Preserving the Past & Sharing It Today: A New Partnership with the University of California
The Dust-to-Digital Foundation and the University of California, Santa Barbara have partnered to make thousands of historic recordings freely accessible to the public.
When Dust-to-Digital began in 1999, the goal was simple: to make it possible for people to hear music they couldn’t easily find anywhere else. Our early releases paired rare recordings with books, photographs, and research so listeners could learn about and better understand the histories that shaped music.
Over time, through working closely with private collectors and also seeing the changing landscape of how recorded music is experienced, we became aware of a deeper need: large-scale digitization and long-term public access.
In 2010, we created a not-for-profit organization to address those needs. We began training technicians from within the collectors’ community to digitize fragile 78 rpm discs in the homes where they had been amassed. This approach helped preserve collections that might never have entered an archive and might otherwise have been unheard.
More than a decade later, that work has led us to the milestone we are thrilled to share today:
The Dust-to-Digital Foundation and the University of California, Santa Barbara have partnered to make thousands of historic recordings freely accessible to the public through the Discography of American Historical Recordings (DAHR).
At UC Santa Barbara, these recordings are being added to DAHR, a public-access database documenting recordings from the 78 rpm era. DAHR pairs streaming audio with detailed artist and label information, making it a trusted resource for scholars, musicians, archivists, and curious listeners alike.
This collaboration combines UCSB’s digital infrastructure and commitment to public access with our long-standing relationships with collectors, trained technicians, and the workflows that make home-based digitization possible. Together, we share a mission: to keep music from being lost.
So far, UCSB Library’s Special Research Collections has added more than 5,000 recordings from the Dust-to-Digital Foundation archive, with thousands more on the way. There, they benefit from long-term digital preservation, open public streaming for noncommercial use, rich research context, and—when they enter the public domain at the century-old mark—free downloads.
Over time, collectors age, family archives shift, and physical media becomes fragile. Without long-term preservation planning and public access, these performances risk slipping away. The Dust-to-Digital Foundation exists to ensure that does not happen.
How this work happens
Trained technicians from within the collectors’ community set up in the homes where these discs have lived for years. Using specialized turntables, cartridges, and metadata workflows, they digitize each side carefully. They also scan and/or photograph each side of the record’s label for reference.
The process is slow—sometimes thousands of records takes months or years—but it has opened access to collections that might otherwise remain unheard. We are grateful to the technicians and collectors who make this possible. Their ears, hands, and patience are part of the preservation process.
The Collectors Behind the Story
Many of the recordings now available were preserved by collectors who spent lifetimes searching for them. A large portion of this work comes from the late Joe Bussard, whose obsession built one of the most culturally important private archives in the United States. Without people like Joe—and other generous collectors including Roger Misiewicz, Frank Mare, and Nathan Salsburg—vast swaths of American music would have disappeared.
What’s Next
In the coming months, more recordings from our archive will be added to DAHR, alongside curated features and contextual storytelling. Scholars, students, musicians, and curious listeners will have new opportunities to explore traditions that once traveled person-to-person.
We’ll continue to release projects through our label, radio programs, and social platforms—sharing both archival material and contemporary performance. But this partnership provides something fundamentally different: continuity. It ensures that this music will outlive any one collection or format—that it will be heard, studied, and enjoyed generations from now.
Explore the Music
Visit the Discography of American Historical Recordings.
Support This Work
Digitization at this scale is resource-intensive and every contribution helps keep music history accessible to everyone.
Thank you for being a part of this mission. We hope you find a bounty of joy in these songs from the past.
— April and Lance Ledbetter
Incredible ya’ll!
This is huge. As someone who has pursued similar work in the Tap Dance world, I can attest to the amount of resources and effort that goes into what you all have accomplished. Congratulations on the milestone!