Russ Girsberger - Insights and Essays on the Music Performance Library

Sarah Anderson toured for six years with the Soldiers Chorus of The United States Army Field Band, giving free public concerts in forty-nine states. She served as the chorus librarian and later the assistant unit librarian while performing with the ensemble, before becoming the full-time librarian in 2003. Prior to joining the Field Band, she performed with the Lutheran Choir of Chicago and the University Singers of The George Washington University, as well as GWs vocal jazz ensemble, the Troubadours. Sergeant First Class Anderson earned a BA degree at The George Washington University and received her Master of Library Science from the University of Maryland-College Park.

Paul J. Beck is Principal Orchestra Librarian of The Juilliard School and Principal Librarian for the Mostly Mozart Festival at Lincoln Center in New York City. He is active in New York City as an orchestral librarian and music preparation professional, having current and past affiliations with the Metropolitan Opera, New York Philharmonic, The Juilliard School, Aspen Music Festival and School, Brooklyn Philharmonic, and the YouTube Symphony. Well-versed in opera music preparation, Paul is also the concert librarian for Renee Fleming. Mr. Beck is a 1998 graduate of the Manhattan School of Music.

Carla Boyer graduated with bachelors degrees in music and Spanish and a masters degree in Spanish from the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville. She also began studies toward a second masters degree in library science. She taught stringed instruments in the Springdale, Arkansas public school for three years and Little Rock, Arkansas public schools for six years, also playing in the cello section of the Arkansas Symphony for six years. She worked as Assistant Librarian with the Saint Louis Symphony with John Tafoya for three years. She began working at Educational Music Service in 1981 where she serves as Sales Manager.

Marshall Burlingame is the Principal Librarian of the Boston Symphony. He graduated from the Eastman School of Music as a double major in Clarinet and Music History, receiving the Performers Certificate in Clarinet. Following service in the U.S. Air Force Concert Band, in Washington D.C., he became a Reference Librarian at the Library of Congress Music Division. He entered the orchestra library field as Principal Librarian of the Cincinnati Symphony, leaving after twelve seasons, to initiate OLIS, the Orchestra Library Information Service, (a component of the current OPAS database), for the League of American Orchestras on a three-year grant from the National Endowment for the Arts. Mr. Burlingame supervises the three libraries at Tanglewood, mentors the Tanglewood Music Centers Library Fellow, and gives seminars for the Composer and Conductor Fellows.

Courtney Secoy Cohen is the Principal Librarian for the San Diego Symphony and the San Diego Opera. She previously worked as the Assistant Librarian for the Kansas City Symphony and the Florida West Coast Symphony (now the Sarasota Orchestra). Prior to these positions, she served as the Performance Librarian for the Boston Conservatory. She is active in the Major Orchestra Librarians Association (MOLA), serving as the Managing Editor of Marcato, working on the Errata Committee, writing the Transitions article for Marcato, and acting as the Pops Resources Database Coordinator. She also maintains her music engraving and copyist business, Piperlass Music Engraving.

Michael J. Colburn , a native of St. Albans, Vermont, earned a bachelors degree in euphonium performance at Arizona State University and a masters degree in conducting from George Mason University. In 1987, Colburn won a position playing euphonium with The Presidents Own United States Marine Band, and was designated principal euphonium in 1991. In 1996 he was appointed Assistant Director, and since 2004 he has served as the 27th Director of the U.S. Marine Band. Colburn is an active guest conductor and clinician. He has twice led the All-New England Festival Band, the All-Eastern Band, and in December 2009 he served as the Arnald D. Gabriel Resident Wind Conductor on the campus of Ithaca University. Colburn serves as music director of Washington, D.C.s prestigious Gridiron Club, a position first held by John Philip Sousa, and is a member of the Alfalfa Club, the American Bandmasters Association, and is a board member of the Sousa Foundation.