Events

ERA ANNUAL CONFERENCE

Unheard Legacies: Rethinking Early Recording Histories

University of Glasgow, 19 and 20 June 2026

Programme Committee: Eva Moreda Rodríguez (University of Glasgow), Inja Stanović (University of Surrey), Patrick Feaster (First Sounds Initiative), Nikos Ordoulidis (AltSol).

https://www.surrey.ac.uk/events/20260619-early-recordings-association-era-conference-2026

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Diskografentag: International Conference on Recorded Music. In honour of Hugo Strötbaum

Die Gesellschaft für Historische Tonträger (GHT) and Orient-Institut Istanbul

Friday 9 and Saturday 10 October 2026, Orient-Institut Istanbul

Deadline for submissions: 15 April 2026

Programme committee:

Dr. Inja Stanović (GHT, ERA, University of Surrey)

Dr. Cüneyt Ersin Mıhcı (Orient-Institut Istanbul)

Dr. Will Sumits (Orient-Institut Istanbul)

Die Gesellschaft für Historische Tonträger (GHT) is a non-profit association founded in Vienna in November 2002 and open to members worldwide. Its mission is to preserve historical sound recordings and to document, archive, and make their data and content accessible in accordance with scholarly standards. GHT also works to raise public awareness of this field and to promote related activities. GHT’s annual conference, Diskografentag 2026, will be hosted by the Orient-Institut Istanbul and is dedicated to the memory of Hugo Strötbaum (1946–2026), whose tireless work greatly contributed to discographic research in the eastern Mediterranean. This two-day conference will provide a forum for researchers, enthusiasts, and collectors to come together to discuss historical recordings, technologies, and practices.

The Programme Committee welcomes proposals for individual papers (20 minutes, followed by 10 minutes for questions), longer presentations (30 minutes, followed by 10 minutes for questions), and round-table discussions (90 minutes in total). GHT members and non-members alike—including musicologists, academics, musicians, collectors, enthusiasts, early-career researchers, and PhD students—are warmly invited to submit proposals. The conference language is English, but we welcome papers in Turkish that could be presented in English on behalf of the author. We welcome contributions on a wide range of topics, including, but not limited to:

• Early recordings from the eastern Mediterranean and extending to South and Southeast Asia
• Ethnomusicological aspects of historical recorded materials
• Ethnomusicological collections and recording practices
• Discographies and record archiving
• The development and compilation of discographies
• Database creation for discographic data and audio files

Please submit a 300-word abstract and a 100-word biography to i.stanovic@surrey.ac.uk

The full programme will be announced by 1 May 2026.

Any questions, please contact Dr. Inja Stanović (i.stanovic@surrey.ac.uk) 

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CLPGS Richard Taylor Bursary – Call for Applications

The City of London Phonograph and Gramophone Society (CLPGS) is the oldest society of its kind devoted to recorded sound and early talking machines, founded in 1919 with Thomas Edison as Patron. The Society supports and encourages scholarship and publication by individuals in the fields of sound recordings, early talking machines, and audio preservation. The CLPGS Richard Taylor Bursary exists to fund eligible projects in these areas, including discography, bibliography, historical studies of the sound recording industry and its products, company and record-label research, the history of talking machines, technological developments, and any other subject likely to increase the public's understanding and appreciation of the lasting importance of recorded sound.

Bursary grants are primarily (but not exclusively) intended to encourage applications from individuals whose research forms part of a master’s or doctoral academic programme. They may also support independent research and publishing projects. Both CLPGS members and non-members are eligible to apply for Bursary grants of at least £500. Grant funds may be used to cover clerical, travel, and editorial expenses. Funds may not be used to purchase capital equipment or recordings, create recordings (including field recordings), perform operations on sound recordings, reimburse applicants for work already performed, or support projects forming part of paid employment. Grant recipients may submit documentation to reclaim reasonable additional expenses, which must be claimed within eighteen months of the award.

Grant recipients are required to provide regular status updates to CLPGS and are encouraged to submit their results for publication in the CLPGS Journal For the Record. Recipients may also be invited to present their project outcomes at a CLPGS London meeting.

Application Requirements:

1. Project summary – One page maximum, with sample work attached if possible.
2. Budget outline – One page maximum, highlighting costs to be covered by the Bursary, any committed funds, and any pending funding requests (include source, amount, and purpose).
3. Curriculum Vitae – One page maximum.
4. Prospects for dissemination – Indicate potential publication or other public presentation(s) of project results.

All applications should be emailed to Dr. Inja Stanović at: i.stanovic@surrey.ac.uk

Closing date for applications: 31st March 2026

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