| 1968 |
David Daniels begins research for Orchestral Music, with assistance of two grants
from Rockefeller Foundation, via Knox College. |
| 1972 |
Orchestral Music, 1st edition (with 2600 entries), published by Scarecrow Press. |
| 1981 |
Marshall Burlingame begins research on the database that will become the Orchestra
Library Information Service (OLIS), basing it on direct examination of orchestral
parts (as opposed to scores) and consultations with orchestral percussionists on
requirements (players and equipment). |
| 1982 |
Orchestral Music, 2nd edition, with 3571 entries, is published.
At ASOL annual spring conference in Washington DC, Burlingame and Daniels become acquainted. |
| 1983 |
Marshall Burlingame becomes Principal Librarian of the Boston Symphony. ASOL's
Donald Thulean works on creating the instrumental symbology for OLIS.
Major Orchestra Librarians' Association (MOLA) comes into existence in Philadelphia.
It will gradually grow from an initial 25 member-orchestras to over 200 institutions worldwide.
MOLA members become very active in the development of OLIS and later OPAS, contributing errata and new information.
James Callahan, Personnel Manager of the San Francisco Symphony, begins development of a
computer-developed repertoire system. Symphony Orchestra Library Information (SOLI) is
intended for desktop computers as well as multi-user/network operating systems. Callahan
manually enters information from Daniels' Orchestral Music (2nd edition).
A second generation, dubbed "Super SOLI," includes the ability to track artists and to
enter artists in concert programs. About 20 orchestras, from the New York Philharmonic to
The Academy of St. Martin in the Fields, purchase SOLI.
|
| 1986 |
OLIS is published by ASOL (ca. 2400 entries on 5 x 8 cards). |
| 1987 |
ASOL purchases SOLI from Callahan, modifies it to accommodate OLIS, and
merges the two databases to create 4100 entries.
|
| 1989 |
ASOL begins using OLIS software to capture information on additional
works from MOLA annual repertoire reports and premières listings. These works,
ultimately amounting to another 7000 items, do not have complete information.
These 7000, in various states of completeness, are not added to the basic OLIS database of 4100.
|
| 1990s |
Creation of DOS version of the Orchestra Planning and Administration
System (OPAS) by Hubert Woelbitsch (Woelbitsch & Partner, KG) in association
with ASOL and Fine Arts Management (FAM). OPAS is designed to incorporate the
OLIS database, or whatever database the user may have previously created. The
work is carried out according to MOLA standards and practices.
|
| 1996 |
Orchestral Music, 3rd edition is published (4236 entries) |
| 1997 |
Large orchestras begin to adopt OPAS, using their own databases.
The OLIS software gradually dies out by attrition. As orchestras without
their own databases begin to purchase OPAS, FAM arranges to sell them the
OLIS database as content for their OPAS systems. |
| 2001 |
Kazue McGregor, then President of MOLA, proposes that Daniels merge his database with that of OLIS. |
| 2003 |
Scarecrow Press (publisher of Orchestral Music) comes aboard. The result is to be a merged database that will:
(a) be available to users of OPAS,
(b) form the basis for the 4th edition of Orchestral Music, and
(c) be placed on a website accessible by subscription.
In June, Fine Arts Management parts company with the software portion of its business. OPAS will be sold, supported and developed in North America by a new company, Fine Arts Software (FAS).
|
| 2004 |
Agreements are negotiated among the various parties (FAS, ASOL, Scarecrow
Press, Daniels). FAS converts the OLIS database to FileMaker Pro, and
Daniels begins the lengthy project of merging the two databases. |
| 2005 |
Orchestral Music, 4th edition published in October (ca 6400 entries).
The database is made available by FAS as an add-on for users of OPAS. |
| 2006 |
Web application is beta-tested. A prototype is demonstrated at an ASOL conference in June.
Tom Gaitens of FAS is brought into the web application development process.
|
| 2007 |
First update of about 500 changes sent to FAS, where it is processed for OPAS and the web application.
Thrust of the web application is radically changed: rather than emulating OPAS, the decision is made to
emulate the book. A whole new application is created from scratch.
|
| 2008 |
Orchestral Music Online makes its debut. |
