibility

Posted by: John Hanson

A couple of weeks ago, one of my colleagues here at NLS, David Fernandez-Barrial, asked me if I had seen the Grammy award ceremony (which took place Monday, February 15, 2016). I had to admit I hadn’t; I was, uh, practicing my Hindemith songs. Well, it turns out that Stevie Wonder, one of the presenters at …

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“Thirstier for life than ever”

Posted by: John Hanson

The following is a guest blog from Gilbert Busch, braille music specialist in the Music Section. Although active on the piano and organ, he has a strong interest in symphonic music, especially that of Mahler.     On Thursday, May 14th, I travelled to Boulder, Colorado, for MahlerFest XXVIII, an annual event devoted to the music of …

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A New Braille Music Title, Very Old Twisted Roots

Posted by: John Hanson

In 1863, the Imperial Institute for the Young Blind in Paris published a “Collection of Organ Pieces” —“for the special use of students at the Institute.” These pieces were all composed by professors of music at the Institute, all of whom had been students there also. They are Gabriel Gauthier, Marius Gueit, Victor Paul, and …

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“Do You Have Music for Listening?”

Posted by: John Hanson

What else do you do with music?  Well, you can read it and write it, too.  Or learn about it, a particular piece or song or genre.  Or even analyze it. The Music Section has traditionally not provided music that is strictly for listening.  This is because such music is readily available and accessible to …