For decades, the Athenaeum Music & Arts Library in La Jolla has assembled a fusion of styles and sounds for jazz programming at locations such as the library’s Joan & Irwin Jacobs Music Room and the Scripps Research Auditorium.
Though its Jazz Fall Series of concerts returned Oct. 29, it’s not the Athenaeum’s only jazz-related staple.
It also has a listening station with a collection of more than 800 jazz LPs. The space is available exclusively to Athenaeum members and features a record player with Bluetooth and CD-playing capabilities.
Librarian Kathi Bower Peterson said the collection, located to the right of the front desk and across from the children’s section, dates to at least the 1950s.
Since joining the Athenaeum 28 years ago, Peterson has seen vinyl records fade into obscurity and then experience a revival.
“When I started, LPs weren’t very popular and CDs were the priority,” Peterson said. “So we didn’t actually purchase any for a long time. It’s only in the last 10 years that there’s been a resurgence of popularity and people are putting out new LPs.”
Months ago, Peterson researched different top-10 lists of iconic jazz records to cross-check the Athenaeum collection with the records held in highest regard.
“Without exception, there were two LPs that were in the top two … and that was Miles Davis’ ‘Kind of Blue’ and ‘A Love Supreme’ by John Coltrane,” Peterson said. “And we have both of those.”
Other records in the Athenaeum’s database include Charles Mingus’ “Mingus Ah Um,” the Dave Brubeck Quartet’s “Time Out” and Chick Corea’s “Return to Forever.”
The Athenaeum’s jazz LP collection includes more than 800 records old and new. (Athenaeum Music & Arts Library)
Some items in the collection are 50 to 60 years old, Peterson said. Others have been purchased in recent years. Some have been dropped off by artists who stop by the Athenaeum or donated.
The records include Anthony Wilson’s “Songs and Photographs” from 2018. Wilson was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Large Jazz Ensemble Performance for his self-titled debut record in 1997, and he performed in this year’s Jazz Fall Series on Nov. 9 at Scripps Research Auditorium.
The mix of new and old appeals to a range of listeners, but Peterson is especially interested in the youth movement around physical media.
The Recording Industry Association of America says 2024 was the 18th consecutive year of growth in EP or LP sales, though the numbers pale in comparison with the heyday of vinyl.
Many attribute the growth to Generation Z’s renewed interest in records. Peterson said she isn’t sure of the reason, but speculated that people tend to go back to older things when they’re tired of new things.
She said she thinks the Athenaeum’s LP collection has “really attracted a lot more young people. Technically, it can only be used for members because we’re a membership library, but a lot of people come in that aren’t members … and they see that. And I’ve seen a lot of people take pictures of it and pose by it and then sit down and listen to it.”
The Athenaeum Music & Arts Library is at 1008 Wall St. For information about memberships, visit ljathenaeum.org/membership. ♦