This collection includes the papers and sound recordings collection of band historian and collector Frederick P. Williams. Williams collected early band records (78s and cylinders)—primarily acoustically recorded concert and military band recordings from around the world. He also assembled a large collection of research materials on many famous early bands (Sousa, Pryor, etc) as well as the lesser known "ethnic" bands led by Giuseppe Creatore and others. The finding guide to these research materials and other items is available on the Online Archive of California.
The 2,500 cylinders from his collection are being cataloged and digitized through the UCSB Cylinder Audio Archive.
The collection of 78rpm discs numbers between 25,000 and 30,000 items. Cataloged discs can be found in UC Library Search. Digital copies can be requested through a Special Collections Research Account.
Photographs of the collection and its transport from Philadelphia to Santa Barbara can be found here.
For more information on the collection or assistance in using the materials, please contact Special Collections staff at special@library.ucsb.edu.
