Two people asked me to report on my Paris library visits. They have been more wonderful than I could have imagined. First, let me say that they all share a common catalog, using Aleph from Ex Libris called Rachel:http://www.rachelnet.net/rachelnet/index.htm. You can search their catalogs and link to the individual Websites from Rachel.
1. Centre Francais de Musique Juives. They have both sound recordings and scores, some of which are manuscripts, as well as some archival materials. The sound recordings are being digitized, and you can listen to examples of all the tracks online, limited by copyright. As some go into the public domain, the entire recording can be made available. They just got an overhead scanner, and I think they will now scan and make available the some of the scores and archival material. 2. Bibliotheque de l'Alliance Israelite Universelle. They have an extraordinary library, mostly for researchers. Begun in 1860, the Alliance has the weekly reports from the Jewish schools they supported around the world. That archive must be a true treasure trove of information about Jewish communities over the last century and a half. They obviously have an extraordinary collection of books and journals, but the manuscript collection amazed me. I saw several wonderful pieces, but two in particular--an illuminated Chumash that not surprisingly gives a history of its time and place through the images, and a leaf of Maimonides in his handwriting. I got to hold it (encased in mylar, of course). It's in Arabic, written in Hebrew letters. I honestly don't know what it says, but just holding a leaf in his handwriting was probably the most moving bibliographic thing I've ever done, even with all my years of when I was a rare book curator and even now visiting antiquarian book fairs. I spent over two hours there and had lunch with the librarians that included a lively conversation about libraries and where we're all headed. 3. Paris Yiddish Center- Medem Library. The collection has books, journals, sound recordings, films, etc. not only in Yiddish but about Ashkenazi Judaism in all languages. They just moved to a new space with more storage. I can't read Yiddish and haven't spoken it in 35 years, but I did my best and enjoyed the exhibit the librarian, Natalia Krynicka, developed. 4. La Mediateque Musee d'Art et d'Histoire du Judaisme. The librarian, Isabelle Pleskoff-Berkowitz, has been there since the beginning of the library, so it was very interesting to hear the history of the collection and the library's programming. The art books seem to be the most used, but there are obviously books on history, ritual, philosophy, etc. as well as some film and sound recordings. It is open to the public, not just the curators, which I found delightful, since we had very few outside users when I worked in a museum library. I had visited the museum on the Sunday before with my husband, and we noticed that the library was open, and anyone could go in. The topics of the library's programs are quite interesting, including Jews in Lebanon, Yiddish marionette theater, a chazan from Morocco, and a Marrano from Spain who rediscovered his Judaism and converted. They all speak for free--I often have to pay speakers quite a hefty honorarium, so I was happy to hear she doesn't. The museum has quite a collection of books (some wonderful incunabula and early printed books) and manuscripts on exhibit, but they are on loan, as the library does not have a rare book collection. She said the Biblioteque Nationale has a collection, but they don't lend. As you can tell, everyone was very generous with their time, and I learned a great deal in my visits. People asked why I would be visiting libraries during my vacation, but what could be a greater pleasure for a librarian, and they are all in different parts of Paris, so I got to see areas I might not have visited. For more information about the libraries, go to Rachel; it's worth a visit. Emily Bergman Library Committee Chair Temple Sinai of Glendale Glendale, California --- Emily Bergman Head of Collections and Technical Services Occidental College Library 1600 Campus Road Los Angeles, CA 90041 323-259-2935 berg...@oxy.edu --- Messages and opinions expressed on Hasafran are those of the individual author and are not necessarily endorsed by the Association of Jewish Libraries (AJL) =========================================================== Submissions for Ha-Safran, send to: hasaf...@osu.edu SUBscribing, SIGNOFF commands send to: Listproc @ lists.acs.ohio-state.edu Questions, problems, complaints, compliments;-) send to: galron.1 @ osu.edu Ha-Safran Archives: Current: http://www.mail-archive.com/hasafran%40lists.acs.ohio-state.edu/maillist.html History: http://www.mail-archive.com/hasafran%40lists.acs.ohio-state.edu/history.html AJL HomePage http://www.JewishLibraries.org
