Re: [ARSCLIST] Sound Archivists

[matt Sohn <mahatma@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

>
> I was wondering if there are many people on this list who are employed
> by universities nationwide, specifically as a Sound Archivist working
> with their audio collections.
> Thanking you for your time.
>
> Marie O'Connell

Until recently I was employed at the Louis Armstrong Archive at Queens
College, not as a Sound Archivist, but as an "Audio Preservationist". The
grant (from "Save America's Treasures") that paid my salary ran out in April
and I was laid off. A little over a month ago the archivist was also laid
off. I have been trying to find another archive to work for, with few
nibbles and, thus far, no success. I do not have a library sciences degree,
but I do have 4 years of college-level audio training and six years of
experience working in audio archives. More times than I care to remember, I
have been told "Gee, I wish we had the funds to hire you".
A few years ago, the AES issued a call to action for audio professionals to
help work to save the vast, deteriorating mountains of audio (I believe
their estimate was 80 million hours of audio in danger of being lost), but
if my experience is any indicator, there aren't a great deal of
opportunities for dedicated, experienced engineers such as myself to answer
that call, not for lack of material, but for lack of funds.
If there are any archivists out there in need of a person with my skills and
experience, send me an off-list email and I will be happy to send a copy of
my resume, school transcripts and references.
I would also be interested to hear thoughts from others on the list
regarding the current state of affairs, and how various archives are dealing
with funding issues for preservation of audio materials.
-Matt Sohn