Kira Warner Introduction to Archives Spring 2013 May 3, 2013 Annotated Bibliography: Archives of Recorded Sound Hagen, C. B. (1972).

The Struggle of Sound Archives in the United States. Library Trends, 21(1), 29-52. An overview of the hardships that face sound archives is at the heart of Hagens article. Though a bit dated, many of the issues are pertinent to todays archives. Hagen shares that sound recordings are last on the list of priorities for collection development and preservation. The librarian has become too devoted to print media as the exclusive concentration. Hagen argues, the librarian of today and tomorrow must be entrusted by society with the task of acquiring, preserving, and making available knowledge in any permanent and usable medium (p. 30). One reason for this neglect of recorded media is that library schools lack proper coursework in operating these types of collections. A pervasive idea throughout the paper is the irregular way in which sound archives are developed in the country. To highlight this point, Hagen provides samples and descriptions of several archives, their stories, and current situations. Descriptions of the National Voice Library, Standford University Archive of Recorded Sound, John Edwards Memorial Foundation, Western Sound Archive, University of Washington Phonoarchive, Lawrence Lipton Archive, The Operatic Archive at University of California at Santa Barbara, and The Latin American Music Center of Indiana University are included. Following the examples, a discussion of the future of sound archives is provided, including a discourse on copyright and how it has been used as an excuse for the neglect of many precious materials. Despite the age of the article, Hagen could not be more on target in our current setting as he explains, by ignoring the new media and the techniques necessary to handle them, librarians are, perhaps unconsciously, causing immense damage to our cultural heritage (p. 49). Day, T. (1988). The National Sound Archive. The Musical Times, 129(1745), 340-343. Timothy Day, a curator at the National Sound Archive in London, describes the primary features and functions of his associated institution and provides philosophical analysis on the impact of recorded music on the performance world. The National Sound Archive, a department of the British Library and formerly named the British Institute of Recorded Sound, was set up to establish a fully comprehensive collection of recordings, despite the fact that there is no legal requirement that records be deposited to the library. Some of the highlighted holdings within the institution include commercial discs, rare recordings from obscure labels, releases of historical value, BBC broadcast music, privately made recordings, record company catalogues, and discographies. In the final section of the article, Day observes that little work on recordings [has] been undertaken by musicians and scholars (p. 342). One explanation is that university libraries typically

do not house a comprehensive sound recording collection since these records are so difficult to catalogue. Additionally, Day includes thoughts about how sound recordings have challenge[d] cherished illusions about the timelessness of great art (p. 342). Despite this, he establishes that neglecting the importance of this media is unwise. Though some of his commentary is less true today than when the article was written, it still provides an interesting framework for the importance of sound recordings in the music world as well as scholarly research. Paton, C. A. (1990). Whispers in the stacks: The problem of sound recordings in the archives. The American Archivist, 53, 274-280. Literature regarding recorded sound in the archives is sparse, (at least at the time this article was published), yet it can still be construed as relevant even today. Paton, an archivist of the Popular Music Collection at Georgia State University, offers several explanations for this neglect. The first reason given is the chasm between archivists who specialize in paper records and those who specialize in sound records. This is very closely related to the points mentioned in the Hagen article. Another reason is the time involved in appraising and preserving collections. Paton states that records cannot be scanned or skimmed quickly and that all require access to appropriate playback equipment (p. 276). These records also require a listening room for patrons to be able to use them. One of the biggest points that Paton makes is the limited amount of time that an archivist has to attend to the records, since the life span is markedly shorter than good paper (p. 276). Space also poses an issue, as many recorded sound mediums do not fit in standard shelving units. Despite these problems, Paton recommends that proper training be provided and that sound archivists become well read on articles that do exist. Several sources for such articles are listed, and even though new technology has come into play since the article was written, an archivist can always use these for information regarding retrospective technology. In addition, Paton provides the names for organizations that are developing standards and focusing on the science of recorded sound. A useful checklist of questions to run through when determining appraisal value of a record is provided near the end of the article. Paton, C. A. (1998). Preservation re-recording of audio recordings in archives: Problems, priorities, technologies, and recommendations. The American Archivist, 61, 188-219. Patons article acts as a practical guide for embarking upon an audio re-recording project and the various concerns necessary when doing so. The information provided is based on projects conducted by the Georgia State University archives. It opens with a thorough explanation of the most at-risk formats for audio. These include grooved phonodiscs, (particularly acetate discs), reel-to-reel magnetic tape, and audiocassettes. In addition to describing materials used to produce these formats, signs of deterioration, distinguishing features, and photos are included. The size, recording speed, and format are important for determining the playback time and are discussed in great detail. A useful chart

