What Did Our Ancestors Listen To?

What did Grandpa and Grandma listen to in their leisure time? You can now listen to their music to find out.

The Department of Special Collections at the University of California Santa Barbara (UCSB) Davidson Library now has an online collection of more than 6,000 sound recordings as part of its Cylinder Preservation and Digitization Project. These recordings date from the 1890s to the 1920s. Recordings of those years were made on cylinders, not on the flat disks that we are accustomed to.

The project is the culmination of a two-year grant, funded in part by the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS). The UCSB site features downloadable MP3 audio files as well as streaming versions of many of the library's cylinder recordings. More cylinders are being added as they are cataloged and digitized. The site also has "streaming radio" programs on various topics and a "featured cylinder" section, showcasing some of the most interesting items in the collection.

All the recordings were transferred from Edison cylinders, using state-of-the-art equipment. You can listen to the songs on your computer or even download them to your MP3 player and listen to them while riding the bus. You can legally copy these songs as all of them are now in the public domain.

There is an interesting side note here. Except for Edison cylinders and discs, most early sound recordings will remain copyrighted and will not enter the public domain until February 15, 2067. Details may be found at http://cylinders.library.ucsb.edu/copyright.php

I will offer one comment. I listened to a few of these songs and must admit that these old recordings will never replace the collection of Grateful Dead music on my iPOD.

To listen to the Hit Parade of the 1890s through the 1920s, go to http://cylinders.library.ucsb.edu

Comments

[KathrynBassett]

I can't figure out how to download the songs. For instance, in the search box, type Hiawatha, and that brings up 5 choices. On the Help page, it says "To download the file, right click on the button" But *what* button? There's no button that I see, and I even tried it in IE in case it was not Firefox friendly.

[Dick Eastman]

First of all, keep in mind one sentence that I wrote: "More cylinders are being added as they are cataloged and digitized." Not all of the songs are online yet although they will be by the time the project ends.

In your example, search for "Hiawatha" and find the five examples that you mentioned. Next, click on #1 (click on the blue number). You will see:

Title: (A) Hiawatha
Performer: Sodero's Band.
Issue Number/Label: 4158: Edison Blue Amberol
Year of Release: [1921]

You will notice that there is no MP3 file. This recoding is not yet available online.

Now back up one screen and click on #2 on the list (click on the number #2). You will see:

Title: Hiawatha
Performer: Edison Grand Concert Band [i.e. Edison Concert Band].
Issue Number/Label: 8347: Edison Gold Moulded Record
Year of Release: [between 1904 and 1908]

You will also see that this one shows links to download your choice of an MP3 file or an unedited WAV file. Right click on the version of your choice. You will be able to download or play the song.

[Dino (All Dino, All the Time)]

Dick,

Thanks for the heads up on this site. I was finally able to get the Harry Lauder "Roamin' in the Gloamin'" I've been jonesing for for years. It is the exact one that I have the 78 of (which was my gr-grandmother's). My mom recalls that particular disc being played a lot at her grandmothers.

These items will make fantastic background music to some slide presentations!

[KathrynBassett]

Thanks Dick. I assumed that they wouldn't be catalogued if they weren't digitized. None of the ones I'd checked out had files, so I thought I was missing something. Too bad there's no way to filter for just the ones that have a file.