Advocating for Authority Control Ray Schmidt, Wellesley College February 1, 2015.

Advocating for Authority Control

Ray Schmidt, Wellesley CollegeFebruary 1, 2015

Music Library Association Bibliographic Control Committee

Subcommittees• Authorities • Descriptive Cataloging• MARC Formats• Metadata• Subject Access

Authorities Subcommittee activities

• Revisions to RDA • Maintenance of:– Types of Composition for Use in Authorized Access

Points for Music http://www.library.yale.edu/cataloging/music/typesrda.htm

– Thematic Indexes Used in the Library of Congress/NACO Authority File

http://bcc.musiclibraryassoc.org/BCCHistorical/BCC2011/Thematic_Indexes.htm

MLA Statement on Authority Control

• 1990s: Original statement on authority control • 2007: Subcommittee charged with adapting

this to create a document on why authority control is needed in the online catalog

• 2008-2009: Initial draft was reviewed, further revisions were discussed

• September 2009: an informal working group formed from members of the subcommittee produced the current statement

“As the rest of the information world realizes the benefits of authority control, libraries must continue to lead the way.”

MLA Statement on Authority Control http://bcc.musiclibraryassoc.org/PositionPapers/Authority_Control_Statement_2009.pdf

MLA Statement on Authority Control

• Defines authority control as the accurate identification of entities.

• Emphasis on the principles of collocation and disambiguation.

• Examples of these principles in library and non-library settings.

• Advocates for cooperative efforts, namely NACO.

Authorized Access Point (Name/Preferred title): Beethoven, Ludwig van, 1770-1827. Symphonies, no. 9, op. 125, D minor

Some transcribed titles of this work in the University of North Texas catalog• The best of Beethoven [electronic resource]• The 9 symphonies / Beethoven. [sound recording]• The complete symphonies and selected overtures

[sound recording]• The nine symphonies [sound recording]• Symphony no. 9, in D minor, op. 125 ("Choral")• Historische Aufnahmen• Immortal Beethoven

Some more…• Beethoven greatest hits [sound recording]• The nine symphonies of Beethoven in score• Edition encyclopédique des neuf symphonies• 9 [i.e. Neun] Symphonien• Complete nine symphonies• Symphonien für Orchester in Partitur• Symphonien• Symphonies 1-10• Symphonies / [arranged for] piano, four hands• Symphonies de L. van Beethoven. Arr. pour piano à 2 mains par Louis Winkler• Symphonies. Arranged for piano by Otto Singer• Symphonien / von L. van Beethoven ; für Pianoforte solo bearbeitet von Otto Singer.• The 100 greatest recordings of all time, no. 87 & 88 [Beethoven, Symphonies 1, 9]• Wilhelm Furtwängler [sound recording].• A survivor from Warsaw : op. 46 (for narrator, men's chorus and orchestra) / Schoenberg.

Symphony no. 9 in D minor, op. 125 : ("Choral") ; Symphony no. 5 in C minor op. 67 / Beethoven [sound recording].

• WRR Classical 101.1 FM, 50th anniversary [sound recording].• Beethoven symphonies nos. 6-9 / transcribed for solo piano by Franz Liszt• Symphonies nos. 8 and 9

..and more.• IX. Symphonie d-moll, op. 125• Symphonie Nr.8 F-dur op.93. IX. Symphonie d-moll op.125.• Symphony no. 6 [sound recording] : op. 68 : Pastoral ; Symphony no. 8, op. 93 ; Symphony no. 9, op. 125 : Choral• Eighth and Ninth symphonies• Symphonies nos. 8 and 9• Ode an Freiheit• Beethoven's ninth symphony [videorecording]• Beethoven the revolutionary• The 9th symphony• X. [i.e. neunte] Symphonie : mit Schlusschor über Schillers Ode an die Freude. Opus 125.• The Robert Shaw legacy (1956-1997)• Symphonie IX, D moll/D minor, op. 125.• Charles Munch [sound recording]• Symphony no. 6 [sound recording] : op. 68 : Pastoral ; Symphony no. 8, op. 93 ; Symphony no. 9, op. 125 : Choral / Beethoven.• The Gustav Mahler re-orchestration of Beethoven symphony no. 9 [sound recording]• Symphony number nine in D minor : (choral) :• Discover the symphony [electronic resource]• Hymne a la joie : extrait de la 9e symphonie, pour 5 trompettes en ut ou en si♭• Ode to joy : from Symphony no. 9• Choral finale to the ninth symphony for chorus of mixed voices, soli and orchestra, on Schiller's "Ode to joy" / by Ludwig van

Beethoven, op. 125 ; English version by Henry G. Chapman.• 9. Symphonie, op. 125 : Skizzen zum Finale : Faksimile des Autographs• An die Freude : letzter Satz der Neunten Symphonie, opus 125• The choral symphony. Last movement• Symphony no. 9 in D minor (choral), opus 125, 4th movement (finale)• The artistry of Philippe Herreweghe• Joy! The great composers' hits for the 70's.

