Free archives and databases

Archive Internet ArchiveMillions of free recordings: 78rpm discs, field recordings, live concerts, radio. Searchable from this site's Archive panel. archive.org Label / Archive Smithsonian FolkwaysThe non-profit label of the Smithsonian; liner notes for every album are free PDFs, plus the Folkways magazine and lesson plans. folkways.si.edu Field Recordings Association for Cultural Equity (Alan Lomax Archive)17,000+ of Alan Lomax's field recordings from the US, Caribbean, Europe and beyond, streamable for free. archive.culturalequity.org Map / Database The Global JukeboxInteractive map of 6,000 songs from 1,000+ cultures, built on Lomax's Cantometrics research. theglobaljukebox.org Archive British Library SoundsWorld and traditional music collection with thousands of ethnographic recordings. sounds.bl.uk Archive Library of Congress – American Folklife CenterEthnographic collections, including the Lomax family recordings and the Federal Cylinder Project. www.loc.gov Archive International Library of African Music (ILAM)Hugh Tracey's recordings from across sub-Saharan Africa (1920s–1970s), at Rhodes University. www.ru.ac.za Aggregator Europeana MusicAggregated European cultural heritage: recordings, instruments, scores and photographs. www.europeana.eu Blog / 78s Excavated ShellacLong-running blog and radio archive of 78rpm world music with scholarly notes. excavatedshellac.com Blog / Label Awesome Tapes From AfricaCassette-era African pop and folk, digitised with full-album streams. www.awesometapes.com Live Radio Radio GardenSpin a globe and tune into live radio stations anywhere on earth. radio.garden Map / Radio RadioooooPick a country and a decade and listen to what people were hearing there and then. radiooooo.com Open Media Wikimedia Commons – AudioFreely licensed recordings and instrument samples usable in articles. commons.wikimedia.org Scores IMSLP / Petrucci Music LibraryPublic-domain scores, including many folk-song collections and transcriptions. imslp.org Database MusicBrainzOpen music encyclopedia and metadata database with area/country tagging. musicbrainz.org Reference UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage – Performing ArtsInscribed musical traditions with videos, documentation and nomination files. ich.unesco.org