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World Music Institute concert recordings

 Record Group
Identifier: NS-07-02-31

Abstract

Between 1994 and 1997, the non-profit organization, World Music Institute, sponsored a series of concerts preceded by lectures at The New School, featuring musicians and musical styles from Central Asia, India, Iran, Latin America and elsewhere. The collection consists of audio recordings of these public programs.

Dates

  • 1994-1997

Creator

Extent

76 Analog Recordings (53 1/4 inch audio cassettes; 23 DAT tapes.)

Language of Materials

English

Scope and Contents

The collection consists of audio recordings of public performances recorded on audiocassette tapes and digital audio tape (DAT). There is no known video of the concerts. Most performances are recorded on both audiocassette tapes and DAT. Two concerts are only recorded on DAT.

The following semesters are represented in this collection: Fall 1994 (3 concerts), Spring 1995 (3 concerts), Fall 1995 (2 concerts), Spring 1996 (3 concerts), Fall 1996 (4 concerts), Spring 1997 (5 concerts). There is no evidence that the World Music Institute concert series extended beyond Spring 1997 at The New School.

The collection does not include World Music Institute performances or events held at venues apart from The New School.

Conditions Governing Access

Collection is open for research use. No access copies of the DAT recordings in the collection are currently available. Access to audio cassettes may be available in The New School Archives reading room, depending upon the condition of the cassettes once they are evaluated by Archives staff. Researchers desiring remote access and willing to pay a digitization fee may do so upon consultation with The New School Archives. Please contact archivist@newschool.edu for appointment to listen to audio cassettes in the Archives reading room or for more information about ordering digital files.

Conditions Governing Use

Copyright is held by each work's respective performers. The responsibility to secure copyright permission rests with the user.

Historical note

The World Music Institute is a not-for-profit concert promoter in New York City, with a focus on “world music,” a term popular in the late twentieth century to denote folk music, especially that from or inspired by non-Western musical traditions. The Institute was founded by concert promoters Robert and Helene Browning with a series of shows as part of the World Music Program at the Alternative Museum in New York City, an institution earlier founded by Robert Browning, in 1985.

The World Music Institute ran a series of concerts in partnership with The New School between 1994 and 1997, held in what was then Tishman Auditorium, the landmarked Joseph Urban-designed auditorium in 66 West Twelfth Street, and featuring musicians and musical styles from Central Asia, India, Iran, Latin America and elsewhere.

Sources

World Music Institute. Welcome to World Music Institute. Accessed July 9 2024.

The New School (1994). New School Bulletin 1994 Fall Vol. 52 No. 1. New School Course Catalog Collection. /digital.archives.newschool.edu/index.php/Detail/objects/NS050101_ns1994fa>

Arrangement

Arranged in chronological order.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

The staff of The New School Archives and Special Collections assembled this collection from a larger set of legacy recordings transferred from The New School's Raymond Fogelman Library following the establishment of The New School Archives, circa 2012.

Related Materials

Additional recordings of performances sponsored by the World Music Institute are available through the New York Public Library.

Processing Information

New School Archives staff based all description in this finding aid on container inscriptions and information published in New School course catalogs. Staff did not listen to the tapes to verify content.

Title
Guide to the World Music Institute concert recordings
Status
In Process
Author
Jason Adamo, Jack Wells and Jenny Swadosh
Description rules
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin