Claimed from Stationers' Hall: the United Kingdom's Historical Copyright Music Collections

Lead Research Organisation: Royal Conservatoire of Scotland
Department Name: Sch of Music

Abstract

CONTEXT: The 1709 Copyright Act provided for legal deposit of British publications into nine designated libraries, through the registration and distribution of items by Stationers' Hall in London. Whilst not perfect, and resented by the publishers, the arrangement assured a steady flow of materials to the Royal Library (later the British Museum), Sion College, Oxford's Bodleian, Cambridge University Library, the Advocates' Library (later the National Library of Scotland) in Edinburgh, and the Universities of St Andrews, Glasgow, Aberdeen and Edinburgh. Trinity College, Dublin later become a recipient in 1801, with the Act of Union. Little music was registered until a landmark case involving J. C. Bach and Carl Abel in 1777, and music registration peaked in the 1790s, dropping off markedly thereafter.

Documentary evidence demonstrates the difficulties experienced by Scottish universities in claiming their entitlement, and there was also some uncertainty as to what to do with the music, which in this era was not a university discipline. As extreme examples, one can cite the University of St Andrews, which bound over 400 volumes of music and allowed professors to borrow it, compared with Trinity College's request that no music or school books be sent at all, or the Edinburgh Advocates' practice of leaving all newly received material on tables for readers to view (or take). Even accepting that the legal deposit music now in libraries cannot be taken to represent the full picture of music publishing in this era, it nonetheless raises questions as to what survives, and where, since retrospective online cataloguing has not entirely captured holdings. Moreover, archival evidence at St Andrews offers glimpses of what professors borrowed (and did not always return), suggesting that other libraries may have similar records. Whilst a few papers have been written about individual collections, we lack a comprehensive overview of the surviving music from Stationers' Hall, and interpretation of what we can learn about its use, or infer about any music that attracted particular attention.

AIMS & OBJECTIVES:- This networking project will raise the profile of the repertoire, encouraging musicologists, librarians, bibliographers, as well as book, library and social historians to share insights into individual collections, their reception and subsequent curation. It will aim to nurture an interdisciplinary network of interested parties with a view to further research on particular aspects of the repertoire.

It aims to create a resource bibliography of archival documentation, including the availability of historic catalogues in whatever form; and also to include modern writings on the subject of Britain's legal deposit music legacy from this era.
It aims furthermore to establish where online cataloguing lacunae exist, for these need to be filled before any big data analysis can be carried out. (Copac, Britain's online union catalogue of university and national libraries, has agreed that the addition of RISM numbers to relevant music, should be listed as a future project, to aid future identification of items.)
The project will organise a Study Day for all interested parties, and prepare a subsequent publication either of proceedings, or a comprehensive report of issues raised; and potential big data projects and approaches will be identified for pursuit at a later date.
Whilst a collaborative history would be unfeasible in the context of this bid, a network with a collaborative understanding of the repertoire, its survival patterns and its whereabouts would form a foundation for this important work.

POTENTIAL APPLICATIONS & BENEFITS:- Although much British music of this era is dismissed as trivial, this project will allow researchers and interested musicians to find out more about what is actually in libraries, and librarians to gain insights into the ways this repertoire can be explored.

Planned Impact

Who might benefit from this research?

Professional and practitioner groups such as the International Association of Music Libraries (national branches and the international parent organisation) and the Royal Musical Association are obvious beneficiaries, because of their role as gatekeepers between the academy and the general public. Music librarians, special collections professionals (and other librarians with wider responsibilities) act in an advisory capacity to enquirers of all backgrounds, so a knowledge of this historic repertoire enables them to have a more informed engagement with readers and other enquirers. Similarly, RMA members may be involved in music-making at many levels, including community groups and adult education classes.
If, through social media engagement, other networks can be tapped into, then the material may also be of interest to social historians, and those engaged in related areas such as local history, specialists in songwriting (poetry) of the era, or working in a curatorial capacity in a variety of museum settings.

Through these intermediaries, interested members of the public can be introduced to an untapped reservoire of musically accessible material. Knowing where the music is, and how individual pieces might relate to a broader output, whether a single composer's works or a particular category music, is a crucial first step, and making it known to the wider public is the obvious next step.

How might they benefit from this research?

