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SEAPAVAA Newsletter |
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IN FOCUS: 30 years of IASA (1969-1999) By Ulf Scharlau Südwestrundfunk Stuttgart (Germany)
IASA was born 18 August 1969 during the annual conference of the International Association of Music Libraries (IAML). It began when several sound archivists of IAML gathered at the Institute of Theatre Sound and Picture in Amsterdam. They had been planning to find an association devoted specifically to sound archives. Two associations concerned with the documentation of sound carriers did exist already, namely IAML (through its Record Libraries Commission) and the Federation Internationale des Phonotheques (FIP). However, those at the meeting were convinced that the activities of the two organizations did not help them attain their archival ambitions. They realized that international collaboration in their field was an absolute must, especially in the face of rapid technological progress. It was this conviction that led to the formation of the association on a Friday, 22 August 1969. The IASA's founders are: Patrick Saul (British Institute of Recorded Sound, London), Donald L. Leavitt (Library of Congress, Washington), Philip Miller (Rodgers & Hammerstein Archives, New York), Dietrich Lotichius (Norddeutscher Rundfunk, Hamburg), Herbert Rosenberg (Nationaldiskoteket, Kopenhagen), Claes Cnattingius (Sveriges Radio, Stockholm), Rolk Schuursma (Stichting Film en Wetenschap, Utrecht), and Timothy Eckersley (BBC, London).
"...It is striking how often IASA has managed to engage in developments in the field of sound archiving and new technologies in audio- documentation at the earliest possible stage." Taking into consideration the rather primitive means of worldwide communication in those distant days, the founders of the organization expressed all but utopian aims. Don Leavitt (Washington) was elected first president of IASA, Rolf Schuursma became secretary. In 1972, the association had 40 institutions and 37 individuals as members. IASA would not have been able to organize the annual meetings by itself, therefore a larger infrastructure had to be used. At times like this, diplomacy and tact tested the mettle of IASA, and IAML was the obvious choice. The official foundation ceremony took place with 24 participants. The organization was named International Association of Sound Archives (IASA). For many years, IAML and IASA held their annual conferences together and inspired one another with their different fields of work. After a series of meetings in 1978-1980, a so-called "Joint IAML/IASA Working Committee on Music and Sound Archives" was founded. Claes Cnattingius (Sveriges Radio Stockholm), Derek Lewis (BBC London), Marie-France Calas (Bibliotheque Nationale Paris) and Ulf Scharlau (Suddeutscher Rundfunk Stuttgart) were appointed members of the Joint Committee. Its task was to meet before the annual conferences in order to organize events in which both associations shared interests and to minimize conflicts. In the mid 1970's a younger generation of archivists became influential in IASA. Two colleagues in particular should be mentioned: David Lance (then at the Imperial War Museum, London) and Dietrich Schuller (Phonogramm-Archiv der Akademie der Wissenschaften, Vienna). They were soon to take on important functions in IASA's board. IASA has been fortunate in continuing to find highly qualified personalities who are willing to run for positions on the executive board of the organization. The roll-call of presidents includes: Donald L. Leavitt (USA, 1969-1972), Timothy Eckersley (England, 1972-1975), Dietrich Schuller (Austria, 1975-1978), Rolf Schuursma (Netherlands, 1978-1981), David Lance (England, 1981-1984), Ulf Scharlau (Germany, 1984-1987), Helen Harrison (England, 1987-1990), Gerald Gibson (USA, 1990-1993), James McCarthy (Australia, 1993-1996) and Sven Allerstrand (Sweden, 1996-1999). General Secretaries (the backbone of our association) have included: Rolf Schuursma (Netherlands, 1969-1975), David Lance (England, 1975-1981), Helen Harrison (England, 1981-1987), Jean-Claude Hayoz (Switzerland, 1987-1990), Sven Allerstrand (Sweden, 1990-1996) and the current secretary Albrecht Hafner (Germany, since 1996).
"...IASA owes much of its high international reputation to the excellent work of the technical committee..." IASA's work has been determined by various themes and topics. It is striking how often IASA has managed to engage in developments in the field of sound archiving and new technologies in audio-documentation at the earliest possible stage. In the early years, IASA was mainly concerned with information on archives and archive structures in the member countries. As early as 1972, the Phonographic Bulletin (subsequently IASA Journal) reported on archives in the Soviet Union, and followed during the next 10 years by reports on other Asian countries notably China and Africa. Methodical issues and principal questions addressed by archives dominated the agenda, such as:
IASA's technical committee was founded in 1975 and has had an enormous impact on IASA's work as a whole. IASA owes much of its high international reputation to the excellent work of the technical committee. Its work has been dominated by the following topics:
Other questions frequently discussed have concerned cooperation with partner organizations such as IAML, Association FranVaise des Archives Sonores (AFAS), Association for Recorded Sound Collections (ARSC), International Federation of Library Associations (IFLA), International Federation of Television Archives (FIAT), and International Federation of Film Archives (FIAF) and especially UNESCO. Another regular topic is the discussion of IASA's future roles and a philosophy of AV-archiving. Digitization has since dominated the agenda since 1993. Like other associations, IASA has been subjected to organizational change and has always had to adapt to constantly emerging problems. In the beginning, IASA acted primarily as a union of professional institutions. The forming of specialized committees encouraged the discussion of several sub-disciplines in the field of archives. Presently the following committees are in operation: discography, cataloguing and documentation, national archives, radio sound archives and technical committee. Discussion within the committees increased IASA's professionalism to a large extent. IASA succeeded in recruiting many new members in the 1970's and 1980's most of whom came from the US and Australia, including a large number of private collectors. Not surprisingly, this development had constitutional effects on IASA. National interests of many countries have been given added weight by IASA itself through the foundation of national branches. These platforms help promote national interest within the executive board and IASA as a whole. With their excellent connections to non-governmental organizations, both Helen Harrison, IASA general secretary for many years, and Dietrich Schuller have boosted the Association's prestige by furthering its application to become a member of UNESCO. This success has enabled IASA to recruit new members from non-Western countries, i.e. countries in Asia, Africa, and most recently in South America. Since the end of the Cold War, IASA has gained many new members from the former socialist countries of Middle and Eastern Europe. At the Helsinki Conference in 1993, the possible extension of IASA activities into the visual field (principally video) was the center of discussion. This was a case of history repeating itself. A clash of interests with existing organizations, such as FIAT, could have developed. Diplomatic skills were applied with this kind of problem. My review of 30 years of IASA can be summarized as follows. A professional organization operating on a worldwide basis, even if it is relatively small, can succeed in pursuing and reaching its targets through persistence. The present and future of audio archiving and documentation is and will continue to be dominated by digitization. Digitization of collected items, changes in methods of working within archives, and the development of collected items, changes in methods of working within archives, and the development from archivist to data manager are the main challenges our profession is facing today. The networks of communication are getting tighter and tighter. Internet and e-mail systems provide us with means of communication that the founding members of IUASA could not have imagined in their boldest visions. If IASA succeeds in further increasing the professionalism of its members and member institutions, if IASA succeeds in encouraging its members to cooperate with and within the association, and if IASA succeeds in maintaining open and fair cooperation with other professional organizations, then there will be no need to concerns about its future. However, it is also necessary to professionalize IASA's management. Moreover, independent initiatives or jealousies of single nations and institutions have to make second place to the common target of a worldwide network in the field of audioarchives. We can only reach this target together. With this in mind: Ad multos annos, IASA!
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