With authority control, we can:• Find all resources containing or related to a specific instance of an entity

– a specific work contained in an MP3 file• Move between their own ideas concerning certain entities and the use of

such entities in a database – access provided through alternate terms that describe a specific

subject• Identify an entity via attributes that allow for the disambiguation of similar

entities – two persons sharing the same or similar names, or two works with

generic titles such as "concerto" or "quartet”• See pathways and relationships among related entities in the database

– exploring other resources containing information about a specific person

MLA Statement on Authority Control

Long-standing advocacy needs

• Staffing Supporting authority control as a significant part of the work of cataloging.

• ILS vendors Ensuring that systems properly utilize data from authority records

“Time-honored” examples: $v in series

100/240 combinations stem headings for conferences

Sources of support

• Expertise from NACO– Show that your expectations are reasonable by

citing standards, the NACO manual, and guidance from fellow NACO participants

• Authority control vendors– Services provide efficiencies in authority work, but

vendors can also provide information about current standards and potential new projects

Newer ground

• Library donor relations• Digital collections platforms (institutional

repositories, image galleries)• The ILS (again) and RDA

Why tell donors about authority work?

Information about the cost of cataloging a gift collection can be used to:• solicit funding from the same or other donors

(a long shot…)• explain why a gift is not being accepted

(these things happen)• communicate the “in-kind” support the library is

committing to in accepting the gift(this is good PR!)

Digital collections platforms

Collocation, yes but…

Digital collections platforms often provide “authority control” tools to aid in consistency, but there is no structure in place to point the user to the preferred form when the search term is a variant form.

Francesco Petrarca or Petrarch? Pick one.

The ILS and RDA:indexing and display rules for relationships recorded in $i and $e ǂi should display but should not be indexed:700 12 ǂi Container of (work): ǂa Verdi, Giuseppe, ǂd 1813-1901. ǂt Rigoletto.

so that the indexing is the same as:100 1 Verdi, Giuseppe, ǂd 1813-1901. 240 10 Rigoletto.

The ILS and RDA:indexing and display rules for relationships recorded in $i and $e ǂe should display but should not be indexed (or better still, should display and be indexed separately as a facet):

700 1 Giulini, Carlo Maria, ǂe conductor.

The ILS and RDA: New data fields

New MARC Authority fields for name attributes:046 - Special Coded Dates (R)368 - Other Attributes of Person or Corporate Body (R) 371 - Address (R)372 - Field of Activity (R)373 - Associated Group (R)374 - Occupation (R)375 - Gender (R)376 - Family Information (R)378 - Fuller Form of Personal Name (NR)

New MARC Authority and Bibliographic fields for work and expression attributes:046 - Special Coded Dates (new subfields only)370 - Associated Place (R)377 - Associated Language (R)380 - Form of Work (R)381 - Other Distinguishing Characteristics of Work or Expression (R)382 - Medium of Performance (R)383 - Numeric Designation of Musical Work (R)384 - Key (NR)

“I want to know about…”

Women composers from Chicago who are/were also music teachers. 046 ǂf 19541001 Gibson, Margie, ǂd 1954-370 Chicago (Ill.) ǂe Portland (Or.) ǂ2 naf372 Music ǂ2 lcsh374 Singers ǂa Composers ǂa Actors ǂa Music teachers ǂ2 lcsh375 female670 Berlin, I. The Irving Berlin century [SR] p1988: ǂb label (Margie Gibson) insert (classic popular singer; originally from Chicago; also composes and publishes songs; has acting experience)670 U.S. Copyright Office WWW site, May 19, 2014: ǂb (Gibson, Margie, 1954-)670 Margie Gibson WWW site, May 19, 2014: ǂb (Margie Gibson, now based in Portland, Oregon; has worked in the entertainment industry for several years in Los Angeles and Chicago; singer, BMI songwriter, recording artist, actress, and teacher)

“Librarians must continue to lead the way…”… by communicating a few key concepts clearly and illustrating them with specific here-and-now examples that show the benefit to library users.

Thanks to Jean Harden,

University of North Texasand

Jennifer Olson, Allen Library, University of Hartford

And thank you!