There is a vast body of British-published eighteenth and early nineteenth century music both in today's legal deposit libraries and in those that lost their privilege with the 1836 act, and much of it never sees the light of day. Amongst a mass of music which was fairly run-of-the mill or even mediocre, there is nonetheless a significant amount of music which is accessible, playable or singable, and perhaps also of interest for reasons beyond the music itself. For example, it may have a regional connection, or concern historical events such as the Napoleonic Wars; may be connected with a sociological group (eg composed by women composers, set to texts by women poets, or published by or dedicated to a particular individual); or may have had a particular function, eg pedagogical, theoretical, or written for a particular category of user such as glee-singers or church musicians.

An increased awareness of the repertoire amongst professionals and other subject experts will undoubtedly benefit the many different communities with whom they engage, regardless of whether these are in an academic environment or a more informal setting. Exhibitions, talks, lecture-recitals or workshops enable members of the public to learn something of this repertoire and may inspire them to explore it more deeply. Gaining an awareness of the archival resources documenting the music's place in legal deposit collections will similarly offer the opportunity to develop an understanding of this particular aspect of music publication, library history, early attitudes to the material within the universities, and its historic use by members of the communities in and around the universities.
 
Description Firstly, the research has raised the profile of these collections by establishing a network of interested librarians and scholars, creating a platform for discussing further cataloguing, collection analysis and repertoire study. Significantly, the majority of librarians do not have a formal research role, so this network has offered a space in which knowledgeable professionals and designated researchers can interact and engage in discussion. A workshop for librarians and scholars of various disciplines means that those curating the Georgian music copyright collections have had opportunities to reflect upon the context and importance of their collections on a national scale, whilst both librarians and researchers have gained insights into the potential for further research. Indeed, whilst the idea that libraries are 'third spaces' in themselves is nothing new, (the usual context being that of providing for the reader a third space in which to spend time, apart from home or their workplace), the establishment of this network has effectively provided a third space for librarians themselves, in creating a forum for discussing these music collections not only as holdings, but in terms of their history, and as what they represent - and establishing a liminal space where librarianship and research can meet on equal terms, thereby influencing the way in which librarians see their own role. Secondly, a large body of commentary has been made available via the network blog, including some guest postings. Additionally, papers have been given at a wide variety of conferences and seminars to different groups of professionals and researchers. Thirdly, a substantial bibliography has been collated, currently available via the blog and also added to the Royal Conservatoire's repository, providing future researchers with a wealth of material affording insights into different aspects of the Georgian legal deposit collections and their role in the context of British copyright legislation. Lastly, there has been a guest-edited issue of Brio, the IAML (UK and Ireland) professional journal (January 2020), with contributions from study day attendees and network followers. Additionally, an article in the Edinburgh Bibliographical Society Transactions was submitted for peer-review in Autumn 2019.
Exploitation Route The retention of Georgian legal deposit music varied from institution to institution; online documentation of these collections today is equally uneven. The project has generated greater interest in completing the retrospective cataloguing needed. Until then, big data analysis would risk finding misleading results.

The repertoire merits analysis in a social and cultural historical context. There has been notable interest in the repertoire, from many of the individuals encountered during networking opportunities. The collections' profile has been raised, and highlighted their potential for closer research of genres, eg songs and other works commemorating national events or providing cultural commentary on international wars; pedagogical material; music composed by women; or music celebrating British or foreign cultural heritage.

The project has laid the foundations for further bibliographic work, in terms of the repertoire itself. The current published bibliography gives only scant details for material published from 1810-1818. Since library records are sometimes based on brief heritage catalogue records, full bibliographic listing is all the more desirable. Ideally, this would be required either from 1810-1836 (when legal deposit was restricted to fewer libraries) or to 1842, to coincide with new copyright legislation. Furthermore, improved indexing would facilitate better retrieval, with title indexing a priority.
Sectors Creative Economy

Digital/Communication/Information Technologies (including Software)

Culture

Heritage

Museums and Collections

URL https://claimedfromstationershall.wordpress.com/2019/02/28/have-you-met-your-original-objectives/
 
