Birthplace of Country Music Museum Wants to Restore Old Recording

Believe it or not boys and girls, a LONG time ago, music was on a circular disc made of vinyl (and even before that, lacquer or wax). That little musical medium was called a record.

In Bristol, VA, there is a museum called the Birthplace of Country Music Museum. In this museum, they house vintage recordings, instruments, and other tidbits and do-dads. Deep in the bowels of this museum is a recording of a live radio transcription disc of the Stanley Brothers & The Clinch Mountain Boys on Bristol's "Farm and Fun Time". The museum has applied for a popular vote-based grant that, if won, will grant the museum the money it needs to restore this prehistoric recording back to its original splendor. You can't just glue the thing back together and slap a needle on it; you've got to get a bit more creative with it.

A laser is used to scan the pieces of the disc, which allows a computer to see the dips and hills of the recording in the record. From there, with some magic, the computer converts this into a digital file that they can begin to restore. I had never heard of the process, trust me my brain is now full, but it's absolutely amazing since I thought "restoring" my CDs meant just rubbing them on my shirt!

Voting is still going on until tomorrow (Wednesday, Jan 24). If you'd like to vote and help get this record restored, visit the voting website here and give them a vote. The competition is close (and a bit strange), and includes a sink, a ceremonial collar, and an old still from the area.