Exhibition: Striking Chords

Posted on by Library Communications
music sheet

19/05/2016

Sounds and stories from the Rare Music collection

The image on the poster/postcard is from Raymond Hanson’s manuscript sketches for The Immortal Touch (c. 1970s). Raymond Hanson (1913-1976) was a composer and music educator who taught composition at the Conservatorium from the late 1940s until the 1970s.
Raymond Hanson’s manuscript sketches for The Immortal Touch (c. 1970s).

When: 19 May to 30 November 2016

Where: Fisher Library F03; Level 1; Rare Books & Special Collections Reading Room

This exhibition is a celebration of the University Library’s Rare Music collection, on the occasion of its relocation from the Conservatorium Library to Fisher Rare Books & Special Collections.

When the NSW State Conservatorium of Music was officially opened on 6 May 1915, its stated aims were “providing tuition of a standard at least equal to that of the leading European Conservatoriums”. It would seem logical then that the Rare Music collection of Australia’s first dedicated music education institution be concentrated around two main cultural waypoints: the European classical music tradition that the Conservatorium sought to transmit, and the Australian musical culture that developed from this foundation.

These two areas of strength provide natural entry points for exploring this varied and intriguing collection. They provide the framework for this exhibition, the aim of which is to showcase not only the objects themselves, but the continuation of their stories through ongoing scholarship and engagement.

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