Description Several opportunities arose to reach out to audiences combining academic and non-academic audiences. Perhaps one of the most exciting ideas to emerge was the opportunity to create what is effectively a third space for discussion between librarians and the research community - a liminal space where boundaries are blurred between the conventional perceptions of 'academic' and 'non-academic'; where contributions on either side are recognised and valued, and where the curation of collections is seen as more than merely a passive activity, but one in which the building and sharing of knowledge about those collections is of crucial importance to scholars, librarians and the communities they serve:- • IAML(UK and Ireland) members include librarians in both academic and public libraries, and others, such as students and retired professionals or those in related occupations and non-academic audiences. Informing this sector meant that they would be better-informed to advise library patrons or other enquirers. Papers were given at both the UK and Ireland annual study weekend and the international conference in Leipzig. • There has also been interest from librarians in other sectors, raising the profile of the research. • Opportunities were sought to attend conferences welcoming delegates both from within academia and the larger community beyond it; and to take the project into the international arena:- the University of Otago's annual History of the Book seminar (November 2017) was open both to scholars and to delegates of the UNESCO Southern Hui in Dunedin, New Zealand, and a similar situation presented itself at the English Folk Dance and Song Society's conference in November 2018, an opportunity which has been followed by an invitation to submit my paper for published proceedings which will be accessible to an audience beyond the academy. • A jointly-authored article for the Trafalgar Chronicle (journal of the 1805 Club) presented some of our research findings to a historical study group outside the mainstream academy. Through a carefully curated and strongly promoted online presence, enquiries have been received from enquiries both in the UK and internationally, from as far afield as America, New Zealand and Australia, from networks and individuals, and from academic and non-academic enquirers alike. Questions have ranged from the scholarly, to bibliographical and even genealogical, demonstrating the wide range of interests touched upon by this research. It is highly gratifying to note the retrospective addition of old 'paper catalogue' music entries to the online catalogue of the National Library of Scotland in the years since this award was funded.
Sector Creative Economy,Culture, Heritage, Museums and Collections
Impact Types Cultural

 
Description Athenaeum Award
Amount £1,000 (GBP)
Organisation Royal Conservatoire of Scotland 
Sector Academic/University
Country United Kingdom
Start 11/2017 
End 11/2017
 
Description Athenaeum Award to assist with publication of Brio special issue (IAML-UK and Ireland)
Amount £500 (GBP)
Organisation Royal Conservatoire of Scotland 
Sector Academic/University
Country United Kingdom
Start 11/2019 
End 12/2019
 
Title Claimed From Stationers' Hall Bibliography 
Description A bibliography of published materials and online resources relevant to the study of historical music legal deposit and copyright, and associated library history, largely in the United Kingdom and focused on the late 18th and 19th centuries. 
Type Of Material Database/Collection of data 
Year Produced 2018 
Provided To Others? Yes  
Impact The link to this bibliography has been shared with network members, and via social media, to increase awareness of research already undertaken. 
URL https://claimedfromstationershall.wordpress.com/bibliography/
 
Description 'Alexander Campbell's song-collecting for Albyn's Anthology' - guest lecture for University of Glasgow, Scottish and Celtic Studies Department, 17 November 2020 
Form Of Engagement Activity A talk or presentation
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Postgraduate students
Results and Impact An opportunity to give a lecture about a key figure in early 19th century Scottish song-collecting. This was a zoom lecture, and open to members of the public as well as to university students and staff; my main focus was to individuals involved in Scottish and Celtic Studies, with an interest in cultural history. I spoke not only about Alexander Campbell but about those who helped him, and also explored the strengths and weaknesses of his published collection in the context of published musical theory and practice at the time. Many questions were asked and there was a good amount of discussion afterwards.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2020
URL https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/alexander-campbells-song-collecting-for-albyns-anthology-tickets-1214...
 
Description 'All the right notes, but not necessarily in the right order': musical resemblances over the border. Paper given at English Folk Dance & Song Society [EFDSS] Conference, 10 October 2020 
Form Of Engagement Activity A talk or presentation
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Professional Practitioners
Results and Impact I discussed the similarities between two early Scottish tunes - the Skene manuscript's 'Pitt on your shirt on Sunday' (circa 1630), and Londoner Daniel Wright's 'A Hilland lilt' (1731) - with a London source published by the Scottish James Oswald - 'Gie the mawking mair o't', dating from 1760 - and a number of Borders versions of 'I saw my love come passing by me'. These have far more variations.
I compared the different sets of Borders variations, but what I found most interesting was the melodic and tonal structure of these tunes compared to the Skene and Wright sources in particular, and also to Oswald's variations to a point.
I'm no stranger to the thrills of melodic comparisons, but in this instance the theme code system showed its weaknesses, even allowing for standardisation of rhythmic speed and key. By adopting Barnaby Brown's piping concept of "with" or "away from" the tonic, I realised the obvious melodic similarities masked the fact, that the two groups of t
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2020
URL https://pure.rcs.ac.uk/portal/en/activities/all-the-right-notes-but-not-necessarily-in-the-right-ord...
 
