RNCM archives open to the public

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RNCM ARCHIVES NOW OPEN TO THE PUBLIC

Letters from Sir Charles Halle and the violinist Joachim; teachers'
testimonials on composer Alan Rawsthorne's progress as a student; the
original manuscript of Delius' Sonata no. 1 for violin and piano - these
are among the many discoveries made by archivist Sarah Wickham as she
catalogued the Royal Northern College of Music's extensive archives.
With that task now near completion, the archives - full of items of
national and international import for music historians and others - will
finally be open to the public from the beginning of December. The occasion
will be marked by a special exhibition of items relating to local composer
Thomas Pitfield, timed to coincide with performances of two of his piano
concertos on 2 and 5 December.

The key collections in the RNCM archives are as follows:
* Organisational archives of the Northern School of Music and the Royal
Manchester College of Music
* The performing archive of the Philip Jones Brass Ensemble
* Personal papers covering the entire careers of the violinists Adolph
Brodsky and Philip Newman, the soprano Elizabeth Harwood, and Walter and
Ida Carroll - the prominent Manchester music educationalists
* The correspondence of Sir Charles Halle with EJ Broadfield, Gustav
Behrens and others
* The compositions of Alan Rawsthorne, John Ogdon, Thomas Pitfield, Arthur
Butterworth and John Golland

As the result of the extensive work done by Sarah Wickham, funded through
a GBP50,000 grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund and support from a number
of trusts, it is now possible for members of the public to view items for
research purposes. The whole collection is also listed on the web at
www.rncm-archive.rncm.ac.uk/. Visits to the archives are by appointment
only during Library opening hours (Mon -Thurs 9 - 7; Fri 9 - 5, Sat 9 - 1
during term-time; Mon-Fri 10 - 4.30 during vacations; closed Bank Holidays
and at other exceptional times). Contact details are as follows:

* email: archives@rncm.ac.uk
* mail: Archives, Royal Northern College of Music, 124 Oxford Road,
Manchester, M13 9RD, UK
* telephone: +44(0)161 907 5211
* fax: +44(0)161 273 7611