Back in 2020, a large scanning project was carried out involving scores of composers persecuted during the Second World War. A tripartite cooperation was initiated by the Leo Smit Foundation (knowledge center for music during the WWII), and also included the Dutch Music Institute (NMI) where thousands of manuscripts are preserved, as well as Donemus Publishing. In total 939 compositions and over 40,000 pages were scanned and made available at the Donemus Webshop. These manuscripts present a valuable source for academic researchers and general public alike: all those interested in artistic practices during and after WWII but also those with an interest in a particular composer or genre. All scores are available for direct download in Donemus Webshop, within a separate catalogue entitled Forbidden Music Regained.
The next phase of the project followed in autumn 2020 when prompted by the Corona crisis, Buma/Stemra and the Ministry of Education, Culture and Science (OC&W) announced the Music Investment Fund. The objective of the Fund was to strengthen the music sector by making work grants available to composers, lyricists and music publishers. The application submitted by Donemus, in collaboration with the Leo Smit Stichting, was assessed positively.
This phase of the project is aimed at the publication of selected works from the Forbidden Music Regained catalogue. With the help of this grant, Donemus has eight months to prepare a large number of these compositions for publication. A team of seven copyists, two proofreaders and one editor are involved in this task. Artistic director of the Leo Smit Foundation, Eleonore Pameijer, makes the selection and provides information about the composers. Lourens Stuifbergen is correcting all scores and writes all prefaces. The project is managed by Aleksandra Markovic.
The first 20 titles will soon be published and made available.
Read more on the website of Buma/Stemra
More about Forbidden Music Regained…
Composers in the crosshairs of our attention