Re: profesional ethics of conservation

[Dana S Emery <emery@onyx.si.edu>]

>From: David Van Zandt <dvz@eskimo.com>
>        Since working musicians use their instruments as tools and demand
>that we optimize those tools for preformance we are often thrown into
>situations where we must educatate the musician, to the benefit of the
>object, or compromize our work in the name of cost and expedience, to the
>detriment of the object.

Striking a balance between the patrons desires and what is "good for ..."
is always going to be a judgment call, there can be no easy answer beyond
an honest consideration of the ethics of the situation.  A skilled performer
deserves access to rare objects if they will complement the art produced.
A rich amatueur should not _necessarily_ be indulged, unless perhaps
the instruments in question will actually be played by artists in the patrons
employ.

Would that all persons entrusted with repairs had sufficient income to
afford such scrouples :-), once upon a time there were guild regulations
which (in theory) ensured quality and ethical dealings.

Where there is a problem induced by a material shortage (ie, snakewood
fit for bows) common sense suggests that the profesion should explore
alternative substances, even in the face of feared consumer resistance.
Students will welcome cheaper alternative bows, and may grow to like
them, musicians have ever been conservative to change, but change
they have, especially when faced with real improvements.  Trouble is
to uncover those improvements, one must make a serious investment of
time and materials.

History has seen results from contests (navigators clock) as well
as necessity (gut basses thruout the 16th and 17th cen).

Geo Kloppel>   My principal contacts are dealers and musicians, and I
> want to flesh-out my perspective by listening to what collectors and
>conservators have to say about the seemingly random marketplace
>selection process at work here.

As a wanna-be builder hoping to work from historical principles, I
have an obvious sympathy with conservators.

Whatever influence Conservators exert will be made thru education---
the days of the robber baron collectors are fading, only our museums are
capable of preserving whatever is to be preserved, but without the public
support to guarantee adaguate funding the task will prove hopeless.  The
task of preserving musical Ms (and the information within them) is proving
to be a race which is hampered by inadaquate funding, hell, we still dont
have a unified _catalog_, let alone replicas, yet Ms suffer from poor
environmental controls as the catalogers work, thankfully the bookbinders
have better material to use today, but, as bosnia demonstrates, L'homme
arme still vex's.  Given the capabilities of the internet I wouldnt be
too surprised to have RISM and Grove's on line some time inthe next 5
years, hopefully the major indeces of all scholarly fields will become
similarly accesible

--
Dana S. Emery
Smithsonian Institution
Laboratory of Molecular Systematics
MRC-534, MSC A2000
Washington DC 20560

(301) 238-3444     (voice)
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emery@onyx.si.edu  (internet)