On 5 February the General Director of Statens musikverk, Stina Westerberg announced punitive budget cuts to Sweden’s national music library, Musik- och teaterbibliotek, which involve the loss of 25% of its workforce. A report broadcast on the cultural affairs programme of Swedish Radio can be heard here:http://sverigesradio.se/sida/artikel.aspx?programid=478&artikel=5434062
We are writing to invite you to lodge a protest against the cuts. If you are happy to do this please feel free to use the text below, or any text of your own, and send it to the Swedish Minister of Culture [email protected] with a copy to Stina Westerberg [email protected]
Many thanks for your support in this matter. Please feel free to use the following text:
The Musik- och teaterbibliotek is being dismantled
The library of the Royal Swedish Academy of Music (Kungliga Musikaliska Akademien) was founded in 1771. For almost 250 years it has served as the national music library, Sweden’s only public specialist music library. In 1922 and 1937 the Drottningholm Theatre museum and its library were founded. The collections of these three historically and culturally significant institutions have now been incorporated into the Musik- och teaterbibliotek, under the umbrella authority of Statens musikverk.
On Tuesday 5 February, Stina Westerberg, General Director of Statens musikverk, announced her decision for budgetary cuts at the Musik- och teaterbibliotek:
• The post of Chief Librarian will be removed
• Staff cuts will also include 2 librarians, 1 archivist and 3 assistant librarians.
If carried out, this decision will have an extremely negative effect on Swedish music and theatre culture. The decision will also make it well nigh impossible to continue the professional work required to maintain the library’s unique and world-famous collections, which are part of Swedish cultural heritage.
If we cannot prevent these cuts, library services will inevitably deteriorate drastically, having a negative effect upon the library’s many national and international readers and users, including orchestras, students, musicians, researchers and the general public. We fear that the currently modest opening hours will have to be further reduced. And the behind-the-scenes work of acquisitions, cataloguing and preservation will also suffer.
I lodge my protest against this decision that will so negatively impact the Musik- och teaterbibliotek, and I strongly recommend that resources be made available to enable it to function fully professionally, at a national and international level, as Sweden’s library for music, dance and theatre.
SIGNED (add name)
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