TubeNet

Not instrument related, but there are a lot of community band members on TubeNet so I thought I would get some info on managing a community band library.

I play in a large community band with a 30 year history. Over the years, the band has accumulated more than 1000 unique and complete sets of band music. Given the current replacement price of the music, the band has an asset in excess of $150,000.

We have a wonderful woman who has recorded and categorized all the music in the library. She unloads and reloads the folders after each concert, often with a 24 hour turn-around time (we play a concert Sunday afternoon and get a newly loaded folder at Monday night's rehearsal").

The music is stored in several large, locked cupboards in the well-used community center where we practice. The cupboards are semi-secured, but not fireproof. A couple of years ago another community band in the area suffered a major fire in their practice facility and lost most of their music. We are only a match away from suffering the same fate.

So, how do other bands manage and protect their music library? Can it be insured?

I’m also wondering about the opportunity to “loanâ€

The community band I founded eight years ago has accumulated over 500 charts already. Most have been donations from ex-high-school band directors and many of the scores are out of print. IF we could replace the entire library, I'm sure it would cost well in excess of $40,000. Needless to say, it would be impossible to replace the POP music. That being said, I do not keep our library insured for the MAX. I only carry $20,000 in stated-value insurance to keep us in business if we were to suffer a total loss. Our insurance carrier did not ask for an inventory. We simply bought a set amount of insurance.

http://www.olddamband.com

The North Royalton (O) Community Band has an ambitious project underway of digitizing a great deal of vintage band music they received in donations. They have already completed over 200 pieces and put pdf versions on the web at the address below. You might ask them for advice.


http://www.bandmusicpdf.org/