Collection Development Policy
I. Introduction
A. Purpose
The policy aims to establish guidelines for the selection and procurement of materials that will serve the study, research and other needs of the users of the collection. It is intended for the use of university and library administrators, music department faculty, other librarians, and users of the collection.
B. Description of Institution and Clientele
The Music Library's facilities are open to the public, and information services are available to anyone who visits, telephones, or writes to the library.
The primary clientele are the faculty and students of the McIntire Department of Music. The Department's programs present the study of music as one of the liberal arts, with the major leading to a Bachelor of Arts in Music. Course offerings encompass composition (instrumentation, orchestration, arranging and scoring), computer music, jazz studies, music history, solo and ensemble performance, and theory. Performing ensembles include seven instrumental and two choral groups, and one mixed group. Two advanced degrees are offered: a Ph.D. in Critical and Comparative Studies, focusing on musicology, ethnomusicology, criticism, theory and analysis, aesthetics, and performance studies; and a Ph.D. in Composition and Computing Technologies, focuses on acoustic and computer music techniques. The number of full-time students is about 120, of whom one-sixth are graduate students. There are about some 15 full-time and 35 part-time faculty members.
The library lends circulating print materials to other institutions through the interlibrary loan service. Recordings do not circulate through interlibrary loan.
C. Mission and Goals
It is the mission of the collection policy to guide the selection and maintenance of a collection of materials that supports the instructional, research, cultural, and artistic interests of student and faculty.
- To acquire any materials necessary for instructional purposes
- To acquire materials to support student and faculty research at all levels
- To acquire reference works that will assist students and faculty with locating resources to meet their information needs
- To collect materials that support users' cultural or recreational interests beyond the curriculum.
D. Intellectual Freedom, Censorship, and Copyright
The Library does not condone censorship, and makes all materials available for use by students, faculty, staff and local patrons regardless of age or gender.
The copyright law of the United States (Title 17, United States Code) governs the making of reproductions of copyrighted material, including photocopying, printing, and downloading. Any individual who uses such a reproduction for purposes in excess of "fair use" may be liable for copyright infringement. The University's website on Copyright Policy and Law at the University of Virginia offers an in-depth look, including sample notices and copyright statements.
E. Brief Overview of the Collection and History
The Music Library was established in 1977 with the move of the music book and score collections from Alderman Library to Old Cabell Hall, home of the McIntire Department of Music, and the incorporation of the Department's study collection of scores into the collection. By 1981, the Music Library assumed responsibility for the Department's sound recording collection. In 1990, print and sound collections were collocated for the first time in the lower two levels of Old Cabell Hall.
The Library's collections were founded upon several significant gifts. In 1946, Alexander Mackay Smith donated his collection, the greatest strength of which is contemporary editions of 18th-century chamber music. Musical selection corresponds with Thomas Jefferson's catalog of 1783. Composer and musicologist Alfred Swan's collection is most notable for correspondence of prominent members of the Russian intelligentsia, including Sergei Rachmaninoff, Sergei Prokofiev, Nicholas Medtner, Pavel Chesnokov, and Alexandra Tolstoy. UVa alumnus John Davidson's gift of sound recordings of classical music added considerable depth to the recorded sound collection, almost doubling its then current size. Another important force in the building of the collection was Ernest Mead, who in his role as Music Department chair, tirelessly sought donations for the acquisition of scholarly materials for the library.
The Music Library today boasts one of the most significant music collections in the southeastern United States. Two librarians and three full-time staff members oversee daily operations and maintain holdings of over 105,000 items, including some 65,000 printed books and scores and 39,000 sound recordings. Approximately a third of LP sound recordings are housed in remote storage, as are over 8,000 of the print volumes.
F. Collecting Responsibility
The Director is the selector for print materials (books and scores) and electronic resources and as such, monitors approval plans for those materials. The Assistant Director is responsible for selection of sound recordings and videorecordings. Certain categories of materials may be handled by or in consultation with colleagues at other service points:
- Acoustics, physics of sound, technical aspects of sound equipment and generation: Selector for Physics (Science and Engineering Libraries)
- Psychological studies and literature of music for children: Selector for Education Library
- Musical theatre and Opera production: Music or Fine Arts Selector, depending upon the musical or theatrical focus of the work
- Videorecordings of operas, ballets, other musical subjects: may be selected by either Music Library's Assistant Director or by Video Selector in Clemons Library
The music librarians also consult with music faculty members to determine appropriate acquisitions in their respective areas of expertise.
