Marion, it sounds to me like he is going to do whatever he himself wants to do, without regard for feasibility... my first reaction, reading this, was really quite wrong of me, but it was, "Steal the box now!!!"

As I continued to think about this, though, it reminded me of a dear friend. His legacy was, in part, his stories. I was privileged to have a chance to copy-edit them for him. Now he's gone and his widow and I are discussing what to do with them. She always wanted to do more with them than dear Jack did. In his case, the blind spot was that no one else WOULD want them, they'd be just for family.... but Joan and I always agreed that they should be available for others-- publish!! Jack knew this and simply left them to her.

So what I think may be a practical solution is for you to look around for someone he can leave them to, who will handle them properly... like you describe towards the end of your post? This way you could encourage him to do what he himself wants to do with them now, while protecting the whole body of work for others to enjoy later. For instance, the lack of titles... a music editor or conservator could group these and title the groupings, see? To make them more attractively accessible?

And I would look at local sources for the person or organization, first, to work with on this... and branch out from there to seek someone whose field of study is the area you are in.

Another example-- our landlord, a "simple dairy farmer..." His legacy was a full, photographic memory of The Battle of the Bulge, from the ground, with complete understanding of the military strategies he was caught up in. So before he died, Walter was prevailed upon by friends he trusted, who just happened to work with the county historical society, to sit down and tell the whole thing on video. Just Walter, a map, and a pointer, with his story told in complete statistical detail from memory, personal anecdotes woven in!!!

Wlater died. We have a copy of that video. Now I wish I had one of your teacher just playing through his body of work. Of scourse it would be a series. But from it... the whole project could unfold into print, see?

Or... steal the box NOW!! Scan all that is in it, then give it back! (Mudcat conspiracy, scanners all over the world humming... no, that's the movie The Firm I'm thinking of....)

~S~