NYCO Archives in Jeopardy

The history of America's beloved soprano Beverly Sills and the opera company she championed for a decade as general director is in jeopardy. Why? The New York City Opera is vacating its Lincoln Center offices by December 31st, and in doing so, is poised to throw out its archives.

Not idle speculation, this knowledge was gleaned from two former archivists, one having left the company only recently. Both fear for the legacy, not only of Beverly Sills, who gave the company many of her scores, but of thousands of musicians, singers, directors, artists and conductors that have appeared with the company since 1943. Since current management is in the process of re-writing its mission statement, there appears to be little interest in preserving its past. Suggestions to donate the archives, which is comprised of scores, documents, correspondence, programs, audio and visual tapes, television and radio broadcasts, oral histories, historic photographs, casting records, set pieces and costumes to institutions like the Library of Congress, the Lincoln Center Library of the Performing Arts and the New York Historical Society were rebuffed. This is unconscionable. To lose this information to a dumpster would be a tragedy of incalculable proportions.

What can you do? Write and call NYCO and let them know you want the legacy and history of the People's Opera preserved for future generations and made available to the public.

UPDATE December 5th, 2:20 PM

I got a call from a young lady asking me if I was the "blogger who wrote about New York City Opera." When I said yes, she wanted me to know that the information in this post was untrue. How? I asked. She replied that "we are taking it with us." Not knowing who exactly I was speaking with (I was in the checkout line of a local supermarket at the time), I suggested she was free to make a comment on this blog if she wished. "Why would I lie to you?" She said. I replied that I didn't know who she was.

When I got home, I called back the number on my Iphone and got through to an entity called HRA Advisors, which has Lincoln Center of the Performing Arts as a client on its website. I found no mention of New York CIty Opera however. I spoke with the young lady who called me previously and asked if she could please tell me where the archive would be housed and why it wasn't being made available to the public. So far, I haven't heard back. When I do, I will certainly let you know.

UPDATE December 5th, 11:45 PM

In the nearly 24 hours since this post was written, 1100 people have read it, which, if nothing else, shows the level of interest and concern with regard to NYCO and its legacy. My caller from earlier in the day has not contacted me.

One colleague forwarded a letter from a NYCO company member which asserts that this writer is a "mischief maker." If the preeminent concern is the welfare of the archives of a historic institution which has fired more than half of its employees; dispensed with the position of archivist and thrown away the dressing room name plate of every star to grace its stage; is not reachable through its own website because the email addresses are non-functional; has declared an impasse in contract negotiations with its orchestra and chorus; has vacated its long time home and chosen to speak through third parties, then indeed, one has to wonder what mischief is being made.

A closet in an office doth not an archive make. 

Though I have no personal interest in the archives of NYCO (they do not- strictly speaking- concern themselves with matters of vocal pedagogy), I have an appreciation of their value and importance since I have greatly benefited from many a keen-eyed archivist who knows his/her way around the block.

Archives are precious things since they can be lost through negligence and indifference. They require the oversight of those with expertise in the field who understand the complexities of conservation. Does NYCO have such a person on staff? Are they advertising that a position is available? Does NYCO have the space for the large amount of material that the archive currently comprises? What happens to the archive should NYCO declare bankruptcy? How is NYCO going to handle the many requests for access? Has a complete inventory been made? What steps towards transparency and accountability have been taken? All these questions remain to be answered.

Please convey your concerns to NYCO which will be relocating to 75 Broad Street, NYC, 10004.

I understand the move-in date is December 16th. You might also contact Mayor Bloomberg which you can do here. His predecessor, Fiorello La Guardia, established NYCO as a public trust, forever emblazoning it in the minds of New Yorkers as the People's Opera, a moniker which many believe to be in doubt. 

UPDATE: December 6th, 2:35 PM

City Opera, Leaving Lincoln Center, Will Have Offices in Lower Manhattan

To those with a professional interest in the NYCO archives: please keep this writer informed as to their accessibility, status and condition. For those who have no idea what archives are and what archivists do, I recommend this site.

This writer firmly believes that access to information leads to true knowledge. This is why public libraries are so important: anyone can study what interests them. The professional researcher, however, functions on a different level: his/her interest shapes and informs a whole field of study which circles back to the public. To restrict access to archives serves no public good, and, ultimately, limits self-knoweldge and - in this case- Music herself.

UPDATE: December 7th, 11:00 AM

Questions have been raised about the veracity of this writer and his motivations concerning the NYCO Archives. To put these questions to rest, I remind the reader that the concerns on this page have been raised, not by the singers or musicians who have been in contract negotiations with the company, but rather, by former members of the company who were in charge of the archives.

I have simply provided a vehicle for their voices to be heard. My own tenure as a member of the chorus with NYCO ended November 20th with my resignation, 11 days before NYCO declared an impasse. The reader who spends even a short amount of time on these pages will glean that I am interested in scholarship, not innuendo.

In conclusion, I wish to quote the late Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan who so adroitly said:

Everyone is entitled to his own opinion, but not his own facts. 

FACT: This blog posted that the NYCO archive was in serious danger with its impending relocation from Lincoln Center and lack of an archivist.

FACT: NYCO subsequently announced via the NYTimes that it intends to house the archive in storage space at 75 Broad Street (a friend sourced NYCO's new address which I posted here the night before the NYTimes article appeared).

FACT: NYCO has not announced that it has hired an archivist or stated its intentions regarding the archive's administration. It has nine days in which to process a vast amount of information without -apparently- any guidance whatsoever. As "Jewel" has stated in the comments section:

Perhaps one might write to George: gsteel@nycopera.com, but when people are asking, it seems that reassurances are being given but no details have been published. A friend writes: "Several years ago, private donated funds were designated for a major archive project which was to include an online database similar to the Met's, an oral history project, and the cataloguing of NYCO's massive holdings of documents, photos, and recorded materials. We had a p/t archivist (Susan Woelzl) for a short time and some volunteer support, but these efforts didn't get far and eventually ground to a halt during 'the time of troubles'. All the well-meaning folks asserting that NYCO is moving the archival material downtown must be told this:

There's no way NYCO is currently equipped to preserve, catalogue, and curate thosematerials. Because of that the archives are A) useless and B) in peril

UPDATE: December 20th, 11:00 AM

I posted an open letter to Opera America CEO Marc Scorca last week which resulted in the assertion that NYCO was going to re-hire their former archivist who would oversee the transportation of the NYCO archives to their new offices. Unfortunately, this assertion could not be verified. As a result, I felt it necessary to remove the post and wish to apologize to Mr. Scorca for involving him in matters beyond his control.

As of this writing, the status, condition and location of NYCO's archive is unknown.

Note: The New York City Opera archives were irreparably damaged in hurricane Sandy, having been stored in the basement offices of the relocated NYCO under the direction of George Steel as reported in the New York Times and Wall Street Journal (November 1, 2012). Barring updated information, the NYCO archives are presumed to be lost.