Description 'National Airs in Georgian British Libraries' - talk at EFDSS (English Folk Dance and Song Society) Conference, Traditional Folk Song: Past, Present & Future, November 2018 
Form Of Engagement Activity A talk or presentation
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach National
Primary Audience Third sector organisations
Results and Impact Because audience interest is in folk song, I spoke about historical collections in university and national libraries, to raise awareness of what is available for consultation. A lively question and discussion session followed, with myself and the other two speakers of the session.
Invited to submit paper for proposed published conference proceedings (submissions to be peer-reviewed)
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2018
 
Description 'Performative Silence in the Library' - article in ICEPOPS Annual 2020: International Copyright Literacy Event with Playful Opportunities for Practitioners and Scholars, ed. Chris Morrison and Jane Secker, pp.32-33 
Form Of Engagement Activity A magazine, newsletter or online publication
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach National
Primary Audience Professional Practitioners
Results and Impact In 2019, I participated in the ICEPOPS annual conference on copyright literacy, held at the University of Edinburgh. The Annual, normally produced as a printed publication, appears the following year, so this article - expanding upon a Pecha Kucha presentation that I gave in 2019 - would have been in a printed Annual. Because of the pandemic lockdown, it appeared instead as an online publication.
The intention of this piece was to provide copyright practitioners with some historical context to music copyright (based on my AHRC network research), whilst also highlighting some of the issues surrounding music copyright and performing rights today, and the challenges of educating today's students and lecturers about responsible practice.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2020
URL https://ukcopyrightliteracy.files.wordpress.com/2020/07/icepops_annual-2020_digital.pdf
 
Description 'Scottish song-collector Alexander Campbell and his ethnomusicological exploits' - talk for Traditional Song Forum Online Event, 18 October 2020 
Form Of Engagement Activity A talk or presentation
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Public/other audiences
Results and Impact An opportunity to give a talk about a key figure in early 19th century Scottish song-collecting. This was a zoom lecture, one of a series organised by a special interest group, the Traditional Song Forum, and open to members of the public. I spoke, not only about Alexander Campbell but also about those who helped him, and also mentioned the strengths and weaknesses of his published collection. Many questions were asked and there was a good amount of discussion afterwards. Some of the questions prompted me to undertake further research before writing a similar but more in-depth lecture for the University of Glasgow's Scottish and Celtic Studies Department the following month, and in this respect had a direct impact on that subsequent lecture.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2020
URL https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/traditional-song-forum-online-meeting-tickets-124276551511#
 
Description 'The Cinderella of Stationers' Hall: Music (and Metadata) in Georgian Legal Deposit Libraries, talk at Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals (CILIP) annual conference, 
Form Of Engagement Activity A talk or presentation
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach National
Primary Audience Professional Practitioners
Results and Impact I gave a talk about recent research into early legal deposit music, and how our catalogues themselves can be used as research tools, demonstrating how the richness or paucity of metadata can have a direct effect on the results of this research. The aim of this talk was to share knowledge of these specialist music collections with librarian colleagues from a range of libraries, and to underline the absolute importance of detailed and accurate metadata to faciliate not only retrieval but also further research. A number of questions were subsequently asked.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2020
URL https://www.cilip.org.uk/events/EventDetails.aspx?id=1332403
 
Description 2018 IAML Congress, 'A Network of Early British Legal Deposit Music: Explored through Modern Networking' : conference paper 
Form Of Engagement Activity A talk or presentation
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Professional Practitioners
Results and Impact A well-received presentation about the Claimed From Stationers' Hall research network, its focus and activities, also giving some of the history of music copyright and legal deposit in the United Kingdom, the example of the data and documentation available at the University of St Andrews, and an overview of the surviving collections today. Since the presentation was given to international librarians, not all of whom might have had the opportunity to pursue postdoctoral research and/or grant-funding opportunities, I also touched upon the processes of applying for funding and establishing a research network.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2018
URL https://www.iaml.info/congresses/2018-leipzig
 
