Description of Sound
Recordings
AACR2 Chapter 6
• Chapter 6 covers sound recordings in all
media
– Discs - compact discs, vinyl, etc.
– Tapes - cassettes, reel-to-reel, cartridge
– Rolls – piano, organ, etc.
– Sound recordings on film
– Wires, cylinders
• Chief source: physical item and any
label(s) on the item
Chief source of information
• Two or more chief sources of information (e.g. two labels
on a disc)
– Treat as a single chief source
• Collective title on accompanying textual material or
container
• Treat as chief source
• Make note indicating source of title
• If information is not available from the chief source, take
it from the following sources (in this order of preference)
– accompanying textual material
– container (sleeve, box, jewel case, etc.)
– other sources (publisher catalogs, etc.)
• Prefer textual data to sound data.
New Record?
• Differences that justify a new record
–
–
–
–
–
–
Different format, size, speed (e.g. disc vs. cassette)
Significant difference in playing time
Stereo. vs. mono.
Different edition
If in a completely different series
Difference in Music publisher number (028)
• Differences that do not justify a new record
– Absence or presence of multiple publishers,
distributors, etc. as long as one on the item matches
one on the record or vice versa.
245: Title
• Chief source: Physical item and any label(s) on the item
• Transcribed from item in hand.
• May have one title or more than one title in the 245. May
have subtitle.
• Must have a title—can be a person’s name, or a group’s
name.
• If single title with no subtitle, title goes in $a
– Titles for classical works:
– $a is that part of title that identifies the work $b is remainder
– 245 00 $aSymphony no. 39 in E-flat, K. 543 $h [sound
recording]
245 General material designation
•
•
•
•
GMD is [sound recording]
Follows title in $a
Goes in $h
No punctuation precedes left bracket
245 |b Subtitle
• Follows GMD
• Goes in $b
• Preceded by space : 245 00 $a Imaginary
landscapes $h [sound recording] : $b new
electronic music.
• If multiple titles are in 245 and there is only one
composer, put remaining titles in $b. Precede
each title with a space ; space.
• 245 10 $a Riders to the sea $h [sound
recording] ; $b Household music ; Flos campi /
$c Vaughan Williams
245 |c Statement of Responsibility
• Transcribed, if present on disc
• If the participation of the person(s) or body
(bodies) named in a statement found in the chief
source of information goes beyond that of
performance, execution, or interpretation of a
work (as is commonly the case with “popular,”
rock, and jazz music), give such a statement as
a statement of responsibility
• 245 10 $a Return of the bumpasaurus $h [sound
recording] / $c Sir Mixalot.
245 |c Statement of Responsibility
• If the participation is confined to
performance, execution, or interpretation,
as is usually the case with serious or
classical music and recorded speech, give
the statement in the note area.
245 |c Statement of Responsibility
• If multiple titles with multiple composers,
statement of responsibility follows title to
which it applies. Next title and statement
of responsibility go in $c.
• 245 10 $a Missa brevis|h[sound recording]
; $b Laudes organi / $c Kodály. Mass in E
flat / Janácek.
246 field
• Use for titles that apply to item as a whole, e.g.
– Portion of title
– Subtitle
– Parallel title
– Title on the container
– 245 00 $a Imaginary landscapes Sh[sound
recording] : $b new electronic music.
– 246 30 $a New electronic music
740 … Analytical Title
• For titles that are contained within the unit,
as opposed to those that refer to unit as a
whole.
• So, for a collection lacking a collective title,
use 740s for the titles in the 245 field
subsequent to the first title.
• 740 02 $a Household music
• 740 02 $a Flos campi
260 |a Place of Publication
• Sound recordings often lack a place of
publication. If the place of publication is
not indicated the cataloger should supply it
with square brackets, adding a question
mark to indicate uncertainty. If the actual
place is unknown the county of publication
can be supplied in square brackets. As a
last resort, the abbreviation [S.l.] (for sine
loco) should be used.
260 |b Publisher
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Sound recordings often list several similar names. These names could be a
publisher, a trade name or a series.
If a name appears in conjunction with the serial number it is a trade name.
6.4D2 says to give this name as the publisher
If hard to distinguish which is the trade name should consult Phonolog or
Schwann to see how the publisher is listed there.
Should be very careful with series for sound recordings. Often they are
used for sales gimmicks and only appear on the container and usually in
smaller typeface from that used for other information. Should consult a
series authority file for decisions on these. If it is not an established series
the information can be given in a quoted note.
Use the smaller label name, rather than a larger corporation. Hint: look for a
logo.
On item: Rhino p1992
Atlantic Recording Corp.
Use Rhino in 260 |b
Dates on Compact Discs
• You rarely find a date of publication.
– Copyright date (since 1971):
– P is copyright of sound
• C is copyright of printed material
• If you have a c date, use it to surmise a
publication date. Never use a c date (e.g.,
c2002) for a CD.
