[Dixielandjazz] : Say It Ain't So!-Digital recordings in danger

[Norman Vickers]

To: DJML and Musicians and Jazzfans lists
From: Norman Vickers, Jazz society of Pensacola

Jazz Journalist Ken Dryden of Chattanooga sends this cautionary note.
Thanks Ken.

I've copied article below.  If you go to the original you'll see file photo
of Duke Ellington, but otherwise text is same.
fnv

-----Original Message-----
From: Ken Dryden [mailto:askkendryden at yahoo.com] 
Sent: Wednesday, September 29, 2010 8:41 AM
To: Norman Vickers
Subject: Say It Ain't So!

This is disheartening news, particularly for those of us who record and
trade 
live jazz broadcasts
and other non-commercial broadcasts.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100929/ap_en_ot/us_endangered_digital_recording
s;_ylt=Ao2sOu7Can917MDCh_tallFxFb8C;_ylu=X3oDMTMxdmVlNGExBGFzc2V0A2FwLzIwMTA
wOTI5L3VzX2VuZGFuZ2VyZWRfZGlnaXRhbF9yZWNvcmRpbmdzBGNwb3MDMgRwb3MDNQRzZWMDeW5
fdG9wX3N0b3J5BHNsawNzdHVkeWF1ZGlvcmU-


Ken Dryden



      
By BRETT ZONGKER, Associated Press Writer Brett Zongker, Associated Press
Writer - 44 mins ago

WASHINGTON - New digital recordings of events in U.S. history and early
radio shows are at risk of being lost much faster than older ones on tape
and many are already gone, according to a study on sound released Wednesday.

Even recent history - such as recordings from 9/11 or the 2008 election - is
at risk because digital sound files can be corrupted, and widely used CD-R
discs only last three to five years before files start to fade, said study
co-author Sam Brylawski.

"I think we're assuming that if it's on the Web it's going to be there
forever," he said. "That's one of the biggest challenges."

The first comprehensive study of the preservation of sound recordings in the
U.S. being released by the Library of Congress also found many historical
recordings already have been lost or can't be accessed by the public. That
includes most of radio's first decade from 1925 to 1935.

Shows by singers Duke Ellington and Bing Crosby, as well as the earliest
sports broadcasts, are already gone. There was little financial incentive
for such broadcasters as CBS to save early sound files, Brylawski said.

Digital files are a blessing and a curse. Sounds can be easily recorded and
transferred and the files require less and less space. But the problem,
Brylawski said, is they must be constantly maintained and backed up by audio
experts as technology changes. That requires active preservation, rather
than simply placing files on a shelf, he said.

The study co-authored by Rob Bamberger was mandated by Congress in a 2000
preservation law.

Those old analog formats that remain are more physically stable and can
survive about 150 years longer than contemporary digital recordings, the
study warns. Still, the rapid change in technology to play back the
recordings can make them obsolete.

Recordings saved by historical societies and family oral histories also are
at risk, Brylawski said.

"Those audio cassettes are just time bombs," Brylawski said. "They're just
not going to be playable."

There are few if any programs to train professional audio archivists, the
study found. No universities currently offer degrees in audio preservation,
though several offer related courses.

A hodgepodge of 20th century state anti-piracy laws also has kept most sound
files out of the public domain before U.S. copyright law was extended to
sound recordings in 1972. The study found only 14 percent of commercially
released recordings are available from rights holders. That limits how much
preservation can be accomplished, Brylawski said.

The study calls for changes in the law to help preservation. As it stands
now, Brylawski said, copyright restrictions would make most audio
preservation initiatives illegal, the authors wrote.