Description Afton Water - Romantic National Song Network guest blogpost 
Form Of Engagement Activity Engagement focused website, blog or social media channel
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Study participants or study members
Results and Impact A guest blogpost for the Romantic National Song Network, this piece of writing looks at the history of one particular Scottish song, 'Afton Water' - the words by Robert Burns. The song's publication history is particularly examined, the post also considering why it might have been such a popular song.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2019
URL https://rnsn.glasgow.ac.uk/scotland/afton-water/
 
Description Claimed From Stationers Hall Bibliography (hosted on network blog) 
Form Of Engagement Activity Engagement focused website, blog or social media channel
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Professional Practitioners
Results and Impact This is an extensive bibliography covering the various aspects of the Claimed From Stationers' Hall music research project. It is now in its 8th edition (Uploaded 4 January 2020.) This latest edition includes the majority of citations made by authors represented in Brio Vol.56 no.2 (Autumn-Winter 2019), a special issue dedicated to the Claimed From Stationers' Hall project. Headings cover the following topics:-

Copyright and Legal Deposit, & Publishing History (general and specifically musical); Libraries (severally and individually, and further articles about the individual institutions represented); Overseas legal deposit; Cultural History (Reading, Music, Dance etc); Bibliography; and Digital Humanities

The bibliography enables future researches into British music legal deposit to acquire a detailed overview of work already written in this, and related areas, and, whilst primarily based on historical legal deposit, there are also some entries on the very latest legislation and contemporary preoccupations.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2019,2020
URL https://claimedfromstationershall.wordpress.com/bibliography/
 
Description Claimed From Stationers' Hall Workshop 26 March 2018 
Form Of Engagement Activity Participation in an activity, workshop or similar
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach National
Primary Audience Professional Practitioners
Results and Impact A workshop was held, attended by representatives of most of the historical and present UK legal deposit libraries. Librarian attendees gave presentations about music legal deposit in their own libraries; other researchers described their work on big data applications; and some songs were performed from a particularly interesting compilation at the University of St Andrews. An open forum then ensued, discussing interesting aspects of the research topic - social, copyright, library and music history; issues regarding documentation and digitisation; future actions to facilitate big data analysis of the entire repertoire in due course; and possible directions for research.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2018
URL https://claimedfromstationershall.wordpress.com/2018/05/02/may-2018-newsletter-workshop-report/
 
Description Claimed From Stationers' Hall network blog 
Form Of Engagement Activity Engagement focused website, blog or social media channel
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Professional Practitioners
Results and Impact Ongoing project blog to inform, attract interest, provide progress reports and reflections on all aspects of the Claimed From Stationers' Hall historical music legal deposit research, flagging up interesting collections, individuals, and activities participated in. Researchers and librarians both in the UK and beyond have responded with interest, and a few guest blogposts have been included, on related topics. Blogposts always promoted via social media channels (Twitter and Facebook), to extend reach.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2017,2018,2019
URL https://claimedfromstationershall.wordpress.com/
 
Description Conference paper, Royal Musical Association, 14 September 2018 
Form Of Engagement Activity A talk or presentation
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Other audiences
Results and Impact A paper was given at the annual conference of the Royal Musical Association, which sparked questions and discussion afterward. One particular delegate expressed interest in the particular repertoire of a bound volume of sheet music in the Copyright Music Collection at the University of St Andrews.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2018
URL https://www.bristol.ac.uk/music/events/conferences/rma-annual-conference/registration/
 
Description EAERN Network Colloquium 2, 6 June 2018, Paper, 'Claimed From Stationers' Hall: But What Happened Next?' 
Form Of Engagement Activity A talk or presentation
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach National
Primary Audience Study participants or study members
Results and Impact talk about how research into the Copyright Music Collection at the University of St Andrews grew into a network to explore all contemporary copyright music collections in the UK, and demonstrating the questions needing answers: where the music went, how it was curated, what survives, and what it can tell us today. I spoke about networking activities, the subsequent workshop and proposed, outcomes, and outlined possible future directions and lines of enquiry, taking the theme of music in education, and the place of didactic treatises in women's musical education, as one example.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2018
URL https://eaern.wordpress.com/colloquium-2/programme/
 
