Canadian Association of Music Libraries, Archives, and Documentation Centres (CAML)
Association canadienne des bibliothèques, archives et centres de documentation musicaux (ACBM)
President's Greeting for the CAML Website
Hi and welcome to the Web site for the Canadian Association of Music Libraries, Archives and Documentation Centres, better known to us by its acronym, CAML. We are the professional association for librarians, archivists, and researchers in the field of music and we welcome as members anyone interested in the organization and collection, preservation and study of music, particularly music in Canada.
See the PRINCIPAL AIMS of our organization as listed on this website. CAML contributes to the following international bibliographical projects: RISM, RILM, RIdIM, RIPM. CAML is affiliated nationally with the Canadian University Music Society (CUMS) and, internationally, with the International Association of Music Libaries (IAML). Many of our members belong to all three organizations.Currently we have about 100 institutional and personal members... but we could have many more. Where do our potential members come from? Universities, the National Library of Canada, public libraries, music conservatories, orchestra libraries, provincial and national archives, the Canadian Music Centre, the Canadian National Institute for the Blind, the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, and many other special libraries as well as the music community of performers, composers, and writers, at large. Just take a look at our newly revised Directory of music collections in Canada to see what I mean.
Benefits of Membership in CAML include:
- full membership which includes IAML and a subscription to their publication, Fontes Artis Musicae and the opportunity to attend conferences in exotic places around the world. Or, optionally, a CAML only membership. Reduced fees for student rates are available.
- a subscription to the CAML Review, offering book and music reviews, conference reports and articles of interest to researchers and librarians. Interested in contributing an article? Contact our editor, Desmond Maley at dmaley@laurentian.ca
- access to the CANMUS-L listserv for e-mail communications with colleagues in both CAML and CUMS
- an annual conference, usually held in May or June in affiliation with CUMS and the Humanities & Social Sciences Federation of Canada but occasionally with other related associations. There is at times an overwhelming range of information resources and methods of preserving and indexing documents available today --- print, audio-visual and electronic. CAML helps its members keep in touch with the latest developments, make valuable contacts and share ideas. And our conferences always include stimulating concerts and a gourmet banquet as well! See the Web link to our latest Conference for details.
- membership in CUMS at a preferential rate, with a subscription to their publications: the CUMS Newsletter and the Canadian University Music Review, to be renamed, Intersections. CUMS members include music scholars, academics, composers and performers. For details on this organization see the CUMS website.
- opportunities to make a larger contribution to the field by participating in conference presentations, international bibliographical projects and CAML committees relating to cataloguing, conferences, publications, etc.
In 2000, CAML inaugurated the Helmut Kallmann Award for excellence in music librarianship and archives work in Canada. The award is named in honour of our organization's founder, a distinguished scholar and first Director of the Music Division at the National Library of Canada.
If you are a reference librarian, a cataloguer or performing, writing, teaching, or researching in music at any level, joining CAML will improve your effectiveness. If you are involved in or interested in supporting music scholarship and the activities of music libraries, archives and documentation centres, come join us. Come for the fun of learning from and sharing with colleagues the musical endeavours we love. See MEMBERSHIP for details.
The CAML President
April 2001