Microsoft Outage – Contacting Me Today

Posted on by Dr Karen E McAulay
Image suggesting Microsoft technology

Friday 13 November (Well, it would be Friday the Thirteenth!)

You’ll probably have heard about the Microsoft outage affecting many of us.

The only way it affects this blog is that any ‘Join in the Conversation’ messages would normally go straight to my work email account. If you’ve used that page, I won’t receive your message until Microsoft sorts out the Outlook problem.

However, any ‘comments’ on individual blog posts won’t be affected. Just be aware that a comment is public, whereas ‘Join in the Conversation’ messages are private.

On This Day

On 13 November 1854, crusty old Aberdonian James Davie wrote sadly to his friend Andrew Wighton in Dundee,

I now despair of findng anything very interesting now in our line.

It’s strange now to read of an antiquarian despairing of finding interesting old publications, when we today can get excited about old music whose compilers weren’t even yet born in 1854!

And on 13 November 1893, Glaswegian music publisher James S. Kerr died in his Saltcoats home. He was only 52.

James Speirs Kerr, Music publisher. 1893 November Thirteenth 5h 30m PM. Male, 52 Years. [Father] Alexander Kerr Blacksmith (Deceased)
James S Kerr death certificate (excerpt)

Blog Heading Image by MerandaDevan from Pixabay

My Article about a Remarkable Victorian Music Teacher: ‘An Extensive Musical Library: Mrs Clarinda Webster, LRAM’

Posted on by Dr Karen E McAulay

Brio electronic archive for IAML(UK & Ireland) members

My latest article is on the IAML(UK & Ireland) website, in the members’ area, but paper copies will land on subscribers’ doormats and music library shelves this week! It’s about a strong and determined Victorian music teacher, who survived domestic abuse and made a remarkable career for herself – and I reveal her survey of music in Victorian public libraries, that I discovered literally by digging around online. (I’m rather pleased with this one – and it’s illustrated!)

Here are the details and the abstract:- 

McAulay, Karen E., ‘An Extensive Musical Library’: Mrs Clarinda Webster, LRAM, in Brio Vol.59 no.1, 29-42

Although there has been the perception that middling-class women’s lives were confined to domestic circles, there are plenty of examples that directly challenge this idea. The late Victorian Clarinda Augusta Webster ran a music school and a school for young ladies. She escaped domestic violence, overcame personal tragedy, and created a highly successful career first in Aberdeen and then in London. She published, gave talks, was active in professional circles, and travelled both to Europe and America. She also conducted a ground-breaking survey on music library provision in late nineteenth century Britain, delivering her findings to the Library Association. Although her report has not been traced in its entirety, many of its findings were reported in newspapers, enabling us to piece together the results of her investigations.  This article celebrates the sheer determination of a talented woman to make the most of her skills and create opportunities for advancement. It also demonstrates the perceived importance of music in wider late Victorian life. 

It should be possible to read this Brio article in a music library somewhere near you, and it will also eventually appear on the RCS research repository (Pure). But if you can’t get sight of a copy, please feel free to message me and I’ll share the proofs.