appears (p. 200) giving the playback time for various lengths of magnetic tape. Practical advice regarding how to determine which recordings merit re-recording and when the process should begin is included. Paton follows with a theoretical discussion about how audio recording works and what preservation re-recording actually is so that archivists may be careful to observe the best practices in doing so. Paton concludes by reiterating the complexity of such projects and the amount of time and money involved in doing so, similar to his other article, Whispers in the Stacks (1990). Included at the end is an appendix that includes a list of sources for audio supplies, including their name, address, phone number, and what they produce. Brylawski, S. (2002). Preservation of digitally recorded sound. In Council on Library and Information Resources & Library of Congress, Building a national strategy for digital preservation: Issues in digital media archiving (52-66). Washington DC: Council on Library and Information Resources and Library of Congress. As part of a larger work covering many forms of digital media, this chapter focuses specifically on sound recordings. Brylawski uncovers several issues that are integral to the field of sound preservation, specifically deciding on which and how much to select for the library or archive. Complicating matters in this area are copyright issues. This can often have multiple layers in sound recordings, as the creators, issuing record label, creator of the underlying work and even trade union members sometimes retain rights. Most complicated of all are unpublished recordings. Bryslawski covers some important issues regarding the reissuing of recordings onto new formats. The first is that because most countries outside of the US have shorter copyright protection spans, many of the most comprehensive collections exist elsewhere or exist as illegal imports. The second is the preservation issues these create. One of the most overwhelming issues facing sound archives is the mass quantity of recordings made available through the World Wide Web, including radio broadcasts and streamed audio. A more recent and in-depth discussion of these recordings are included in The state of recorded sound preservation in the United States (2010), also co-written by Brylawski. Because of the higher availability of music on the web, both legally and illegally, record industries have responded with strict ways of preventing pirating. Some of these have impacted archives in preventing playback or legal duplication for the purposes of preservation. Also included in the article are preservation format issues and metadata. The author offers the suggestion to alleviate unnecessary financial burden, the idea of collaboration between archives and record companies. This will allow more comprehensive collections and devotion to more of the unpublished works.

