John Wagstaff was interviewed by Pia Shekhter in June 2023:
How did you become a music librarian?
I fell into music librarianship somewhat by accident. When I was studying at King’s College London for my M.Mus. in Musicology (1982-83) I began to work as a casual library assistant in the College Library because I needed the money. Most of the time I worked evenings during full term in the library’s Medical Reserves section, but as time went on I also picked up some library hours during the College’s vacations, since there were still plenty of students around at those times. I enjoyed the work because I liked talking to people and helping them find the things they needed (at that early time I naively thought that this was pretty much what being a librarian meant), so perhaps that planted a seed in my mind that I could consider librarianship as a career at some future point. I finished my Master’s, then left the College because I no longer had any business there. For something to do I went to work for Foyle’s Bookshop on London’s Charing Cross Road, and, while I was there, King’s contacted me to find out whether I might be interested in applying for a music library assistant’s job that was becoming vacant because the assistant at that time, my friend Peter Horton, was moving to the Library of the Royal College of Music, where he subsequently had a very illustrious career. I decided to apply and was lucky enough to be appointed, with then Music Librarian Janet Smith as my boss. Janet was a great teacher, and I don’t think I’ve ever been prouder to get a job than when I was appointed as Janet’s assistant, despite the fact that I was to go on to other music library positions later. In terms of my music librarianship education I would also like to mention here another influential teacher, Dr Margaret Laurie, who was then at the University of Reading Music Department Library. Margaret always took an interest in what I was doing, and has continued to do so. I’m fairly certain that many other music librarians will recognise, and acknowledge, the importance of good mentors to their own careers.
Describe your working life briefly.
I remained at King’s College London Music Library from January 1984 to mid-1988, having eventually moved from being Library Assistant to Assistant Librarian for Music there. From around September 1988 to December 2004 I worked at the Music Faculty Library at Oxford University. From January 2005 to April 2016 I was employed at the Music & Performing Arts Library of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign; and I also had a brief, but very happy, time at the BBC Music Library at Broadcasting House, London, between August 1996 and February 1997, helping out with music reference enquiries. While at Oxford I was seconded during the first half of 1999 to a London-based organisation called COMA – Contemporary Music-Making for Amateurs – which I found fascinating. From 2016 until my retirement in 2022 I was no longer a music librarian but instead worked at a Cambridge college library, where my duties were more general.
When did you first come into contact with IAML?
I think I must have discovered the IAML (UK) Branch journal, Brio, fairly early during my time at King’s College London; and Janet Smith probably pointed it out to me as well. So, in the mid-1980s I applied to attend my first IAML (UK) Branch conference, at the University of Bangor in Wales. After that I was hooked, and I tried to attend the conferences annually when I could. It was a great way to meet the UK’s leading music library practitioners – people who were running large music libraries and really knew what they were talking about. I was learning as I went along, but – as many others have reported since, based on their own experience – I found music librarians to be kind, collegial, and ready to answer the (probably rather basic) questions of an over-enthusiastic newcomer.
Which was your first IAML conference?
My first international conference was Helsinki in 1993. I remember feeling completely lost, but fortunately the UK Branch President, Malcolm Lewis, was also there, and as always was very kind and thoughtful in making sure that I was ok and keeping up. Many people will surely remember Malcolm, a generous and knowledgeable professional and a friend to so many.
Would you like to share a special IAML memory?
At my first UK IAML conference, Lewis Foreman – well known as the rediscoverer of many forgotten English composers and their works – stood up and gave what I felt to be a rather too well-reasoned critique of what was wrong with UK music libraries. I particularly remember him talking about entering one library (fortunately I don’t now remember which, but it wasn’t the one I was working at) at which the librarians were sitting around in a rather uninterested fashion and indulging in what he called “gentle inactivity” (I’ve never forgotten that phrase…). The Chair of the session said that we would all have a chance to discuss Lewis’s comments during the rest of the weekend, but somehow we never did. Which was a shame, as I’m always ready for an argument (sorry, I of course mean “to have a professional discussion of a current issue”). I think it is fair to say that music librarianship nowadays is much more professional, whether in the UK or elsewhere.
What positions have you had within IAML?
Just a couple. I was Vice-Chair (under Dr Geoff Thomason) of IAML’s Commission on Service and Training from 2009 to 2014, and found it to be a good niche for me as I was developing an interest in that area.
Secondly, I was for a while (2000-2004) editor of Fontes artis musicae, being both preceded and followed by excellent editors – respectively Suki Sommer and Maureen Buja. It was a great privilege to edit the journal, and I am grateful to IAML for having asked me. I have always been very committed to each of IAML’s three official languages – English, French and German – and I tried to give equal treatment to each in the issues of Fontes that I edited. That is something I am quite proud of, helped considerably by Dominique Hausfater and Wolfgang Krueger.
Finally: I’m currently IAML Historian, having succeeded Roger Flury in the post a couple of years back. Roger was the first person in the role, and has been a hard act to follow!
What has IAML meant to you?
IAML has meant a professional network of colleagues and, in many cases, friends. It has been something of a constant in my working life even though I was probably more aligned with the (US) Music Library Association when working at the University of Illinois. Now that I am retired I enjoy being the IAML Historian, and have also enjoyed being a member of the Organising Committee for IAML’s 2023 international congress in Cambridge.
What objects do you think are most important for IAML?
To offer professional leadership and guidance in the fields of music libraries and archives; and to act as an international forum for the exchange of ideas and best practice.
How can IAML stay relevant for the future?
By listening to its members, and offering them practical advice and support. By running more online courses that can be taken during the workday and that cover more practical topics such as cataloguing, acquisitions, and so on. Members seem to be crying out for these practical offerings as well as for the higher-level, management-style topics that IAML has always been good at. There is a debate to be had regarding whether practical courses should be offered at international or at Branch level, of course; but that debate has, at least, got started.
