Last night, I walked into my favorite Half-Price Books on Capitol Hill in Seattle and strolled over to the music section. Usually it is filled with beginner anthologies and pop music and I walk away disappointed. To my disbelief, I saw a 4 inch wide area of distinctive blue books. "No, can't be Henles!" It was. I immediately plopped down onto the floor and excitedly started going through them. I bought most of them, only leaving behind music I already had. This is what I got, all in new or almost new condition:

All for $7.99 each US
Beethoven Egmont transcription opus 84
Beethoven Piano Concerto #4
Mozart Piano concerto #23
Mozart Piano Concerto #21
Mozart Klavierstucke Aushwahl
Liszt Annees 3rd year
Liszt Vallee d’Obermann
Liszt Zwei Legenden
Book of mixed sonatas: CPE Bach, Clementi, Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven
Brahms Variations Op 9, 21, 24 35. 18, 23
Bizet Jeux d’enfants 4 hands

And for $2.99 US
Mozart Adagio B minor K540
Mozart A minor rondo
Mozart Zwolf Variationen

My husband kept offering to carry the large stack of scores but I was so excited I refused to give them up and just held them tighter to my chest. When we got to the car I whooped! I figured you guys would understand my glee!

Sweet!

Wow!

Yikes! Excellent!

We don't actually have many used books stores here, and those we do stock some awfully old, bad-treated and non music books... so...

Excellent!

What a wonderful find! I chuckled out loud, reading this, almost as though I had found the trove myself!

Regards,

That's a nice haul, Deborah. And a great story too!

Awesome! We don't have many used bookstores in my area.

Yahoo! Definitely a walking-on-sunshine moment!

Oh I do understand.
I buy music from 2nd-hand book shops, garage sales, and the regular book/music/CD sales run by one of the classical music radio stations in Sydney. These radio station sales are brilliant, with some really good quality stuff. Sometimes there's nothing there I want, but at other times I have those "I can't believe this is here - my life is complete" moments.

I couldn't help wondering who would sell such a treasure trove to a used bookstore. The cashier said they often get libraries from people who have died. It got me thinking about the destiny of my own music. I'm very sentimental about my scores, especially the ones I have worked hard on. If I don't have a grandchild who plays piano to leave it to, I might ask that it go to a used bookstore where it might give someone else as much as delight as it gave me...or maybe I'll ask to be cremated with some of my favorites.

I've gotten some of my best deals on ebay. Not new individual books but used lots, usually someone clearing away after a deceased relative or a student getting rid of duplicates. Bookfinder also sometimes has good deals on Henles, etc.

I spent two hours ransacking my house yesterday morning trying to find my Paderewski edition of Chopin's Preludes. I never did find that one but did find a battered ebay Henle copy that I don't ever remember buying. It's nice to have your own little music hoard.

I'm planning to bequeath some of my more important scores to members of the local conservatory [1], with the proviso that they may dispose of them as they wish if they do not want/need them.

[1] I'm thinking, for example, that the voice department (whose members I particularly admire) could always welcome scores of the complete operas of Verdi and Puccini, along with numerous scores of operas of Bellini, Mozart, Donizetti and others.

Regards,

Morbid though the subject may be, it is one I've given thought to as well, since my score library is quite large and very close to my heart. Some scores are tagged for specific friends, but the bulk will be divided between a few "organisations" of my choosing.

I think I'm younger than most of you in this thread, so the thought has never occurred to me until now...

But I have gotten some REALLY old scores from various friends, since they know my love for music, for scores, and for notation (as a composer). In addition to everyone else, though, there's one bit of myself that needs further thinking: my manuscripts! I still compose the old fashioned yat, with pencil and manuscript, so there's a lot of drafts, papers, scores, manuscript pages, etc lying around... In fact almost too many, some dated to 20 years ago perhaps.

I can't help but wonder if I should do something to preserve these. I mean I'm no Beethoven, but IF Beethoven did think about this then we could have a treasure trove of his stuff now... And we don't...

I check out the pianos on a daily basis. What fun. I'm on my second now and about to buy a third (Bechstein) next week. It's a habit I gotta stop though!

Both my voice teacher and piano teacher have their scores marked with the student's name who is to receive the book after their death. It's a bit creepy when I flip over a book at my lesson and my name is on the back..