Description Guest blogpost for Eighteenth-Century Arts Education Network: 'Mrs Bertram's Music Borrowing: Reading Between the Lines', 18.09.2017 
Form Of Engagement Activity Engagement focused website, blog or social media channel
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Study participants or study members
Results and Impact The EAERN research network has explored a wide variety of different art-forms practised in the 18th-century, in a series of seminars and workshops based at the University of Glasgow. I provided a guest blogpost about the music-borrowing of one particular borrower from the University Library at the University of St Andrews, the proprietress of a girls' school in St Andrews, suggesting that music borrowed by Mrs Bertram and her school-teaching daughters might have been used in the musical education of their pupils, since it is well-known that music was an essential accomplishment for well-educated girls of this era.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2017
URL https://eaern.wordpress.com/2017/09/18/mrs-bertrams-music-borrowing-reading-between-the-lines/
 
Description Guest blogpost for International Association of Music Libraries (UK and Ireland) - Pathways, Outputs and Impacts 
Form Of Engagement Activity Engagement focused website, blog or social media channel
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Professional Practitioners
Results and Impact Blogpost on national professional organisation's website about the process of grant-writing from a librarian-researcher's viewpoint, and about the Claimed From Stationers' Hall project itself, based on my invited talk at 2018 Annual Study Weekend. Blogpost also shared with international parent organisation.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2019
URL https://iamlukirl.wordpress.com/2019/02/06/pathways-outputs-and-impacts-being-a-librarian-researcher...
 
Description Guest blogpost, Legal Deposit (Copyright Behind the Scenes) - and Scores of Musical Scores (20.2.2018) 
Form Of Engagement Activity Engagement focused website, blog or social media channel
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach National
Primary Audience Professional Practitioners
Results and Impact Guest-blogged a post for UK Copyright Literacy website, giving a brief overview of copyright history as it related to music copyright (comparing today's arrangements with those in Georgian times), and then writing about the broad scope of the Claimed From Stationers' Hall research network, some key findings, and the different facets of research possible using this large corpus of legal deposit material in various legal deposit libraries, past and present.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2018
URL https://copyrightliteracy.org/2018/02/21/legal-deposit-copyright-behind-the-scenes-and-scores-of-mus...
 
Description IAML (UK & Ireland) Annual Study Weekend, 6 April 2018, paper: 'Pathways, outputs and impacts: the 'Claimed from Stationers Hall' music project takes wings' 
Form Of Engagement Activity A talk or presentation
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach National
Primary Audience Professional Practitioners
Results and Impact A presentation to practising music librarians about the process of grant applications and establishing a research network, dealing very much with the practicalities of sourcing appropriate grants, dealing with application forms, unfamiliar terminology, costings, and understanding the requirement for recording outputs and impacts. I also gave an overview of networking activities including social media, blogging and the workshop, and some of the possible future directions for the network.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2018
URL https://iaml-uk-irl.org/asw-6-8-april-2018-edinburgh---draft-programme
 
Description Invited to join Rare Books in Scotland [forum for Rare Books librarians in Scottish institutions 
Form Of Engagement Activity A talk or presentation
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach National
Primary Audience Professional Practitioners
Results and Impact Was invited to join this group for two purposes; initially, to talk about the Claimed From Stationers' Hall research project and the previous research undertaken on the Copyright Music collection at the University of St Andrews; and secondly, to raise the profile of historical music in rare books collections. I was asked to conduct a short survey of members to establish further information about curation and cataloguing of music collections, and the level of musical expertise of those charged with its care; and also to explore how such collections were promoted and engaged with both within the member institutions and to extra-mural groups or members of the public, whether by talks, hands-on workshops, musical performance opportunities or other means.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2017,2018
 
Description Magazine, The People's Friend (D. C. Thomson, Special Edition 11 September 2020):- The sound of forgotten music: Karen McAulay uncovers some of the great female composers who have been lost from history 
Form Of Engagement Activity A magazine, newsletter or online publication
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Public/other audiences
Results and Impact I was approached by the features editor of The People's Friend, to write a feature about forgotten women composers, and their historical invisibility. This was an opportunity to write something for the popular market, thus reaching a far wider audience than the average scholarly arts journal. The issues of equality and diversity, and representation of women in the musical canon, are highly current topics in secondary schools and higher education, so this can be regarded as a way to reach out to family members of pupils, teachers, and students, bringing the issues to their attention in an approachable way.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2020
URL https://pure.rcs.ac.uk/portal/files/2754300/Sound_of_Forgotten_Music_People_s_Friend_no197_2020.pdf
 