Additions to the collection are guided by:
- Faculty requests
- Student, staff or other patron requests
- Research and teaching needs, as demonstrated by course descriptions of current or projected courses
- Reference needs, as evidenced by reference questions
- Coverage of local or regional music, performers, or authors
- Review sources and other professional literature
- Perceived gaps in the collection, as shown by collection assessments or patron inquiries.
G. Preservation, Storage, Replacement, Deselection
The Music Library maintains an in-house preservation program which handles pamphlet binding for single-signature books and scores, preservation photocopying of scores on an as-needed basis, and reformatting of locally recorded concert recordings to transfer sound recordings on obsolete formats or those unsuitable for long-term storage. It relies on the preservation section in Alderman or outside sources for phase boxing, commercial binding, and audio reformatting for materials for which it lacks the appropriate equipment and expertise. Pamphlet or commercial binding is the preservation method of choice for nearly all printed materials, with a few exceptions for foreign language and other materials with anticipated low usage. Acid-free pockets are used to house parts in pamphlet-bound scores.
The brittle books program governs the disposition of printed materials that are very fragile or brittle. A modern edition or reprint will be procured if available, and if a more recent edition is not available, a preservation photocopy will be made, at Music or through the Preservation Department (depending upon the extent of the original). In both cases, the original will either be deselected or transferred to remote storage, in the case of unique or rare copies.
Replacements of missing or damaged sound recordings will be determined on a case-by-case basis, using the criteria of usage counts, cost, and availability. Replacement of titles on older recording formats will be considered on a similar basis.
H. Review and Revision
The policy will be subject to review at any time, but no less than every three years, to determine whether it continues to serve its stated purpose.
II. Scope of Coverage at Current Collecting Levels
A. Broad categories of music
All historical periods are collected. In the area of Western art music, the recording collection complements the score collection. Scores are collected for Western art music from all areas represented in the curriculum, Broadway musicals, jazz transcriptions, and popular and folk music. In the case of popular and folk music, compilations are generally preferred over scores devoted to individual artists or groups. Other popular music, as well as ethnic, folk, and world musics are primarily represented by the recording collection.
B. Formats
1. Books and other textual materials
Books are collected in print and in electronic form. Reference works at the general and advanced research level are collected comprehensively, including bibliographies, discographies and thematic catalogues. Publishers' and dealers' catalogues are collected and retained for their usefulness in providing bibliographic information. Ephemera such as membership directories and newsletters of learned societies is collected and retained for its reference value.
For periodical titles, online versions are preferred when available, and print duplicates are not collected unless they accompany the online version free of charge. The same holds true for electronic versions of selected reference sources and citation databases. The determination of online vs. print access is made based on cost and perceived usage, and in consultation with the Acquisitions Director to ensure that the vendor satisfies library policies regarding access to licensed resources. UVa dissertations in Musicology are housed in the Music Library. Dissertations from other institutions are not acquired unless they are not available online (e.g., through ProQuest Digital Dissertations).
2. Printed music
It is the library's goal to provide scores of all available compositions by major composers as well as representative works of other composers for the purpose of study, research and performance. Scores are collected in multiple formats, according to anticipated use and availability. Scores and parts are preferred for chamber music of from 1-10 players. Full sets of orchestral parts are generally not selected. Except when prohibited by price, preference is given to conductors' over study or miniature scores, and to full scores over piano reductions. Concertos for solo instrument, operas and larger vocal works, however, are purchased in both full score and piano reduction. In general, with the exception of piano reductions, editions with original instrumentation are preferred over arrangements.
Critical editions of composers' complete works and scholarly monuments of music are collected comprehensively. Facsimiles of composers' manuscripts are acquired when available.
3. Sound recordings
Preferred sound recording formats are those with currency in the marketplace, and for which playback equipment is readily available. Currently compact disc is the preferred format, although the collection houses a large quantity of LP's (many of which are duplicated on CD), a small collection of 78's, housed in remote storage, and tapes in both analog and digital cassette formats as well as open reel. The latter two categories are confined to recordings of Music Department and other local concert performances and are scheduled for conversion through an ongoing preservation program. The Library does not seek to acquire materials in older formats, although it may accept gifts that that are rich in materials underrepresented in the collection.