Ranft, R. (2004). Natural sound archives: past, present and future. Annals of the Brazilian Academy of Sciences, 76(2), 455-465 Recordings of nature and animal sounds are gradually becoming more of an integral part of sound archives. Ranft gives a brief description of the history of recording animal sounds, beginning in 1889, with a more systematic approach beginning in the 1950s. The principles of a sound archive are outlined and include items such as vision and planning, support of an institution, technical expertise, preservation policies, standardization of documentation, adherence to copyright, and access to collections. The primary uses of natural sound archives are for science, nature conservation, education and entertainment (p. 456). Ranft uses the British Library Sound Archive as a model to describe preservation and collection policies. The British Library Sound Archive is one of the largest sound archives, and includes a collection of 140,000 bioacoustic recordings. Most of the recordings are donations, and the library makes playback copies of each track. Preservation practices are included. Two tables are provided: the first includes a list of the major natural sound archives, the year established and the number of recordings; the second provides the major items to include in documentation of recordings. Following the main article is an appendix including several descriptions of Latin American natural sound archives. The inclusion of this information is puzzling and somewhat remotely related to the content preceding it. The descriptions include animal recordings in Mexico, the Mexican Bird Sound Library, the Naco de Sonidos Animales in Columbia, and the Arquivo Sonoro Neotropical in Brazil. Vallier, J. (2010). Sound archiving close to home: Why community partnerships matter. Notes, 67(1), 39-49. To counter the threats that sound archives face, author John Vallier poses the solution of developing partnerships within the community. He begins the article by arguing that archives are by no means impartial and that there are often a lot of politics behind the holdings and access to those holdings. Ethnomusicology is no stranger to this impartiality. Sprouting out of this issue, Vallier describes the problem of archival ennui or dissatisfaction, both from the researcher and the supporting institution. In his own experience working at the Ethnomusicology Archive at UCLA, Vallier noticed that collections were not being used and that students and faculty instead had a need for items that the archive simply did not have. In addition, new collections were not being deposited regularly. To counter this problem and to promote usage of the archive, he joined forces with UCLA in LA, an initiative that promotes engaged scholarship, partnering UCLA with the community to develop knowledge from research and teaching that improves the quality of life in Los Angeles (p. 44). Through this partnership, Vallier developed AFAMILA (Archiving Filipino American Music in Los Angeles) and GALA (Gospel Archiving in Los Angeles). These two programs actively engaged students and community members in recording performances of their respective cultures and to deposit them into the archives collection, as well as provide copies to performers. Similar projects were initiated when Vallier left UCLA for the University of Washington. Through these experiences, he found that archival ennui dissipated, and there was a

greater feeling of joint ownership (p. 47) that benefited the archives, its supporting institution, and the community. This article provides a unique solution to the common problems sound archives face. Bamberger, R., & Brylawski, S. (2010). The state of recorded sound preservation in the United States: A national legacy at risk in the digital age. Washington DC: Council on Library and Information Resources and Library of Congress. This study, conducted by Rob Bamberger and Sam Brylawski on behalf of the National Recording Preservation Board, was written in compliance with directives of the National Recording Preservation Act of 2000. It is the first comprehensive, national-level study of the state of sound preservation (p. vi) in the United States. This is a lengthy study: the authors even admit that a close, cover-to-cover reading is not a casual undertaking (p. 8). It is divided into four chapters, with an introduction and summary preceding it. The first chapter, titled Sound Recording Collections: An Overview of Preservation and Public Access in the Twenty-first Century, begins by addressing the issue of understanding (or perhaps misunderstanding) the scope of recorded sound in existence. In addition to this issue, the amount of recordings that have been lost through the years and continue to be lost is included. The obsolescence of technology becomes an issue for many institutions. A major portion of the chapter covers radio broadcasts, including commercial radio, noncommercial radio, local radio, and private radio. An example from WWOZ Radio in New Orleans is used to illustrate the preservation efforts of the station in conjunction with the Library of Congress and concludes that best practices can be tailored to suite the size and capabilities of the archive. Chapter 2, Technical Issues in Digital Audio Preservation dovetails this same line of thought with a more technical explanation of metadata issues, formats, collaboration efforts, and storage concerns. Despite the fact that many best practices have yet to be agreed upon, the authors share seven points in which there has been agreement (p. 69). Chapter 3 focuses on preservation education and is titled Development of Curricula in Recorded Sound Preservation and Archives Management. Mirroring Hagens (1972) article, Bamberger & Brylawski share that one of the major issues discussed is the lack of education programs that specialize in training individuals on sound recordings and preservation. It is astonishing this is still true, considering this article was written 38 years after Hagens. Knowledge and technical skills required of audio preservationists are outlined in this section. The final chapter, Preservation, Access and Copyright: A Tangled Web tackles the complex problem of sound recordings and copyright law. The report is a very detailed glimpse into the current state of sound recordings and issues that need to be addressed for the future of their preservation. Following the report are several appendices including studies, reports, and other commentaries by various contributors.