Queensland Memory
Oral History OPAL Project
Playback
Project Summary
It is identified oral histories form part of many local history collections in Queensland public libraries,
community museums and historical organisations. They are important to Queensland's documentary
heritage in that they provide unique primary source material about Queensland's diverse places,
people, communities and local knowledge. A significant amount of this material pre-dates digital
capture and as such, is stored on cassette tapes and other unstable formats.
One of the most challenging issues emerging from the State Library of Queensland’s (SLQ)
Digitisation and Access survey collections (March 2013), is the volume of material historically
captured and stored on magnetic tape that is becoming increasingly difficult to access, store and
preserve for the future.
Description
Playback is an oral history project designed to digitise, preserve and provide access to 200 hours of
Queensland's un-digitised oral history material currently held in public libraries and local communities
throughout the state.
With tourism in the heritage sector growing in Queensland, Playback acknowledges and celebrates
the potential of digitised oral history material promoting the heritage of local communities, creating
links to previously ‘unheard’ Queensland stories and facilitating discussion on the value of
Queensland’s heritage and tourism market and linking it to significant local content.
State Library of Queensland invites expressions of interest from public libraries, in partnership with
their nearby local museum, archive, heritage organisation or community group to:
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identify twenty (20) hours of significant oral content from local collections for digitisation;
participate in a 3-day training workshop;
create and present new content using newly digitised oral history at a Heritage Tourism
Symposium.
In stage one, ten (10) collections of oral history content will be selected for digitisation by State Library
of Queensland.
Successful applicants will receive a one-off contribution of $1800 toward the cost of flights and
accommodation for two (2) people to attend a three (3) day workshop in Brisbane, 30 April – 2 May
2014.
State Library of Queensland will:
 appraise, check, process and outsource the digitisation of selected oral histories
 co-ordinate a three (3) day workshop for project participants. Representatives from library
and community are welcome.
Topics to be covered in the workshop will include:
o how to edit digitised oral history content using the software Audacity;
o planning digitisation projects and assessment guidelines;
o discussion about copyright and consent;
o advice on using and leveraging digitised material, and how to create greater access
and discoverability (eg. History Pin, social media, heritage tourism, networks).
To assist in the selection of oral histories for digitisation as part of Playback, State Library has
developed a General Guide to Selecting Oral Histories (see attached).
Local event
Participating libraries will receive one-off seed funding of $1500 to undertake a program/event/activity
using the newly digitised oral history content to create an interesting and innovative outcome that
promotes their local region and recognises the value to community. A short story, short film,
animation, digital story, walking tour, online map, white headphones event, or interactive display are
some suggestions. The aim is to co-create Queensland content at the local level, empowering
everyone to regard collection content in new and different ways.
It is recommended the program or activity developed demonstrates a link between the newly digitised
oral content and the community. It must also be suitable for online use and be available to showcase
at the proposed Heritage Tourism Symposium. The content can be sophisticated (digital story;
performance; publication; walking tour) or simple (a photo essay, or a morning tea celebrating the
stories and subject of oral history in the community), as long as there is a connection linking the
content of the original oral histories selected for digitisation to a promotional event that celebrates the
value of local heritage.
Heritage Tourism Symposium
The one-day symposium is planned for November 2014. The symposium will:
- showcase the new content created by the Playback participants,
- build awareness of the new oral content contributed to Queensland by participating regions,
- highlight digital platforms that promote heritage and history (e.g. History Pin, Storify etc.).
The symposium will bring together galleries, libraries, archives, and museums, heritage organisations,
public libraries, local government, historians, tourism heritage industry representatives and online
producers and innovators. It will be an opportunity to explore the role Queensland’s heritage
organisations can play in the tourism market, showcase their capacity, highlight their offerings, and
establish connections within the sector.
Critical to the project
Libraries attending the workshop are required to bring their selection of analogue “cassette” or “reel to
reel” tapes with them to the workshop. The incoming items will be receipted and quarantined on Day 1
of the workshop. State Library will retain the master digital copy at the end of the project. Each
participating library will be provided physical copies of the digitised material on MP3 files (DVD) and a
link to the digitised item when processing is complete.
Successful applicants are responsible for gaining the assigned copyright clearance and need to
supply the documentation relating to the oral history interviews (e.g. deed of gift, donor details). The
success of the project is dependent on this. State Library will catalogue the material under a Creative
Commons license. The oral histories will be made live through SLQ's One Search catalogue and
consequently, able to be harvested by TROVE.
Selecting and preparing the material
A curatorial approach to selecting the oral history material for digitisation is desirable. Use the
General Guide to Selecting Oral Histories (attached) to inform your decision and selection.
