Audio and Video Clips on this Web Site: Where are they? How do I play them?

Under Collection Highlights, a number of brief audio and video clips are available for playback, offering a sampling of the historic and artistic content in the collection.

The audio and video are streamed as Flash media. To view and listen to the files, the Flash Player from Adobe must be installed on your computer. According to Adobe, 98% of computers in use today have the Flash Player installed. If you are part of the 2% that don't, you can download the software (available for both PC and Mac), from the Adobe web site. The Adobe Flash Player site provides information on system requirements. Installation instructions are included with the download.

If you are connecting to the Internet by way of either a 5K modem, wireless with a weak signal, or a cable connection with heavy concurrent traffic, you may experience delays or errors in playing back the media.

Still having trouble playing the media files and need technical help? Contact mjf-support@lists.stanford.edu.

Is more media from the MJF archive at Stanford available online for download? How can I access the recordings?

The 1,000+ hours of recordings in the archive represent a multitude of rights holders, and neither Stanford University nor the Monterey Jazz Festival owns the right to distribute the recordings over the web.

General questions and requests to access recordings in the collection should be directed to the Stanford Archive of Recorded Sound. For more information about making a listening appointment at the archive, check out the Using the Collection section.

Also check out CDs available from Monterey Jazz Festival Records.

Is the archive complete?

No. Unfortunately there are a few years in the festival's history -- 1968, 1969, 1984, 1987 -- for which recordings of the performances are not represented in the collection. Also, for some years the documentary record of the festival is incomplete. Continuous efforts are made to fill the gaps in the collection.

I'm searching for a performer who played at the Festival, but his/her name is not in the database. Is this a mistake? Is the collection's online database complete?

No, not exactly. For large ensembles, such as big bands and orchestras, or for bands where the players were rotating in and out over the course of a set, it was not possible to catalog with certainty the names of all performers for each tune performed. In these cases, the name of the band and any featured performer (such as a soloist) are included in the database record.

Complete listings of performers for large bands can be found in the festival programs (though because they were printed in advance of the festival itself, the information in the programs is not always accurate). Please contact the Archive of Recorded Sound (soundarchive@stanford.edu) for further assistance.

How often is the database updated with information about new recordings in the collection?

The database is updated annually with each deposit of material received at the Stanford Archive of Recorded Sound from the Festival.

Currently the database contains information about recordings dating between 1956 and 2005. With the next major update to the site in 2010, the database will include the festival recordings from 2006 and later.

How can I learn more about the digital collection project?

Check out About the Collection.