The New York Philharmonic Orchestra has launched the first phase of an ongoing digital archive project. The International Era 1943–1970 is the first tranche of the orchestra’s extensive archives to go online, and thousands of documents are now available to view. These include conducting scores marked by Leonard Bernstein, André Kostelanetz and Dimitri Mitropoulos; more than 3,200 printed programmes; and business records, including Bernstein’s programming proposals and correspondence. There is also extensive video and audio content available.

Files of interest include Bernstein’s annotations, made in crayon, on the score of Barber’s Cello Concerto and the fallout from a telegram sent to chairman Carlos Moseley in the late 60s urging him to engage a ‘very fine young black violinist’ named Earl Alexander as a measure to ‘refute charges of [racial] discrimination’ at the orchestra.

The orchestra has announced that 1.3 million pages will be online by 2012.

Subsequent digitisation projects include The Founding Era, 1842–1908; The Modern Era, 1909–1943; and nearly 7,000 hours of video and audio material.

Delve into the archives at http://archives.nyphil.org

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