New topics The International Music Libraries Conference took place in Africa for the first time in 2024
Since its founding in 1951, the International Association! of Music Libraries, Archives and Documentation Centers (IAML) has met in a different! city every year. However, one continen! t has been missing from the list of conference locations. That has now – finally! – changed: from June 23 to 28, 2024, the conference took place on the African continent for the first time. More precisely: in Stellenbosch, South Africa, just under an hour’s drive east of Cape Town.
The Endler Hall at New topics the Stellenbosch Conservatory
Room for everyone: The Endler Hall in the Stellenbosch Conservatory was ideally equipped in terms of technology and acoustics. Photo: Ruprecht Langer, CC-BY-SA 3.0 DE
With 160 participants, the conference was less well attended than many of its predecessors. This is certainly due to the distance from the regions in the world with the largest number of members, such as Europe and North America. Nevertheless, participants came from 22 countries, six of them from the African continent. In total, about a third of all those phone number database present came from African countries. Many of them were able to attend an IAML conference in person for the first time. It was very nice to get to know colleagues in this way who you would otherwise only have contact with via email or video conference.
In order to enable members from financially weaker regions to participate, the IAML had applied a geographical staggered system when calculating the conference fee, without which many colleagues would certainly not have been able to come to Stellenbosch. The resources from the two travel funds were also helpful, as they enable young librarians and researchers in particular to take part in the international conference with their own contribution each year.
Ideal conference location
The conference took place in the premises of on the urgency of defining the political impact of psychoanalysis the conservatory, organized by Stellenbosch University and a large local committee. And they did a wonderful job. The organization of the conference was flawless, from the technical support during the presentations to the excursions into the surrounding area. Even the weather played along; the South African winter – usually cold and with a lot of rain – showed its brightest hindi directory side with blue skies and temperatures between 18 and 24 degrees. Since most of the accommodation was within walking distance of the conservatory, the 160 participants were usually in the same place, and so plenty of time was spent having relaxed conversations and networking.
View of the Stellenbosch vineyards with mountain panorama
Stellenbosch is a recognized wine region. And so one of the excursions took place to the Blaauwklippen vineyard. Photo: Ruprecht Langer, CC-BY-SA 3.0 DE
Old and new topics.