The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts > Collections >
Rodgers and Hammerstein Archives of Recorded Sound
Using the Archives: Avenues of Access
Located in the heart of the Lincoln Center complex on Manhattans Upper
West Side, the Rodgers and Hammerstein Archives of Recorded Sound is housed
on the third floor of the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts
Library, along with the dance, music, and theatre research collections.
Staff members, knowledgeable in all aspects of recorded sound, are available
to assist users in their research. All materials are noncirculating and
must be studied on the premises.
Locating Materials
Numerous finding aids are available to assist users in their search for
material. Strategies for access depend on the type of material sought and
its cataloging date.
Recordings Cataloged Through 1979--
The Card Catalog
LPs and tapes cataloged through 1979 are accessed through the free-standing
card catalog. A bound version of this catalog published by G. K. Hall and
Company is located on-site and in reference libraries throughout the world.
Recordings Cataloged After 1979--
The Atlas database and the online catalog
Material cataloged after 1979 can be found by searching Atlas, the Archives
in-house computer database located at the reference librarians desk. A staff
member conducts the search upon submission of a song or album title, performers
name, or record issue number. A growing amount of material is also cataloged
in the online catalog of The New York Public Library.
78rpm Recordings--
The Rigler Deutsch Index
In both on-line and microfiche versions, The Rigler Deutsch Index to 78rpm
discs provides easy access to materials housed not only at the Rodgers and
Hammerstein Archives of Recorded Sound, but also at four other major American
sound archives (Library of Congress and Yale, Stanford, and Syracuse universities).
Information on some of the Archives 78rpm recordings can also be found in
the card catalog.
Printed Materials--
Online Catalog and the Card Catalog
Information on books and periodicals is obtained through
the online catalog of The New York Public Library. Terminals are located
at the Archives and at other research libraries throughout the city. For
materials cataloged before 1980, consult the card catalog.
Special Collections
Many special collections donated to the Archives came with their own preexisting
catalogs; they include radio station WNEWs gift of popular music on 78 and
45rpm recordings from the 1930s to the 1960s, and radio station WNYCs collection
of selected broadcast tapes from 1938 to 1970. Printed finding lists also
exist for many noncommercial collections donated to the Library in recent
decades.
Record Label Issue Numbers
The recording industry has consistently applied a record label and issue
number system since its inception. Therefore, it is possible for the Archives
librarians, when provided with a label and issue number, to ascertain the
availability of any commercial recording in the collection. Uncataloged
material, which is arranged numerically, can also be accessed in this manner.
Listening to Recordings
Users never directly handle sound recordings; this helps to protect rare
and fragile items. Upon receipt of a call slip, the reference librarian
communicates by computer with a playback technician located in the basement
storage area. Selections are piped into specially designed listening and
viewing booths; subsequent communications take place directly between the
listener and audio technician through computer terminals stationed in each
booth. Record jackets can be examined quickly on a video monitor at the
reference librarians desk or delivered to the user during listening sessions
upon request.
E-Mail and Fax Service
The Archives accepts reference questions by E-mail and fax from persons
located outside New York City. Please supply us with your full name and
mailing address. The E-mail address is rha@nypl.org. The fax number is (212) 870-1720.
Telephone Reference
The Archives professional staff answer brief reference queries from around
the world by phone. Information provided ranges from sources of out-of-print
records to the hit song of a specific year. Please call (212) 870-1663.
Letter Reference Services
Questions that cannot be answered quickly by phone may sometimes be handled
by letter. Knowledgeable staff members can respond to mail queries from
outside New York City and can forward photocopies of material upon prepayment
of a search and copying fee.
Phonoduplication
Within copyright restrictions and under special conditions, the Archives
sound studio will prepare phonoduplicates. The material must no longer be
available from commercial distributors, out-of-print dealers, or circulating
library record collections and must be used for study purposes only. Duplicates
are made on analog or digital cassette, or reel-to-reel tape. Costs are
based on an hourly fee for work time plus the cost of materials, with a
half-hour minimum. For additional information and forms, contact the Archives.
Written permission from the record company is required if any commercial
use is intended. No copying of private, noncommercial material is allowed
without the written permission of the proprietary rights holder.
Copy Service
Within copyright restrictions, a copy service on the premises duplicates
print materials for a fee. For conservation reasons, photocopying of rare
and fragile material is not permitted. Such items may sometimes be reproduced
by other reprographic methods.
Requests for copy service by mail may be addressed to Copy Services, The
New York Public Library, Fifth Avenue and 42nd Street, New York, New York
10018. If the Rodgers and Hammerstein Archives has the material and it is
unrestricted, a cost estimate will be returned by mail. The order will be
initiated upon receipt of full payment. VISA, MasterCard, and American Express
credit cards may be used to pay for onsite or mail orders of $12 or more.