Description Pondering Paratext: interdisciplinary seminar duology hosted in connection with the Eighteenth Century Worlds Research Centre, Liverpool, 17 March 2021. My talk: Scottish songs and dances 'preserved in their native simplicity' and 'humbly dedicated': paratext in improbable places 
Form Of Engagement Activity A talk or presentation
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Postgraduate students
Results and Impact Since music is an important part of print culture, and the contents of national song and fiddle collections are so strongly perceived as intangible cultural heritage, the paratext surrounding these songs and airs in 18th century collections is informative in many ways. This talk was a follow-on to a talk that I gave at the International Society of Eighteenth Century Studies conference in summer 2019. To counterbalance the main focus on song collections then, this new talk focused more on fiddle tune collections, title pages, tune ascriptions and subscription lists.
The intended purpose of this talk was to introduce the concept of paratext surrounding 18th century published national *music*, to an audience primarily researching paratext in literature of the same era.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2021
 
Description Research network newsletter 
Form Of Engagement Activity A magazine, newsletter or online publication
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Study participants or study members
Results and Impact A research network newsletter has been sent out periodically to update anyone interested, as to the progress of the research and networking activities. Created online using MailChimp, it was sent to JiscMail list members, and a link was also put on the project blog, Claimed From Stationers Hall. This was in turn promoted using the project's Twitter account and Facebook page.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2017,2018,2019
URL https://claimedfromstationershall.wordpress.com/newsletter/
 
Description Social media activity via Twitter, Facebook, JiscMail and MailChimp 
Form Of Engagement Activity Engagement focused website, blog or social media channel
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Professional Practitioners
Results and Impact Regular focused use of social media channels to highlight research activities and findings, promote the blog, and reach out to interested parties, whether researchers, librarians, musicians or relevant organisations. Twitter was the primary channel, with a Facebook page as secondary focus. The Jiscmail list and MailChimp newsletter were used regularly but on a less frequent basis.
Twitter @ClaimedStatHall
Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/ClaimedStatHall/
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2017,2018,2019
URL https://claimedfromstationershall.wordpress.com/useful-links/
 
Description University of Otago Centre for the Book Annual Research Seminar, 29 Nov 2017, part of UNESCO Cities of Culture Southern Hui: paper, 'Early 19th-century music scores: a mixed reception in Georgian Scottish libraries' 
Form Of Engagement Activity A talk or presentation
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Other audiences
Results and Impact I spoke about the survival of Georgian music in private collections, and in legal deposit music in Scottish libraries, and about the wider implications for the research which is the focus of the Claimed from Stationers' Hall network. I argued that the history of these music collections are a little-considered but related aspect to the history of the book, or to library history. Whether a private individual's personal tune collection, a bound volume for domestic use, or a library collection under legal deposit, they are all windows into social history and domestic music-making. I outlined how the legal deposit system worked in Georgian times in the UK, and explained that since the legal deposit scores were accumulated before music was actually an academic subject at universities, any use was therefore primarily domestic or recreational.
Since the seminar was programmed as part of the UNESCO Cities of Culture Southern Hui, there were a wide variety of people present, from university academics to members of the public and third sector organisations, so the presentation was designed to be as accessible as possible. It was interesting also to have the opportunity to experience a large, international conference which was not primarily an 'academic' audience but for arts practitioners of many kinds, and to observe how a scholarly colloquium could be successfully embedded into a larger event.

I was subsequently put in touch with two individuals involved in roughly similar kinds of research into New Zealand legal deposit history, although that history commenced some years later than the era on which the Claimed From Stationers' Hall research has focused, and there could perhaps be opportunities for further correspondence depending on future directions of the CFSH research network. Conversely, I have also since learned about acquisition of Colonial era music publications by the British Library - something that I would not have had in mind had I not had this New Zealand trip.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2017
URL https://www.cityofliterature.co.nz/creative-cities-southern-hui/