Collection ID: Mus. Arc. 76

Collection context

Summary

Creator:
Bradley, Carol June
Abstract:
Music librarian Carol June Bradley conducted interviews with 37 music Librarians from various institutions in the United States to research the history and practices of music librarianship.
Extent:
3 boxes and 135 audiocassettes
Language:
Spoken word content in English .

Background

Scope and Content:

Interviews with 37 music librarians, many of whom were among the first generation of specialized music librarians in the United States. The institutions represented include both academic and public libraries.

Biographical / Historical:

Carol June Bradley was born 12 August 1934 to George and Alice (Bolinger) Bradley in the central Pennsylvania town of Huntingdon. Her family later relocated to Carlisle, Pennsylvania. Bradley demonstrated her writing ability while still a high school student when she won first prize in the Lamberton Essay contest with her essay about the Irving Female College. She attended Lebanon Valley College in Annville, Pennsylvania to major in music education, graduating in 1956. However, she did not have a positive reaction to her student teaching experience, and with advice from a school librarian in Carlisle, decided to attend library school at Western Reserve University. She earned her M.S. degree there in 1957. During her college years Bradley also studied violin, attending summer sessions at Chautauqua Institute where she studied with Hortense and Mischa Mischakoff. She continued her education with a Ph.D. program in Library Science, earning the degree in 1978.

Bradley began her career as a music librarian in 1957 at the Free Library in Philadelphia where she was responsible for the Drinker Library of Choral Music. She wrote a history of the Edwin A. Fleisher Music Collection at the Free Library that served as her M.S. thesis in library science at Western Reserve University. Bradley left Philadelphia in 1959 to accept a new position at West Point Military Academy. Her tour of duty at the academy was brief but distinguished. She established a music library and also conducted a regular series of recorded concerts and pre-opera seminars. She left in 1960 to join the staff of the music library at nearby Vassar College. This began her long association with James B. Coover and provided her with the years of experience in technical services that shaped much of her later scholarly work.

The George Sherman Dickinson Music Library at Vassar College used Dickinson’s own classification scheme for its music collection. Bradley became the leading authority on this classification system and later adopted it for use at the University at Buffalo. She wrote and published the chief guide to the system in 1968: The Dickinson Classification: A Cataloguing and Classification Manual for Music.

Bradley moved to Buffalo in 1968 to begin work as the associate director of the newly established University at Buffalo Music Library, reporting once again to James B. Coover who was hired as director. Both Coover and Bradley remained in their positions until retirement in 1999. As adjunct professor at the University at Buffalo, Bradley, with James B. Coover, co-founded and co-directed a double master's program in music librarianship. She was instrumental in designing and administering the rigorous program that successfully trained a new generation of skilled music librarians.

Carol June Bradley conducted groundbreaking and extensive research into the history of music libraries and music librarinship in the United States. Her first work based on this was her doctoral dissertation, The genesis of American music librarianship, 1902-1942 (1978). Other works about music librarianship included American music librarianship : a biographical and historical survey (1990) and American music librarianship : a research and information guide (2005).

The excellence of Carol June Bradley's work as researcher and teacher was recognized by the State University of New York when she was awarded the Chancellor's Award for Excellence in Librarianship in 1977. The Music Library Association presented its highest award, the MLA Citation, in recognition of Bradley's many contributions to music librarianship in 2001. At its 2003 annual meeting, MLA announced the establishment of the Carol June Bradley Award for Historical Research in Music Librarianship, an annual award to support studies that involve the history of music libraries or special collections; biographies of music librarians; studies of specific aspects of music librarianship; and studies of music library patrons' activities. The first award was granted in 2004.

In retirement, Bradley completed two life-long projects, an annotated bibliography of the field of American music librarianship (American Music Librarianship: A Research and Information Guide [New York: Routledge, 2005]) and her 1,008-page index to song collections (Index to Poetry in Music: A Guide to the Poetry Set as Solo Songs by 125 Composers [New York: Routledge, 2003]). Carol June Bradley died in Buffalo, New York, 27 July 2009.

Acquisition information:
Gift of Carol June Bradley.
Arrangement:

Arranged in one series in alphabetical order by interviewee.

Rules or conventions:
Finding aid prepared using DACS ( Describing Archives: A Content Standard ).

Access

LOCATION OF THIS COLLECTION:
112 Baird Hall
Buffalo, NY 14260, United States
CONTACT:
716-645-2924