Two Years of Avalon Celebration

Sound and video recordings have challenges for both preservation and access. Every physical recording carrier is degrading and becoming obsolete. Even CDs and DVDs, which we often think of as stable, are susceptible to data loss and library users increasingly do not have access to playback equipment. Because of this, Callie Holmes and Matthew Vest led an effort to implement Avalon, a secure streaming platform, for UCLA, securing approval in 2016. Avalon allows UCLA authenticated users to stream material that is under copyright for research and pedagogical purposes. 

In April 2019, Avalon was in production and the UCLA Music Library began to add content. By March 2020, there were 200 recordings available in Avalon. Since then, Christopher Brennan, Alan Lee, and Matthew Vest have worked from home to add over 1,700 recordings from the Music Library, Arts Library, East Asian Library and Young Research Library. With over 2,500 hours of media published, users could listen or view 24 hours a day for over 15 weeks without repeating content. Avalon has received over 26,000 media views since September 2020, allowing significantly greater access to media collections than previously possible at UCLA. 

The UCLA Music Library adds recordings every week. Recent additions from the Music Library’s collections include Southern California Punk CDs, Los Angeles Hip Hop CDs, Bollywood DVDs, and some of the most used CDs. You can listen and watch via Avalon and also find links in the Library Catalog to individual Avalon recordings. You can request that we add a recording from our circulating collections. Send any request via email with the Call Number for the recording. 

Please enjoy these recommended recordings in Avalon from UCLA Librarians and Library Staff.