Archiving
We have had many years' experience of archiving analogue audio and visual
material, working with major collections as well as those collections with only
a handful of tapes. We are approved contractors for the British Library Sound
Archive
sounds.bl.uk/ and have digitised thousands of items for them from
many different formats.
In 2003 we started working with the
Ambleside Oral History Group and transferred all their original analogue
interviews onto CD. You can access their archive at
www.aohg.org.uk
. This is a very varied collection of oral history sound
recordings with topics covered ranging from lacemaking to mountain
rescue, and with many well known people both currently and historically
associated with the area and the spectacular scenery of the Lake
District, there is plenty to choose from. This project grew to also
encompass the Lorton and Derwent Fells Local History Society's tapes
which include some very moving interviews about the Foot and Mouth
outbreak in 2001.
As part of our work with AOHG, we also provided a masterclass in
Ambleside to start them in a new era of recording, using digital
recording equipment to replace analogue working. Digital recording has
enabled them to be self-sufficient, going from original field recordings
all the way to producing locally accessible listening copies and being
able to select extracts from recordings to be available on their
website. |
We started a new project in 2005
with the Somerset Rural Life Museum in Glastonbury, a museum run by
Somerset County Council. We digitised their entire analogue oral history
collection, "Somerset Voices", and this can now be accessed at
www.somersetvoices.org.uk . Not only do the interviews cover
the many varied aspects of rural life, some of which are very particular
to Somerset, but also some specific topics have been extensively
covered. These include cidermaking, basketmaking and other work
with willows, the peat industry and cheesemaking. The Nailsea and
District Local History Society contributed tapes of interviews to this
collection, about the impact of the Second World War on people in the
local villages, and some additional recordings came from the North Curry
Society. There are some films/videos relating to life in the county
which we have also safeguarded. |
We undertook a sizeable collection of 16mm film and videotapes of different formats for Oxfordshire History Centre. It was important to digitise these as soon as possible as there was evidence of the colour dyes fading on the film. Much of the film was in very small pieces which we were able to edit together to produce meaningful sequences. |
In 2019 Oxford Brookes University, in conjunction with the European Blues Association, asked us to digitise material for one of their special collections - the Paul Oliver Archive of African American Music. This consisted of well over 200 tapes of every imaginable length, track layout, speed, etc, etc. Paul Oliver was widely regarded as the most influential blues scholar of the 20th century and this can be heard in this collection. It is also an important social history resource and there are many interviews with musicians and activists. You can find out more about the
Paul Oliver Archive of African American Music here .
We were then asked to digitise material for two food and drink collections:-
The first was for the Michael Jackson ('The Beer Hunter') Collection. This included a selection of videotapes for TV series that he made, and food and drink programmes that he appeared in, both in the USA and Europe. There were also audiocassette tapes of radio programmes, reel to reel tapes for radio adverts, and microcassettes which he used for notetaking whilst doing his research. You can read more about
Michael Jackson here .
The second was a smaller collection for the National Brewing Library and mostly consisted of VHS tapes of promotional and educational material for breweries, pubs, driving organisations, etc. You can read more about the National Brewing Library here .
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For Dean Heritage Centre, situated in the heart of the Forest of Dean at Soudley in Gloucestershire, we transferred audiocassettes and minidiscs, starting with the Elsie Olivey collection, used to record oral histories. These were incorporated into the Foresters' Forest project. There's more information about the project here .
We transferred video material exploring Dennis Potter's local connections and supplied DVDs for playing in the Centre's exhibition gallery.
There was also a transfer of a small collection of 8mm film undertaken, documenting the demolition of Coleford Town Hall in 1968. |
And not far away - a collection of audiocassettes - 'Childhood Memories of Stroud during World War Two' for Museum in the Park. |
There are many smaller projects that we have
undertaken, including work for the British Antarctic Survey, the Royal
College of Music's Museum of Instruments, the Royal Opera House, the
Horniman Museum, University of Southampton, and Lancaster University's Language of Children project.
For further information about our archiving
services, click
here.
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We were engaged as audio consultants for Cumbria County Council on
their "Sellafield Stories" project. British Nuclear Fuels Ltd put up
funding to compile an oral history of the impact of Sellafield on the area.
This includes interviews with people working there, or who have worked there
in the past, as well as the farmers whose land the plant was built on, and even
local campaigners opposed to the nuclear industry. The oral archive is housed at the Whitehaven Record Office, and there was also a travelling
exhibition, a website with audio clips, a book and a DVD or CD. You can learn more about it
here.
The aim of the project was to bring to life the human history behind Sellafield,
and is one of the biggest pieces of work ever carried out by
Cumbria Archive Service. We helped them choose and source the most
appropriate recording equipment, as well as suitable audio editing software
which we installed in a computer we designed specially for them. We
ran training days for the interviewers to enable them to achieve the best
possible sound, including a thorough grounding in microphone technique and the
use of their digital recorders. We then ran further sessions to teach
them best practice in storing their interviews, including ensuring appropriate
back up, and tuition in the use of audio editing software.
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For further information about our consultancy services, click
here.
Links
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