We’re thrilled to announce that musicians at any skill level, from those just plucking their first notes to virtuosos, will now be able to borrow the tools of the craft from the Parkway Central Library Music Department.  

Starting September 26, the Musical Instrument Collection (MIC) launches. You’ll be able to check out six fretted string instruments in our pilot program: an electric guitar, electric bass, acoustic-electric guitar, mandolin, banjo, and ukulele. Each instrument has a kit that includes a gig bag, tuner, strap, and small amps and cables for the electrics. You’ll even get a few repurposed Free Library card guitar picks to keep.  

We know Philadelphia’s one of the most passionate cities of music on Earth (Saturn too), and studies show playing a musical instrument can improve mood, school performance, and quality of life. Having to buy an instrument is just one hurdle toward learning to play, joining the city’s music ranks, and engaging with our booming cultural community. This is where libraries—institutions boasting equal access to all, regardless of whether one can pay money—come in.
 

The Band Audition

Can I check out an instrument?
If you’re a Free Library cardholder in good standing—you can have some fines but your account can't be blocked—you can take home an instrument after September 26. In the interest of expanding access to all, the MIC is open to borrowers under 18, provided a parent or guardian is present and the patron in good standing.

How do I do it?
The instruments are being added to the Library’s catalog as we speak, and once they are, you may reserve by contacting the address listed on the catalog record. Once we’ve written to say your instrument is ready, visit the Music Department and sign a Lending Agreement with a music librarian. To return the instrument, simply walk it back into the Music Department. A librarian will have you fill out a survey about your time with the instrument so we can gauge success on this pilot program.

Can I place a hold in the catalog?
Like other treasures in special collections in the Music Department, such as the Fleisher Collection of Orchestral Music and the Chamber Music collection, one can’t place a hold on these resources in the catalog.

How long are loans? Can we renew? And can we check out multiple instruments?
Loans are for a standard three weeks. Since this is pilot program, we want to make sure everyone gets a chance to use these resources, so there will be no renewals and a one-at-a-time instrument limit, at least in this initial phase.

Where will it live?
The collection will, for now, be housed in the Parkway Central Music Department, which offers access to world-class music resources and expert music librarians who can steer any level of musician toward songbooks, recordings, and databases. 

What’s in the collection?
This first round of instruments will be fretted strings: a mandolin, banjo, ukulele, electric bass, electric guitar, and acoustic electric guitar. Each instrument has a kit that comes with a gig bag to carry it in, a tuner, strap, and some picks recycled from Free Library cards to keep (while supplies last). The three electric guitars come with small practice amps musicians can choose to take.

How do I tell folks about the MIC?
We’d love to hear if you engaged with the Philadelphia cultural community around you—whether you practiced or read through music with friends, played in a public park or in a West Philly basement, or in any venue in our city. You’re welcome to post about your experience using the hashtag #FLPMIC.

Are you taking donations?
Yes! We’d love to expand the collection past fretted strings to include other instrument families, not to mention adding student-scale and left-handed instruments to make the collection as accessible as possible. If you’d like to help us along and have an instrument or instrument accessory in good condition you’d like to donate—an acoustic guitar sitting in your attic or a working guitar pedal you no longer use—thanks for thinking of us! You can use use the form below.  

Instrument Donation to the Free Library of Philadelphia's MIC
 

Opening Ouvertures
Pop-up Concert Featuring the Citywide Specials
Sunday September 25,3:00 p.m.

Join us the day before lending begins for a unique musical moment in the library. In a nod to the unique bluegrass instrumentation of the first round of instruments, Philly’s own Citywide Specials will be the very first ‘borrowers’ and will play a free pop-up concert in the Parkway Central Library’s Main Lobby.

Before the Citywide Specials perform, you can enjoy a full music matineé Sunday and catch the dancers of Hip Hop Fundamentals at 2:00 p.m. in the Montgomery Auditorium as part of Sundays on Stage!
 

Drop-in Jam Sessions and Workshops
Monday September 26, 10:00 a.m.–12:00 p.m.

The next day, music librarians and musical city workers will kick off instrument lending on a high note—come learn about the program and jam on the collection’s instruments before they’re checked out for loan. Musicians from across the Free Library will take on on beginner's versions of classic songs and standards from the Music Department’s conservatory-quality collection.  (The Free Library does hold a public performance license to avoid the risk of ASCAP making it rain copyright notices.)

Come learn about the MIC and jam on the first round of instruments before they’re checked out for loan across the city later that day—you may even meet a future band member.
 

Library for Musicians
Beginning musicians checking out an instrument for the first time have easy access to the free, conservatory-quality Music Department at the Parkway Central Library, which exists to serve Philadelphia's communities of musicians, music students, music fans, music listeners, and dancers. If you’re learning an instrument, your best bet is to speak with one of the expert Music Librarians in the Music Department to select the best resources for your skill level. We can also walk you through the Library’s catalog and electronic resources below:
 

Your Free Library is expanding access (and axes) with the new Musical Instrument Collection. For more information on the MIC, visit freelibrary.org, or contact a music librarian at 215-686-5316 or erefmus@freelibrary.org.