IAML Members Meet the New Board

Twenty-eight members accepted the Board’s invitation to the online event IAML Members Meet the New Board on 6 December 2023. We had a very fruitful meeting, elegantly moderated by Houman Behzadi. Houman referred to the IAML Strategic Intentions, originally formulated by Past President Stanisław Hrabia in 2019, that still serve as a guide for the Board and the National Representatives, as well as a source of inspiration for IAML’s members.

The event started with a round of presentations by the Board members, who introduced themselves and talked about their respective roles and responsibilities on the Board.

Houman had sent the following three questions to the Board in advance:

• In what areas has IAML achieved notable success?
• In what areas is progress needed, and how might we achieve those goals?
• In your view, what are some of IAML's emerging priorities?

Janneka Guise, the Board’s new liaison with the four committees Development, Advocacy, Membership and Outreach, mentioned the strengthened coordination of “the DAMO Committees” as a notable success. The Awards Committee and the Outreach Committee have also begun to work more closely. The new IAML Online Events Committee is another notable success. At the Cambridge congress we live streamed the two General Assemblies and provided OWL devices for smaller business meetings, which is a step forward.

An important notable success is the increased contacts with other international associations during the last years: Digital Libraries for Musicology (DLfM), UNESCO, International Music Council (IMC), International Musicological Society (IMS), International Association of Sound and Audiovisual Archives (IASA) and International Council for Traditional Music and Dance (ICTMD). 

Janneka thought that all the useful information you can find on IAML’s website is an additional success, for example the chronology, the many documents on advocacy, the calendar of events etc. She paid tribute to the web team for being so responsive in posting content to the website and addressing technology problems. 

Pia Shekhter added that IAML’s strong online presence, starting with the pandemic, is indeed a notable success. Furthermore, she mentioned the strengthened collaboration between the national representatives as something significant. 

Jürgen Diet pointed out two areas where progress is needed. The first is the low number of student participants in IAML’s congresses. We must also aim to have more candidates for IAML’s sections when elections take place. 

Pia noted that, apart from the fact that IAML has dwindling membership numbers in general, it is especially sad that we have lost so many members from the public libraries sector.

Anna Pensaert said that the core of the Strategic Intentions is still relevant even if the outside world is swiftly changing. An emerging priority is inclusiveness. We must find ways to include colleagues from non-music settings, as well. Additionally, there is a strong need to continue to work on advocacy. 

Houman Behzadi also prepared questions for the attendees: 

• In your view, what are some of the Association’s high priorities?
• How can IAML members work together to achieve these priorities?
• Do you have any other questions for our Board members?

Martie Severt encouraged the Board to make sure that we remain visible and continue the contacts with our sister associations. Additionally, we need to focus on new members. 

Charles Peters emphasized the need to concentrate on under-represented areas, such as Latin America. 

Nathalie Hristov asked the Board to focus on hybrid content for people who are not able to travel. Rupert Ridgewell replied that hybrid congresses is a complex issue that must be looked into carefully. Houman recommended that the Board would consult MLA. 

Christian Onveju informed us that IAML is not known in his home country Nigeria, nor in the rest of West Africa. The cost of being a member and attending a IAML congress prevents participation. He suggested that we should reach out more to musicians and musicologists. Janneka Guise, who is chairing the Outreach Committee, thanked Christian for his comments. She ensured him that IAML is very interested in outreach to Africa. The Board will aim to facilitate a way for members to donate money to the Outreach Fund for African participation. 

Almut Boehme proposed that we introduce an associated member category with reduced benefits, such as not receiving the journal Fontes. 

Roger Flury pointed out that there are many “ghost members” within our association - colleagues who are members of a national branch, but not in “big IAML”. He asked for a way to donate money separately from the congress registration fee, which might be paid by your employer.

Maria Calderisi proposed that we could investigate the possibility to donate money to the Outreach Fund when it is time for the membership renewal. 

Sabina Benelli emphasized the need for IAML to keep up with new technologies. She said that technicians often talk over the librarians’ heads. 

Antony Gordon stressed the importance of speaking slowly and clearly. Apart from this, it would be good if congress speakers were instructed on how to use the microphone. 

The session ended with many questions about the coming IAML Congress in Stellenbosch. Everybody seemed to be rather excited!