Example
• On disc: Wes bound / Lee Ritenour
• (p) & (c) 1993
• 100 1 $a Ritenour, Lee.
• 245 10 $a Wes bound $h [sound
recording] / $c Lee Ritenour.
• 260 $a New York, NY : $b GRP
Records, $c p1993.
Dates
• Dates from the chief source (recording and
label) are usually the most important
• Dates to keep in mind
–
–
–
–
LPs first available in 1948
Pre-recorded reel-to-reel first available in 1954
Pre-recorded audio cassettes first available in 1965
Audio compact discs first available in 1982
• A date on a compact disc earlier than 1982
could not be considered a publication date. A
later date from a container or accompanying
material may be more important.
Dates
• Since 1971 the symbol P has been used to indicate the
copyright date of recorded sound. Various  dates
might also be present indicating copyright protection for
the work performed or for accompanying material, etc.
• When a single P date is present it should be transcribed
as the date of copyright of the recorded sound.
• When various P dates appear on a single recording, the
cataloger must determine if they represent a reissue. If
that is the case, the latest P date should be transcribed.
• If various P dates represent different parts of the
recording, no P date should be transcribed, because
none applies to the recording as a whole.
Dates
• For items lacking a P date, a  before 1971 should
be transcribed as the copyright date.
• For items lacking a P date, a  after 1970 should be
transcribed as an inferred date of publication.
• For digitally remastered analog recordings that have
been released on compact disc, the  date for
textual material on the container may be used to
infer the date of publication, but the P date should
also be transcribed (see 1.4F5.)
• For items lacking a P date and a  date the cataloger
may estimate a date of release. Usually a recent
recording is released within one year of the date it is
recorded, but this is not always accurate.
Example 1
• On disc: The Oscar Peterson Big 6 at
Montreux
• p1975
• On insert: p1975 and c1997
• Recorded July 16, 1975 …
• Remastering, 1997 ….
260
$c[1997], p1975.
• You have come up a publication date for
the CD, surmised from the copyright date
of the printed material accompanying the
disc.
• Because the publication date is cataloger
supplied (i.e., not stated on the item as a
publication date), it appears in brackets.
• Date of copyright (p1975) is allowed under
optional addition.
Example 2
• On disc: A sign of the times / Ted Farlow
• p1977
• No other date anywhere (disc, container,
insert).
Possible Cataloging
260 $c [1992?], p1977.
– 1992 surmised from date record was input on
OCLC. In brackets, because supplied by
cataloger.
260 $c [1992], p1977.
– After finding 1992 on web, I removed the ?
300 Physical Description
•
•
•
•
•
Compact disc:
$a 1 sound disc (67 min., 30 sec.) : $b
digital, stereo. ; $c 4 ¾ in.
$a 4 sound discs : $b digital ; $c 4 ¾ in.
Use stereo. (or mono.) only if indicated
on item.
LC uses duration here only if there is one
work on the CD (e.g., an opera) and the
duration is given.
300 Physical Description
•
•
•
•
Cassette tape:
$a 1 sound cassette (29 min.) : $b analog,
Dolby processed.
$a 2 sound cassettes : $b analog.
If standard size, size is not included.
•
•
•
•
Accompanying material
May appear in 300 and/or in a 500 note.
+ $e 1 booklet.
+ $e 1 booklet (8 p.).
300 Physical Description
•
Record the number of physical units of a sound recording by giving the
number of parts in arabic numbers and one of the following terms as
appropriate
–
–
–
–
–
–
•
sound cartridge
sound cassette
sound disc
sound tape reel
sound track film
sound disc cartridge (added per CSB no. 92, spring 2001)
Give the duration in parentheses after the specific material designation only
when the recording contains a single work (composition that is a single unit
intended for performance as a whole)
– In 300 use form xx min., xx sec.
– Precede duration by ca. only when the item itself gives an approximation
– If the duration is not stated do not approximate
300 Physical Description
•
For individual works without a collective title, durations are given in a 500
note.
– 500 $a Durations: 22 min. ; 25 min. ; 11 min.
•
•
•
For individual works with a collective title, durations are given in the
contents note (505)
Statement of physical details of the recording
Give the following, as appropriate, in this order
– Type of recording
– Playing speed
– Groove characteristic (analog discs)
•
•
•
Do not give the playing speed if it is standard for the type of item (e.g. 1 7/8
in. per second for an analog tape cassette)
Dimensions
Give the diameter of a disc in inches
– 300
– 300
– 300
$a 1 sound disc : $b analog, 33 1/3 rpm, stereo. ; $c 12 in.
$a 1 sound disc (33 min.) : $b digital, stereo. ; $c 4 ¾ in.
$a 1 sound cassette (85 min.) : $b analog
Playing time
• Use MARC tag 306 to enter the duration of a sound
recording.
• Use six character positions in $a.
