Opera CD Project

The library has a significant amount of materials on-site.  For pleasure or for simply completing assigned work, our library has the resources to help students and staff.  The library continually has to keep updating its equipment and technical materials like CDs and IPADS.  Otherwise, the technology would be outdated and less useful, if useful at all.

The library still has many vinyl records held at an off-site location, available to those people interested. There are around 300 vinyls on operas.  One of my favorite projects was to find replacement CDs.  Many of these operas were unknown to me.  How do I know which recording is better?  Sometimes I could find an exact recording of the vinyl.  The other times, I had to use my judgement on which CD is more appropriate for Musselman Library's collection.  I used the following steps to choose the most desirable CD. Step one: Look at the performers.  Many times I knew of the singers.  If I had to choose between Pavarotti or a less known singer, I would choose Pavarotti.  If the performers were less known to me, I got to research them a bit to see if any of them were popular.  Step two: read recommendations and reviews.  The internet houses many cites for reviews.  Mr. Sestrick gave me reliable websites to read reviews from.  This was always helpful to me.  I learned which CD had better audio quality, which director had the most convincing recording, and I found out who played the roles best.  Step three: cost.  After research sometimes I find that the recordings are pretty equal in quality.  In this case, it is always prudent to make the most economical choice.

I was very excited to do this project because opera CDs were my first introduction to non school-related material at Mussleman Library.  My freshman year, I would take out an opera CD each week to learn more about the field I wish to join.  By the end of the year, the options were slimmer than I would have liked.  That is one of the reasons why I applied to be  a Fortenbaugh Intern in Music.  I want to help expand our music collection.  This project was very fulfilling it this respect.