Guest post

From our recently graduated student employee, Patricia S.:

Four Fabulous Music Blogs

Unquiet Thoughts
Alex Ross, music critic of The New Yorker, provides thoughtful commentary on the important, the interesting, the beautiful and the downright wacky things that are happening Right Now in the world of music. Ross' blog runs the gamut from Bach to Bjork and manages to cover just about everything in between on the way. While you're at it, check out (literally) his book The Rest Is Noise, a Pulitzter Prize finalist that offers reasons for the musical madness that made the 20th century. You can find it at the Music Library here.

All Songs Considered Blog: NPR
Even if you don't listen to NPR's show of the same title, this blog is a great resource for finding new artists and tracks to listen to while you're writing that music history paper, those counterpoint exercises or when you need a break from Mozart. Check out the Discover Songs tab for a quick route into the world of pop/folky/rock/alternative goodness that is NPR.

Pierre Ruhe at ArtsCriticATL.com
For something closer to home, head over to Pierre Ruhe's blog at Arts Critic Atlanta where Ruhe keeps tabs on the local classical music scene as well as reviewing CDs and DVDs (in the spirit of full disclosure: some reviews are written by others). Was BelAir Classics' "Rite of Spring" any good? Is Minkowski a convincing conductor of Bach's B minor mass? Ruhe can tell you all this and more.

and, just for fun:
Greatest Classical CD Covers Ever from Too Many Tristans
This may seriously be the greatest music blog of all time. To whet your appetite here's a description of a Kenneth Klein/Gerald Robbins/Moscow Philharmonic recording: "The tragic sequel to yesterday's kidnapping cover. Klein is now in full Stockholm Syndrome mode and onboard with Robbins. Will Klein pull a Patty Hearst? Only time will tell. Hopefully, striking bizarre poses on album covers is the worst these two get up to."

Guest post

Here's a guest post from Music Library student employee Kyle M.:

While seemingly frivolous lawsuit(s), the inmates have a point…it probably isn’t the most wonderful time of the year for them.

Do you like lists? Here are 24 different lists regarding the best music of 2009.







I really, really love a capella music and it has been great fun to see a mainstream show featuring voices alone without instruments doing some really cool things. Check it out!

Flat Stanley visted us!

For those of you unfamiliar, Flat Stanley is a children's book.

"Stanley Lambchop...is given a bulletin board.... He hangs it on the wall over his bed, but during the night the board falls from the wall, flattening Stanley in his sleep. He survives and makes the best of his altered state, and soon he is entering locked rooms by sliding under the door, and playing with his younger brother by being used as a kite. Stanley even helps catch some art museum thieves by posing as a painting on the wall. But one special advantage is that Flat Stanley can now visit his friends by being mailed in an envelope." from wikipedia

Flat Stanley was sent to us by librarian Ashlie Conway's friend Luke who attends Kingston Elementary school in Kingston, TN. Ashlie gets to keep Flat Stanley for a week, show him around Columbia, then mail him back to Luke's classroom Tennessee. For Luke, this exercise will aid with reading by having him read the story. It'll also tie in art by having him make a paper "Flat Stanley." It'll also aid in reading, writing, and geography by reading Stanley's travel journal. But for the employees of the Music Library, having Flat Stanley around for a day was lots of fun!

Flat Stanley really liked the musical instruments we have in the Music Library.
   
(We normally don't let just anyone play on the instruments, but since Stanley is a VIP, we made an exception.)

Ashlie then took Stanley upstairs to see all the books and scores.

They pulled a book from the Educational Resource Center and read it.


Flat Stanley didn't know much about how people listened to music before radio and CDs were invented. Ashlie showed Stanley the Music Library's collection of 78 rpm recordings. She then explained how 78s later became LP or vinyl records. They even played one!
   


But the best thing Stanley did at the USC Music Library was find himself in the PASCAL online catalog:

Jason's favorite

Our good friend Jason B. has worked at the Music Library for a year now. He's graduating at the end of this semester with his Master's degree in Library Science. Most of the students that work at the Music Library are music people--they're working towards their first music degree. Jason's undergrad degrees are in English and history, making him our resident music enthusiast! Regardless of degrees, everyone at the Music Library is thankful we've had Jason around this year and will be sad to see him go.

So for fun, I asked him to do a blog entry on his favorite CD in the Music Library. Here's what he had to say:

"Ok, I was asked to write a little something about my favorite CD here at the USC Music Library. That’s like asking a particle physicist which type of quark is his favorite! How can one decide? They’re all so awesome! Hmmm, well, charm type quarks are pretty cool… Anyway, for today I’ve decided that my favorite CD is Apostrophe (‘) by Frank Zappa.

The first side (keep in mind this CD was originally released as a record, you know, those flat, round, and black plastic things) follows our Inuit hero Nanook as he battles the evil Fur Trapper. Each track segways into the next, and Zappa really gets to put out some of his favorite tricks: timing and mood changes, sound effects, and unique instrumentation. And of course, we’re treated to some of Frank’s incredible guitar work and fantastic composition. See, you can still rock if you know how to read and write music!

The last half of the album is individual songs, but don’t fret, the rockin’ don’t stop! Zappa never does simple, straight-forward rock, but these compositions are a little more foot-tapping. “Cosmik Debris” and “Stink-Foot” are great, and the album’s title track, “Apostrophe (‘),” features Jack Bruce from Cream in a blistering bass solo. All-in-all, one of my favorite Zappa albums. Check it out! And if you really like it, try it’s companion album, Over-Nite Sensation."