The library collects comprehensively for Western art music. When possible, at least one version of all works by master composers through the 20th century and several versions of their more important works will be purchased. For contemporary composers and "lesser masters" who are not collected comprehensively, selection will be based upon coordinating the recordings collection with the printed music collection. In general, the selection process for recordings is weighted toward recordings emphasizing the composer and his or her works rather than recordings of individual performers. However, anthologies demonstrating the work of famous performers are purchased selectively. Didactic performance recordings (e.g., "Music Minus One") are purchased only on faculty request.
Jazz recordings are routinely selected through monthly reviews and in consultation with music faculty in that area. Reissues of historical recordings are selected for significant performers. For ethnic and world music, the library aims to have a representative collection covering all geographic areas, with an emphasis on the United States, southern and western Africa, England, and India. Emphasis is governed by curricular needs. For popular music, selection will be based on review sources and "best of genre" recommendations, where available. "Greatest hits" compilations are preferred when retrospectively collecting performers who are not represented in the collection. Film music is collected through an approval plan and faculty and patron requests.
4. Videorecordings
Videorecordings (VHS and DVD) are collected selectively for curricular support. Requests for materials on non-music-related topics are forwarded to the Media Librarian in the Robertson Media Center.
5. Electronic Resources
In addition to the stipulations in section 1 above, the selection of electronic resources is guided by the availability of networked access to the materials, cost, and perceived use. Locally mounted resources, such as CD-ROM's, are not selected unless networked access is unavailable or its cost is prohibitive. Multimedia products are not selected unless requested by faculty or students, and only in consultation with computer support technicians to determine their feasibility for use on current machines.
6. Microforms
Microfilms of monographic materials are collected only if other formats are unavailable. Selected periodical titles are preserved on microfilm. Microfilms of dissertations are not collected if the title is available online.
7. Early editions
The 18th-century chamber music and music literature from the Mackay-Smith Collection and the collection of 19th-century American music imprints are housed in the Albert Small Special Collections Library. Manuscript collections also housed in Small include the Monticello Music Collection, the archives of the Virginia Folklore Society, and the papers of John Powell, Arthur Fickenscher, and Alfred Swan.
C. Local or regional composers' or artists' works collected systematically
The Library collects comprehensively for all Music Department composition faculty, in both print and recordings. Performers who are Music Department faculty are also collected comprehensively. Local performers with a national reputation are collected at a comprehensive level, while other local performers are collected selectively, with an emphasis on American folk genres, jazz, and blues performers.
D. Writings about music
The Library collects both refereed academic journals to support curricular study in music history and musicology, as well as practitioner journals and popular magazines in areas that support ethnomusicological research and the work of performers. The Library in general does not select textbooks or other materials intended solely for classroom use.
E. Languages
Primary sources of writings on music are collected in the original language; translations into English of the same are collected when available. Secondary writings on music are collected in English if available, otherwise in translations into French, German or Italian. Biographical and terminological dictionaries and encyclopedias, bibliographies and catalogues of some scope and recognizable authority published in the Latin alphabet are collected regardless of language. Scores of vocal music, with few exceptions, are acquired in editions with texts in the original language, preferably accompanied by an English translation. In selecting scores, the presence or absence of accompanying material is English does not determine the selection of the item, however. Recordings are collected in all languages, although for vocal works, the preference is for recordings with accompanying printed text in the original language, with English translation if available.
F. Multiple copies of a single edition
The library seeks to collect various editions of standard repertory works to take into account different editors' contributions. Library holdings also include more than one recorded version of the more important works of all major composers through the 20th century, but in general, the selection policy favors the acquisition of recordings of unrepresented works over variant performances of those already present in the collection. However, duplicate copies will be selected for materials in high demand.
G. Pedagogical materials
While the library holds some pedagogical materials, in general such materials, including instrumental methods and studies, textbooks, orchestral excerpts, and curriculum materials will not be selected. It is expected that performers, or the Music Department, in the case of ensembles under its aegis, will purchase their own copies for rehearsal and performance.
H. Approval plans
An approval plan through YBP covers U.S. university press monographs on musical topics and other major publishers. A scores approval plan through Theodore Front covers new publications of scores for historical Western art music, contemporary composers, jazz arrangements, and popular music collections. The library systematically collects from the following record labels: Smithsonian Folkways, Film Score Monthly, and Albion.
I. Gifts
The Library's gift policy governs the acceptance and disposition of gifts to the Music Library.
J. Expensive purchases
Materials considered important for the collection that are prohibitively expensive for the Library's budget may be acquired through a collaborative arrangement with other libraries and/or the MacIntire Department of Music and other university departments whose programs the purchase would support.
Mary Prendergast, Acting Director -- May 11, 2005