united kingdom

Save our Sounds is the British Library’s programme to preserve the nation’s sound heritage
via http://www.bl.uk/projects/save-our-sounds

The British nation’s sound collections are under threat, both from physical degradation and as the means of playing them disappear from production. Archival consensus internationally is that we have approximately 15 years in which to save our sound collections by digitising them before they become unreadable and are effectively lost.

The British Library is home to the British nation’s sound archive, an extraordinary collection of over 6.5 million recordings of speech, music, wildlife and the environment, from the 1880s to the present day. We need both to ensure that the existing archive is properly preserved, and that there are adequate systems in place for the acquisition of future sound production in the UK.

The Save our Sounds programme has been created to answer this imperative need. It has three major aims:

- to preserve as much as possible of the nation's rare and unique sound recordings, not just those in our collections but also key items from partner collections across the UK
- to establish a national radio archive that will collect, protect and share a substantial part of the UK’s vibrant radio output, working with the radio industry and other partners
- to invest in new technology to enable us to receive music in digital formats, working with music labels and industry partners to ensure their long-term preservation

UK Sound Directory

We are undertaking a national audit to map the condition of sound archives around the country and identify other threatened collections – if you have a sound collection which you think could be at risk, get in touch and let us know.

Support the project

Please get in touch with us if you would like to donate to support this project, or to discuss how you or your organisation can help preserve the nation’s audio heritage.
Sounds

Our Sounds website has over 60,000 sound recordings for all to enjoy, covering the entire range of recorded sounds: music, drama and literature, oral history, wildlife and environmental sounds.
The British Library Sound Archive

There is more information on our Sound Archive and how to use its collections on our Help for Researchers pages.

Follow us on Twitter @soundarchive and use the hashtag #saveoursounds

Keep up with the latest news on Sounds through our Sound and vision blog.
- See more at: http://www.bl.uk/projects/save-our-sounds

A Peace of Music: The West-Eastern Divan - a symposium exploring the politics of peace in the Middle East as enacted through music

Friday 6 June 2008 10.00am to 5.30pm, followed by a drinks reception @ City University London, Northampton Square, London EC1V 0HB

The Department of Cultural Policy and Management and the Department of Music at City University London invite you to a day-long symposium featuring musicians, international relations experts and philosophers in conversation, including a viewing and discussion of the following : KNOWLEDGE IS THE BEGINNING – Daniel Barenboim and the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra, a documentary by Paul Smaczny; The Politics of Friendship: a discussion chaired by Dr Rosemary Hollis, director of City University London's Olive Tree Scholarship Programme, with speakers Dr Devorah Baum of the University of Southampton and Professor Maja Zehfuss of the University of Manchester; Music as Utopia: a discussion chaired by Dr Laudan Nooshin of City University London, with speakers Dr Rachel Beckles Willson and Professor Nicholas Cook, both of Royal Holloway, University of London

Netaudio, the Offline Festival for Online Music comes back to London after a great festival in Berlin in 2007

Netaudio'08 will take place from 22nd to 25th October 2008 at Shunt, a extensive labyrinth of tunnels underneath London Bridge Station.

Over four nights we will celebrate the creative output of networked musicians and online communities with talks, workshops, showcases and performances. Parts of Netaudio'08 will be programmed through an open call for entries. With this call we would like to give you the chance to put our attention to your creative activities related to the festival theme.

Call for entries runs in 3 strands: performance, installation and conference. For more information and to download the entry forms please visit: http://www.netaudiolondon.cc/blog/137/call-for-entries

Women in Games Conference: Call for Papers and Participation

Date: 31 May 2008
Venue: University of Warwick, UK
Website: www.womeningames.com

The Women In Games conference encourages research and seeks to promote careers for women within the games industry. If games are to become a true sibling medium to music and cinema, the industry needs greater balance in its audience and its workforce. The Women In Games conference takes place from 10-12th September 2008 and welcomes participants from both industry and academia, providing a forum for presentation and discussion of issues relating to all aspects of women's involvement in games, including game development, game playing and women as portrayed within games.

Although this conference is concerned with women and games please note that men are also very welcome to participate! The industry needs a meaningful dialogue between the sexes as it moves forward.