Hello, This is my first inquiry to this list. In August, I began in my position as archivist for the Eastman School of Music's Audio Archive. Briefly, this archive consists of approximately 34,000 Eastman concerts recorded from 1933 up to the present. The bulk of these recordings is on reel-to-reel tape. Of particular recent concern for preservation are 2,816 recordings on digital tape. Unfortunately, playback equipment for these recordings is now obsolete, so it is imperative to transfer these recordings to another media before our playback equipment wears out. While we have been transferring here and there to CD-R, mainly in order to provide service copies, the audio engineers here at Eastman are now seriously considering the option of transferring directly to hard drive, with several servers to provide for back-up. I would be very interested to hear from engineers, archivists or librarians with experience in, or knowledge of, the process of archiving to hard disc. Any responses will be seriously considered as we determine whether to go ahead with this form of preservation. Thanks in advance, Claire Michelle Viola Sound Recording Archivist Eastman Audio Archive Sibley Music Library 27 Gibbs Street Rochester, NY 14604 (585) 274-1330 [log in to unmask]