Skip to main content
Use the right side menu to identify relevant boxes and place requests.

Association for Recorded Sound Collections (ARSC) records

 Collection 0193-MMC

The Association for Recorded Sound Collections (ARSC), founded in 1966, is a nonprofit organization dedicated to preserving and studying sound recordings; in all genres of music and speech, in all formats, and from all periods. ARSC membership is comprised of both private individuals and institutional collectors. The Association for Recorded Sound Collections archive contains materials relating to this organization from 1962 through the present, with the bulk of material coming from 1966-2003.

The collection consists of personal and professional papers, including published and unpublished writings, correspondence, reports, and materials relating to membership, the annual conference, publications, the society's structure, and initiatives with affiliated organizations. The collection includes recordings of yearly conferences, related lectures and programs, and board meetings.

Dates

  • 1962-2012
  • Majority of material found within 1966-2003

Use and Access to Collection

This collection is open to the public and must be used in the Special Collections reading room. Researchers must register and agree to copyright and privacy laws before using this collection.

Conditions Governing Use

Photocopies or digital surrogates may be provided in accordance with Special Collections and University Archives duplication policy.

Copyright resides with the creators of the documents or their heirs unless otherwise specified. It is the researcher's responsibility to secure permission to publish materials from the appropriate copyright holder.

Archival materials may contain materials with sensitive or confidential information that is protected under federal and/or state right to privacy laws or other regulations. While we make a good faith effort to identify and remove such materials, some may be missed during our processing. If a researcher finds sensitive personal information in a collection, please bring it to the attention of the reading room staff.

Extent

73.00 Linear Feet

Scope and Content of Collection

The Association for Recorded Sound Collections archive contains materials relating to this organization from 1962 through the present, with the bulk of material coming from 1966-2003. The collection consists of personal and professional papers, including published and unpublished writings, correspondence, reports, as well as materials relating to membership, the annual conference, publications, the society's structure, and initiatives with affiliated organizations. The collection represents the involvement of the officers and committees, as well as various regional ARSC chapters. The collection includes recordings of annual conferences, related lectures and programs, and board meetings.

Administrative History

Founded in 1966, the Association for Recorded Sound Collections (ARSC), Inc. is a nonprofit organization dedicated to the preservation and study of sound recordings; in all genres of music and speech, in all formats, and from all periods. ARSC membership is comprised of both private individuals and institutional collectors. Current membership consists of approximately one thousand archivists, librarians, and curators representing many of the world's leading audiovisual repositories participate in ARSC alongside record collectors, record dealers, researchers, historians, discographers, musicians, engineers, producers, reviewers, and broadcasters. ARSC hosts an Annual Conference bringing together collectors from a variety of backgrounds. Since 1968, ARSC has published a peer-reviewed journal and the ARSC Newsletter delivers timely announcements, short articles, and a calendar of coming events.

Arrangement

This collection is organized into eight series.

Custodial History and Acquisition Information

The bulk of the collection was transferred to Special Collections in Performing Arts (SCPA) in 2000, with regular accessions through 2014. In December 2014, the collection was transferred from SCPA to Special Collections and University Archives.

Title
Association for Recorded Sound Collections (ARSC) Archives
Status
Completed
Author
Processed by Heather Jackson and David Travis, 2010-2012
Date
2012-05-01
Description rules
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description
English
Script of description
Code for undetermined script
Language of description note
Finding aid written in English

Revision Statements

  • 2012-11-21: EAD checked and verified using Oxygen by Amanda May, November 2012.
  • 2019-06-14: Minor revisions to collection description post-transfer to Special Collections by Jen Wachtel.
  • 2021-08-13: Jim Baxter re-wrote the collection abstract.

Library Details

Part of the Special Collections and University Archives

Contact:
University of Maryland Libraries
Hornbake Library
4130 Campus Drive
College Park Maryland 20742
301-405-9212