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The Athenaeum\u2019s jazz LP collection includes more than 800 records old and new. (Athenaeum Music & Arts Library)<\/p>\nFor 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\u2019s Joan & Irwin Jacobs Music Room and the Scripps Research Auditorium.<\/p>\n
Though its Jazz Fall Series of concerts returned Oct. 29, it\u2019s not the Athenaeum\u2019s only jazz-related staple.<\/p>\n
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.<\/p>\n
Librarian Kathi Bower Peterson said the collection, located to the right of the front desk and across from the children\u2019s section, dates to at least the 1950s.<\/p>\n
Since joining the Athenaeum 28 years ago, Peterson has seen vinyl records fade into obscurity and then experience a revival.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen I started, LPs weren\u2019t very popular and CDs were the priority,\u201d Peterson said. \u201cSo we didn\u2019t actually purchase any for a long time. It\u2019s only in the last 10 years that there\u2019s been a resurgence of popularity and people are putting out new LPs.\u201d<\/p>\n
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.<\/p>\n
\u201cWithout exception, there were two LPs that were in the top two \u2026 and that was Miles Davis\u2019 \u2018Kind of Blue\u2019 and \u2018A Love Supreme\u2019 by John Coltrane,\u201d Peterson said. \u201cAnd we have both of those.\u201d<\/p>\n
Other records in the Athenaeum\u2019s database include Charles Mingus\u2019 \u201cMingus Ah Um,\u201d the Dave Brubeck Quartet\u2019s \u201cTime Out\u201d and Chick Corea\u2019s \u201cReturn to Forever.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Athenaeum\u2019s jazz LP collection includes more than 800 records old and new. (Athenaeum Music & Arts Library)<\/p>\n
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.<\/p>\n
The records include Anthony Wilson\u2019s \u201cSongs and Photographs\u201d 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\u2019s Jazz Fall Series on Nov. 9 at Scripps Research Auditorium.<\/p>\n
The mix of new and old appeals to a range of listeners, but Peterson is especially interested in the youth movement around physical media.<\/p>\n