Category Archives: Music

My favourite Christmas carol

Posted on December 1, 2024 by Frank Norman

Waiting for Christmas Today is the first day of Advent. In Christian tradition this is a time of preparation and waiting for the arrival of the infant Jesus on Christmas Day. These days Advent is often treated as the start … Continue reading →

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My first music library conference – April 2024

Posted on May 3, 2024 by Frank Norman

Last month I attended the IAML UK & Ireland Annual Study Weekend (ASW).  IAML is the International Association of Music Libraries, and this is an event run each year by the UK & Ireland branch. This was the first time … Continue reading →

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Sourcing music – a Making Music webinar

Posted on March 19, 2024 by Frank Norman

I recently attended a webinar about sourcing sheet music, organised by Making Music. There were more than 100 attendees, mostly from amateur orchestras and choirs, all eager to learn about the best and most cost-effective ways to procure musical scores … Continue reading →

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Switching to a new library world

Posted on March 18, 2024 by Frank Norman

Between leaving school and going to university I spent a year working as a library assistant in a public library service; not a branch library but the headquarters of the service. The Library HQ had a large reserve stock, supplementing … Continue reading →

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A choral coda

Posted on April 10, 2023 by Frank Norman

I have been singing with Crouch End Festival Chorus (CEFC) since late 1994 but I have now retired from the choir. The Rachmaninov Vespers on 31 March was my last concert with CEFC as a member. It will be quite … Continue reading →

Posted in Biographical, Music | 3 Comments

Creativity – mixing it up

Posted on December 9, 2014 by Frank Norman

Over the past couple of weeks I’ve had cause to celebrate dramatic creativity in various forms, mixed and mingled. I’ve seen one film and two musicals; two with a biographical bent and one with a (fictional) scientific bent. Hockney Two … Continue reading →

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Terrors transcended

Posted on October 28, 2014 by Frank Norman

On balance, I prefer laughing to crying but I am not afraid to let my tears flow. Powerful drama can do it, so can stirring music. I may cry when I recall events or times in my life when I have been sad. … Continue reading →

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Music for love

Posted on February 14, 2014 by Frank Norman

Today, 14 February, was a day of celebration devoted to lovers and their love. Love remained a mystery to me for many years. Now that its full majesty has been revealed to me I embrace it with all my limbs … Continue reading →

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Deeply felt experiences – musical memories

Posted on November 9, 2013 by Frank Norman

Some pieces of music bring back strong memories. You recall key moments when you have heard the music before, or great performances that you have witnessed or taken part in. Benjamin Britten’s War Requiem is a piece that brings back … Continue reading →

Posted in Music | 7 Comments

The power of music

Posted on January 29, 2012 by Frank Norman

Some pieces of music really should carry a government health warning. The first time I saw Wagner’s opera Tristan und Isolde live, the Liebestod scene was unforgettable. The intensity of the music mounted and mounted, receded and then mounted again … Continue reading →

Posted in Music | Tagged , , , , , | 4 Comments