Wow!

Great haul!

I have a ton of 20th century scores, many probably out of print or hard to find, as well as composers manuscripts. Right now I'm thinking of donating them to my alma mater, if they'll have them.

And the piano! That's a hard one. Maybe it would pay my funeral expenses, at least...

Of course I know exactly where that store is, since it is not far from where I live.

Great catch Deborah, I am so happy for you!

I think that when people give away one single book it is because they are going to buy a better edition. When you find a whole stack of good books (this has happened to me too) it is either because someone has died and their family are not interested in music or someone has given up playing.
At any rate those discoveries are precious. They really make your day. I feel like visiting some second-hand shops soon.

Does anyone know of second-hand shops in NYC where one might find good copies of music? The Strand comes to mind, but I've never thought of looking for music there.

Nice haul! I think I should start perusing some of the stores around here.

I just had a similar experience at a "vintage" store recently. I saw a stack of sheet music with a sign on it marked "$25." I asked about it and learned that it was $25 for the whole stack, which turned out to quite a bit larger than I had initially thought. I scooped up the whole 15" or so pile (two almost handles ripping shopping bags full) and sorted out my haul when I got home.

All told it was about half Schirmer editions, including the first two books of the "Brahms Complete Works for piano", a complete cycle of Beethoven Symphony transcriptions, a Mendelssohn and a Liszt collection.

I also got a set of 35 Scarlatti sonatas. About 8 Peters editions of Mozart Piano concertos (6, 12, 16, 17, 20, 21,23, and 24). Cortot's "Rational Principles of Piano Technique" and both books of his Chopin Etudes. Two Haydn Concertos, two sets of Piano four hands works by Mozart and Brahms. A set of Bach Chorales. A book of Tcherpnin works. Prokofiev "Visions Fugitives" More that I can't remember right now.

Despite about half of this being redundant in my collection, I think I made out pretty well.

Newsflash for the Seattleites...I just (as in seconds ago) read that the Capitol Hill Half Price will be closing this June. I'd provide the link, but I read it on The Stranger's blog and, well, I couldn't get the link to hide some of the other things that appear on there.

The only music I've ever found there have been Schirmers. Maybe I'll check out the selection before they close.

Wow! It's a great feeling isn't it? I actually like having several different editions of pieces I am working. There is so much editing, it's interesting to compare.

At quodlibet: oh no! First, our favorite Greek Restaurant in Fremont has closed (Costa's Opa)now this.

For those who live in NYC I highly recommend the St. Agnes library on around 81st and Amsterdam for used books about music(not scores). Many are in virtually perfect condition and most cost $2 with a maximum being around $5. They usually have a selection of around at least 500. The book sales are every two weeks.

great score!! Reminds me of an antique store find about 20 years ago. Henle editions of the Mozart Sonatas, Beethoven Violin Sonatas, Chopin, Bach, misc editions of Scarlatti,... Most were brand new stock from a defunct Ottawa music store. I always dream about finding another treasure load.

Good discussion about what happens to our libraries when we're no longer here. Hopefully some will go to my descendants, but I expect that some will end up going to local scholarship funds or teachers to distribute to deserving students. It's the best thing I can think of that will help others.

I suppose all that music is in the public domain and free to download from the internet, but somehow there's nothing quite like having the sheet music to learn from.

Am I the only person in the world who is completely incapable of learning a score from a screen?

This week I have printed off, "O Mio Babbino Caro", as I just cannot remember it from a screen, though God knows, it is short enough, and am doing much better with the printed copy.

I don't care what happens to it all when I die, except my hard won collection of The Beach Boys sheet music compiled over four decades and more, (yes, a little down-market I know, but I love virtually everything you can play on a piano, even disco!) including "Pet Sounds", "The Beach Boys Love You", and "Fifteen Big Ones".

I'm taking that lot with me!

Congratulaions on the music you found, a superb bargain, I take it you'll be deserting us for a long time now?

I much prefer to own my own bound scores. The quality of the printing, binding, thick pages and minimal editing of Henle can't be beat. I download scores from the internet only for comparision or if I'm waiting for my music order to arrive in the mail.

You are not alone!


Ha! Ha! Probably not. I perused the new stuff but I'm sticking with my current repertoire challenges for now!