L'OUTREACH AU CNSMDP (Conservatoire national supérieur de musique et danse de Paris).

The Mediatheque Hector Berlioz has a strong involvement with outreach activities around the world. The staff work within the framework of the conservatoire's external affairs department, welcoming visitors as requested, donating scores and books for missions organised by this service and organising meetings, disseminating information, etc. The external affairs department was created in 1992, with numerous goals and activities, including cooperation with other institutions, joint projects for creation and dissemination of musical works, exchange of faculty members and students, study trips and missions of expertise, sharing of knowledge and dissemination of our heritage and knowledge of other musical heritages. There are exchanges with different European countries, the USA, Japan, but also with less privileged countries. In addition to library-based outreach, projects include support for masterclasses, curriculum development, and technical and audio-visual initiatives. Partner countries include Kazakhstan, China, Georgia, Cameroon, Lithuania, and Vietnam. A recent initiative in Palestine is the plan to open music schools for Palestinian children in refugee camps. There are many positive aspects to these activities, including the sharing of cultural heritage and the dissemination of musical works. For the library, the programmes enable the establishment of contacts and development of the collections. Some projects do not develop, for various reasons, but many are very successful. The needs are real and urgent, and it is not always possible to wait for perfect conditions before making donations. In the future, the Mediatheque Hector Berlioz would like to develop real partnerships with a variety of institutions, and ensure the long life of at least some projects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]