Preparing the Next Generation of Sound Activists

Much like the threat of climate change, the threat to Detroit’s audio heritage is real and it is here now. The Preservation Factory presented here for the first time by Detroit Sound Conservancy is a mobile, educational site and experiment in staving off this sonic apocalypse currently at work destroying Detroit’s rich audio archives. We imagine that our factory will be built from a combination of historical equipment from no longer extent Detroit music studios as well as contemporary preservation gear.

Our vision is that the Preservation Factory will draw Detroit students to the hands-on skills and imagination required to preserve Detroit musical legacies with materials sourced from the dank basements of Detroit musicians, audiences, and studios. The archival process (acquiring, accessioning, inventorying, arranging, describing, programming, and exhibiting) is serious work but it is also thrilling, creative, and fun.

We look forward to hosting our first cohort of students soon. In the meantime, we are sharing this vision as part of the Salvaging Sound exhibit at Detroit Historical Museum from January 19-April 7, 2019.

If you have any questions or would like to get involved please contact our director via email at director@detroitsound.org or call direct at 313-757-5082.

#PreservationFactory

Updated 22 February 2019