Questions to consider: Does the oral history have a title; who was interviewed; who did the interview;
is there a photograph or a transcript to accompany the digital version; and is the subject Queensland
centric and of interest to a Queensland audience?
Inspecting the physical tapes for damage and listing the content details is vital to the project.
Completing the Playback Content Selection listing as fully as possible will assist with project
assessment. Successful applicants will be notified in March 2014 and expected to attend the
workshop in Brisbane scheduled from 30 April – 2 May 2014.
Consider the current fragility and stability of the content. For example, are the tapes able to be
prepared properly using a quality tape player? It is preferable to prepare the contents prior to their
inclusion, ie. forward and rewind the tapes from start to end to check for breakages. Store away from
magnetic fields and package securely to avoid movement during transportation.
Timeframes
Project offer
Expression of Interest opens
Expression of Interest closes
Successful Libraries notified
Date
16 Dec 2013
14 Feb 2014
Mar 2014
Events
Date
Playback workshop
30 Apr - 2 May 2014
Community created content activities commence
August 2014
Community created content activities completed
30 Sep 2014
Submissions for Symposium commence
Oct 2014
Heritage Tourism Symposium, SLQ
24 Nov 2014
Are you ready?
Once you have decided to register for the project, contact Distributed Collections Coordinator, Anne
Scheu complete the spread sheet listing your chosen Playback content selection or download the
content from Public Libraries Connect
When finalised, include the following information along with your expression of interest, entitled
Project Playback and forward to Anne by COB Friday 14 February 2014.
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A statement about the heritage significance of the material (approx. 300 words)
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A short summary of the copyright status of the oral history material (approx. 200 words)
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Details about the person/s interested in attending the workshop including their name, position
and contact details
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A brief description of your library’s community created content idea and how you will work
with at least one other heritage/history group or organisation in your community (approx. 200300 words)
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Contact details of the person submitting the EOI
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Complete and remember to forward your Playback Content Selection listing, providing the
project team with all the relevant information
Call Anne on 07 3842 9586 for more information or if you have any questions.
Email
Anne.Scheu@slq.qld.gov.au
Mailbag
Project Playback
Attn: Anne Scheu, Distributed Collections Co-ordinator
Queensland Memory
State Library of Queensland
PO Box 3488 Brisbane Q 4101
Playback
General Guide on selecting
Oral Histories
KEY PROJECT CONSIDERATIONS
1) Selecting oral histories for the project - Playback
You may have a substantial collection of oral histories and not know where to start. The first
consideration is whether the content pertains to ‘Queensland’. Sometimes it is difficult to quantify, but
the following example illustrates the difference. If an oral history was recorded in Queensland but has
no connection to Queensland in its content, it would most likely not be accepted. Instead, where an
oral history project traces the story of an individual, local identities or a family who migrated to
Queensland and incorporates both their experiences overseas as well as their Queensland
experience it would fit the Queensland criteria.
2) Copyright Permissions and Consent
Copyright clearances and consent and release forms will enable State Library of Queensland to
digitise selected oral histories for the project.
Copyright to re-use the material is particularly important as without it the oral histories cannot be
shared. Libraries participating in the project will need to make the oral histories available to SLQ
under a Creative Commons license through a Deed of Gift. More information about Copyright and
Creative Commons is available to be read on the State Library website.
It is important to understand that copies of the digital files selected for project Playback will be lodged
with the John Oxley Library and be part of the collection of State Library of Queensland.
SLQ will retain the master digital copy and the project participants will receive MP3 (derivative) files
and a link to the digitised content. The physical tapes will be returned. The oral histories will be made
live through SLQ's One Search catalogue and consequently, available to be harvested by TROVE.
Some more considerations when selecting material for digitisation
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The recording is a good quality sound;
You have the appropriate “meta data” – ie. you know who was interviewed, who interviewed,
where and when – the 4 “w’s”;
The interview is easy to understand; eg. people aren’t talking on top of each other;
The subject matter is important - to you, your organisation or region;
The interviewee tells a good yarn;
It’s a story never really heard before;
The interview has been transcribed;
There’s a photo of the interviewee;
Subject matter where the content may stimulate public debate;
The recording is not of a radio broadcast; and
The recording is original and not digitally available anywhere else.
Contact
We’re listening!
If you have questions about your content, or would like more conversation about the guide and
checklist, contact Zenovia Pappas, Contemporary Collecting Coordinator – Queensland Memory
State Library of Queensland
E: zenovia.pappas@slq.qld.gov.au