Off the record | We hear you listening, right where you are
The Alexander Turnbull Library holds a vast collection of fascinating oral histories that tell the stories of our nation. Sarah Walker explains how accessing this material just got a whole lot easier for researchers and anyone interested in learning more.
Do I really need to come all the way to Wellington?
The Alexander Turnbull Library holds around 10,000 oral histories, capturing our views, experiences, and memories, and together forming an impressive historical record. Following COVID lockdowns, and with climate-related disruptions on the horizon, we have seen a collective eyebrow raised at the old model of onsite access particularly in relation to digital collections.
Researchers very reasonably ask: do I really need to come all the way to Wellington to listen to a digital recording? Isn't there a way to hear it where I am? In the past, the answer was maybe yes, maybe no. However, as we head into the future, the answer increasingly will be yes.
Thousands of oral history cassettes are held in environmentally-controlled conditions in the National Library building in Wellington.
The virtual reading room
The Library ran a virtual reading room pilot a couple of years ago to test technical aspects and figure out ways to enable controlled remote access to digitised sound material, where conditions permitted.
The requirement was to provide digital sound files in a secure web browser which prevented them from being downloaded to a computer. We then needed to double-check interview access conditions by consulting the Recording Agreements and/or Deeds of Gift.
Donors and/or copyright holders were contacted and notified that their recordings had been requested to listen to online. Contact information was updated in the process, and donor responses to the idea of providing controlled online access for researchers were consistently positive.
The pilot helped us understand the necessary steps to provide offsite access, both in technical and procedural terms — and we gained enough knowledge to soft launch the service.
How does offsite access work?
First, researchers identify oral history interviews in our online catalogue. Next, they contact us with a listening request. After checking the access permissions for the interview, we then send them the terms and conditions form.
The most important part of the form is the agreement not to download or share access to the recording in any way.
Once all processes are complete, researchers are then provided with a username and password to access the digital file for a finite period, usually one month.
Retrieving collection items from the store. Photo by Sue Morris.
How does the future look?
Over the next couple of years, nearly all of the Library's 10,000 oral histories will be in digital form either because they have been preserved through digitisation, or because they were recorded digitally in the first place.
Mindful of donor conditions, we can't automatically guarantee that all access requests will be met. And there may be some delays if a requested item is in the preservation queue.
Nevertheless, we welcome enquiries, which you can send through our Ask a librarian service. We'd love to be able to help New Zealanders connect with the riches of oral history recordings wherever they happen to be. This is surely an example of the power of ’an idea whose time has come.’
Explore the Oral history and Sound collection
Thanks to Friends of the Turnbull Library
Thanks to the Friends of the Turnbull Library for permission to republish this article, which was originally published in their Off the Record print publication.
The Friends of the Turnbull Library is a national organisation that supports the work and activities of the Alexander Turnbull Library, they promote public interest in the Library’s collections and supports research and use of its collections.
More information about the Friends of the Turnbull
Our Off the record blog series will republish articles from the Off the Record magazine including stories about new acquisitions, research projects and other news about the Turnbull Library collections.