National Recording Registry

The National Recording Registry is a list of sound recordings that "are culturally, historically, or aesthetically important, and/or inform or reflect life in the United States." The registry was established by the National Recording Preservation Act of 2000, which created the National Recording Preservation Board, whose members are appointed by the Librarian of Congress.

Fifty recordings were added to the registry in the first four years (2002-2005). The 2006 registry was 25 recordings.

In late 2006, National Public Radio broadcast a five-part series of programs spotlighting selections from the 2005 Registry.

Selection criteria

The criteria for selection are as follows:

Recordings selected for the National Recording Registry are those that are culturally, historically or aesthetically important, and/or inform or reflect life in the United States.
For the purposes of recording selection, "sound recordings" are defined as works that result from the fixation of a series of musical, spoken, or other sounds, but not including the sound component of a moving image work, unless it is available as an autonomous sound recording or is the only extant component of the work.
Recordings may be a single item or group of related items; published or unpublished; and may contain music, non-music, spoken word, or broadcast sound.
Recordings will not be considered for inclusion into the National Recording Registry if no copy of the recording exists.
No recording should be denied inclusion into the National Recording Registry because that recording has already been preserved.
No recording is eligible for inclusion into the National Recording Registry until ten years after the recording's creation.