University archive Data recording projects

Conservatory Archive Records Leipzig with Additions

People at the Conservatory between 1843 and 1918

The university archive contain historical sources on the student body and faculty of the university since its founding as the ‘Conservatorium der Musik’ in 1843.

The inscription registers, books and certificate drafts in the archive's holdings reveal many interesting facts about the people who worked and studied at the Conservatory in the 19th and early 20th centuries. For example, information on origin, gender and classes attended can be found in the study records. At the same time, the documents can be used to determine relationships between the people mentioned.

Initially, however, researching and using the materials was only possible on the university premises and involved a great deal of effort. In spring 2020, the university's archive and library began work on the CARLA database, which is freely available online.

It provides access to digitised study records from the university's archive and the personal data contained therein. At the same time, the database reflects the lives and work of the approximately 12,800 students and 130 teachers at the Conservatory in the 19th and early 20th centuries.

CARLA can be searched and the source materials from the university archive accessed via a web-based user interface. Transcriptions of the documents can be viewed on Wikisource, where available. More information about the transcription project can be found here.

The information contained in the study documents about students and teachers is recorded according to fixed standards, and relationships between individuals are mapped by linking the data.

The database contains, among other things, information on

• the place of origin and birth,
• the dates of birth and death, and
• the period of study or teaching

of the individuals. It also shows which subjects the individual students took and which teachers taught them.