The Library of Congress recently unveiled a new site called The National Jukebox. This is your chance to listen to historic recordings from the turn of the century and beyond. The virtual jukebox currently includes more than 10,000 recordings (many of these have been unavailable for more than 100 years!) on 78-r.p.m. discs made by the Victor Talking Machine Company during the early 1900’s, and the library plans to expand the collection regularly.
The recordings featured in the National Jukebox were made using what is known as the acoustical process, which predates the use of microphones. Speakers spoke into, or singers sang into, cones which vibrated an attached diaphragm and stylus, etching sound waves onto a rotating wax disc. These original discs later could be converted into masters used to mold the records sold for home use.
The National Jukebox was launched with an agreement together with Sony Music which grants the Library of Congress usage rights to Sony’s entire pre-1925 catalog. That means thousands of recordings produced by Columbia Records, OKeh, and Victor Talking Machine Co. will be available for streaming and it represents the largest collection of such historical recordings ever made publicly available.
As one would expect, the other majors are also contributing. Universal Music Group recently donated 200,000 metal, glass, and lacquer master discs from the period 1926 to 1948 from their vaults. One historic highlight is the master recording of Bing Crosby’s 1947 version of “White Christmas,” which according to Guinness World Records is the best-selling single of all time. The collection is also reported to include classic recordings from Louis Armstrong, Billie Holiday, Ella Fitzgerald , and Judy Garland, just to name a few.
Now you might be asking yourself why would the labels essentially give away these massive historical collections? While they do retain the copyrights to the music, the savings will be substantial in the form of not having to store the discs, and the generous tax write-off as a result of the “donation”.
Check out these sample playlists curated by Library staff and learn how to create and share your own playlist.
There is also a fascinating detailed explanation of the painstaking process of transferring these old discs into digital recordings.
Have you checked out The National Jukebox yet? Who’s on your Library of Congress playlist?
