Special Collections at the Wilson Music Library: Simon Collier Collection

“The prime academic interest of Simon Collier, who has died aged 64, was Chilean political history, and he co-edited the groundbreaking Cambridge Encyclopaedia Of Latin America And The Caribbean (1985). Yet it is for his passion for Argentinian tango, and his The Life, The Music And Times Of Carlos Gardel (1986), and his biography of composer Astor Piazzolla (2000) that he will be best remembered”—The Guardian

Simon Collier donated over a thousand books, CDs, LPs and cassettes, about two-thirds of which are tango related, to the Music Library.  Collier also donated more than twelve hundred non-music-related titles to Heard Libraries, principally on Latin American studies.

• Size of the collection – 734 compact discs, 126 LPs, 199 books, 5 videotapes and a not-yet-inventoried collection of cassettes.
• Strengths of the Collection: Very extensive collection of tango-related recordings and books ranging from the 1950s to 2002.
• Diversity – In addition to tango, Collier donated an impressive collection of art/classical and Latin American music recordings.  Collier was also a fan of the Kronos Quartet, Violetta Parra, Benjamin Britten, Patsy Cline, Duke Ellington, Victor Jara and Albert Roussel.  Many non-tango-related books were also donated.
• How Do I Access the Collection? Almost all of the items from the Collier collection check out normally.  To find Collier collection materials used the search phrase “from the Simon Collier Collection” in Library Catalog or Library Catalog.