Rehoming piano sheet music
June 13, 2022 8:54 AM   Subscribe

Where to donate a stack of (mostly) advanced piano sheet music?

My mother is a piano teacher who recently inherited a large-ish quantity of sheet music. Much of it is too advanced to pass on to her own students. Surely there is a place for this other than recycling? She is happy to pay to ship it somewhere that could use it.
posted by mandymanwasregistered to Media & Arts (10 answers total)
 
I see you're in LA. I'd call the offices of the local arts-focused public schools. Off the top of my head: LACHSA, Grand Arts, Renaissance Arts Academy. (Though expect public school communication to go slowly because it's summer break.)
posted by BlahLaLa at 9:58 AM on June 13, 2022


How about a music school, e.g. The Cleveland Institute of Music (there's likely one or more in the L.A. area), or the music department of a college or university?
posted by Dolley at 10:04 AM on June 13, 2022


Check for a local community college with a music program.
posted by Candleman at 10:16 AM on June 13, 2022


Response by poster: While I appreciate the LA recommendations, the sheet music resides in Michigan.
posted by mandymanwasregistered at 10:20 AM on June 13, 2022


Your state music teachers association is a logical place to start. They probably have a local branch close to wherever you are.

We often got donations of this sort at our local music teachers association branch, and the music was put to good use - believe me.

Another place to look is a local college or university with a music department - contact one of the piano professors there.
posted by flug at 10:44 AM on June 13, 2022 [3 favorites]


If she just wants a home for it, she could try listing it on NextDoor.
posted by FencingGal at 11:37 AM on June 13, 2022


Two summers ago I picked up a lifetime’s worth of advanced sheet music from a widower via Nextdoor, and it has been my pandemic salvation. I took the whole thing and passed along any duplicates via Nextdoor to a very appreciative piano teacher.
posted by Maarika at 1:04 PM on June 13, 2022 [2 favorites]


College/university that offers a music major. School system. A reference librarian would be a good resource.
posted by theora55 at 2:00 PM on June 13, 2022


One of the wee gratefuls works in a music library in a DC suburb, and said institution would ]love to be the recipient of such a gift.
posted by grateful at 6:57 PM on June 13, 2022


What editions (if any) are they? Urtext scores like Henle or Barenreiter are expensive and could either be resold or donated (and gratefully accepted), if they aren't too marked.

The desirability of other editions depend on the quality (or perceived quality) of the publishing house and the person receiving them - I've had music teachers reject Peters, for example, but they are perfectly fine for any music enthusiast to learn from, just not necessarily great for academic analysis.
posted by seapig at 8:40 PM on June 13, 2022


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