Exhibits in Special Collections

Press Play: Recorded Music from Groove to Stream

976 Memorial Library

September 7, 2022 – December 22, 2022

Open Monday-Friday 9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.

The confluence of music, art, and technology over the past 150 years has dramatically changed how we record and listen to music, from grooves to tape to digital disc to streaming services and beyond. Drawing from Mills Music Library and Wisconsin Music Archives collections, Press Play highlights the revolution evolution and the unique cultures inspired by each format. Visitors are encouraged to listen to historic recordings and to ponder the future of recorded sound and how it might be preserved.

Exhibit curated by Nathan D. Gibson and Mills Music Library staff.

Exhibit talk with curator Nathan D. Gibson on Wednesday, October 26, 2022, 3:00 – 4:00 p.m.

Gibson and Mills Music Library staff have also created a playlist of 53 recordings accompanying Press Play that you may access via the listening station in Special Collections, by clicking on this link, or by scanning this QR code, which you will also find posted throughout the exhibition.