• The six positions represent the duration of a work in
hours, minutes, and seconds.
• Use field 500 to enter duration information as a note.
• A record may have a 306 and a 500 duration note.
• First and second positions are for number of hours.
• The third and fourth positions are for the number of
minutes.
• The fifth and sixth positions are for the number of
seconds.
•
Playing time
• Enter one hour (exactly) as 60 minutes.
• Enter one minute exactly as 60 seconds.
• Enter any duration more than an hour in terms of hours,
minutes, and seconds.
• Enter any duration more than one minute and less than
one hour in terms of minutes and seconds.
• If a sound recording or score has two or more pieces,
enter the duration for each piece in a separate $a.
• One hour
306 $a 006000
• 75 minutes
306 $a 011500
• 20 min., 16 sec. 306 $a 002016
• two works
306 $a 003700 $a 001050
5XX Notes
• Notes follow the order given in AACR2;
they are not in numerical order by MARC
tag.
• Most important notes for cataloging sound
recordings are included here.
• For a complete list, see AACR2 (6.7).
500 Nature/Form/Medium
– You don’t need to use this note if
nature/medium is apparent from other parts of
the description.
• Gospel music (instrumental and vocal).
• Native American music from Maine.
• For instrumental ensemble (1st-2nd works),
violin and orchestra (3rd work), and
orchestra (4th work).
546 Language
– May omit if apparent from other parts of the
description.
– Sung in Portuguese.
500 Source of Title Proper
Must use if 245 title did not come from the chief
source (disc or cassette).
Title from container.
Title from container spine.
In this note, the insert showing through the
jewel case is the container.
Statements of Responsibility
• 500 note if other than performers (e.g. writer of
text)
• 500 Texts by Heinrich Heine.
– 511 0 for performers.
– 511 0 $a Irene Kral , vocals ; Alan Broadbent, piano.
– 511 0 $a Etta James, vocals ; with additional
musicians.
• 511 0 Various performers.
• Can be incorporated into the contents note.
Edition and History
518 for date/place of recording.
• 518 $a Recorded Nov. 29-Dec. 2, 1999
at St. Peter's Episcopal Church, New York
City.
– 500 for reissue information.
– 500 $a Selections previously released.
– 500
$a Originally issued in 1964 as analog
disc on Folkways Records: FAS 2377.
500 Physical Description
• 500 $a Compact disc.
• 500 $a Durations: 17:00; 23:35; 9:00.
Compact disc note is tag 500, not tag 538.
Durations go in this note if multiple titles
are listed in 245 and no contents note is
used.
500 Accompanying Material
– Use instead of 300 $e, or in addition to 300 $e to
convey more information.
• 500 $a Lyrics (8 p. : ports.) inserted in
container.
– When counting pages of an un-numbered booklet,
count “cover” pages as pages, since they are made
from the same material as the pages themselves. Put
number in square brackets to show it is supplied by
the cataloger.
– 500 $a Program notes ([16] p.) inserted in container.
520 Summary
• Use for spoken-word recordings; not used
for music recordings.
• 520 $a Receiving the Melcher Book
Award, Toni Morrison talks about her
novel, Beloved.
505 Contents
• 505 0 $a Title – Title.
• 505 0 $a Title / Composer – Title /
Composer.
• 505 0 $a Title (Performer) – Title
(Performer).
• 505 0 $a Title (Durations) – Title (Duration).
• 505 0 $a Title / Composer (Performer)
(Duration) -- Title / Composer (Performer)
(Duration).
Type of Date/Publication Status
(DtSt)
• Most likely one of these:
• s = Single date.
• p = Date of publication and date of
recording.
• r = Reissue date and original date (only if
all works were previously issued).
• t = Publication date and copyright date.
028 0 Publisher Number
• Use this. It is as important for sound
recordings as an ISBN is for books.
• Second indicator depends on your system.
• Subfield a is the number (include letter
prefixes if present). It comes first.
• Subfield b is the label name (260 |b). It
comes second. Some libraries incorrectly
reverse this order in their OCLC records.
033 []0 Date/Time
• Codes information from 518.
– $a (can be repeated)
• 4 digit year, 2 digit month, 2 digit date
– $b country
– Class number from LC G schedule
033 []0 Date/Time
– $c
– Cutter for city.
• Last digit of $b changes, depending on
whether $c is present or not.
– First indicator
– Blank = no date info (i.e., no |a).
– 1 = multiple single dates; two consecutive
dates.
• 2 = range of dates.
033 Examples
• 033 00 $a 19930123 $b4282 $cS4
• 518 $a Recorded Jan. 23, 1993 at
Meany Theater, University of Washington,
Seattle
• 033 10 $a 20010225 $a20010613 $a20010614
$b5754 $cL7
• 518 Recorded Feb. 25, 2001 (2nd work) and
June 13-14, 2001 (1st work) at Air Studios,
Lyndhurst Hall, Hampstead, London