Which comes first, the project or the people?

Sometimes the interview candidate helps you to discover a specific topic, rather than the other way around. You may know or be introduced to someone with a fascinating story to tell. With a little investigation and/or after talking to this person, you may identify other individuals to interview on the same topic. You may choose to conduct a shorter initial interview (or pre-interview by telephone), and then narrow your topic and develop a targeted set of questions.

If your project is driven by an interest in a specific topic, you will need to identify the appropriate individuals to interview. For local subjects, the best sources of information are people you know and your surrounding community. Community organizations such as churches, service and veterans clubs, and volunteer fire departments often have members who may be potential interviewees or who know others in the area. Local libraries and historical societies often have staff or volunteers who are knowledgeable about individuals in the community.

If you are conducting scholarly research or plan to work on an article or book, you might consider developing a press release and flyers to be posted in public places. Contact appropriate organizations and ask if they will place a notice in their member or volunteer newsletter. It is especially important to conduct your project in a professional way if you choose widespread advertisement of your project.

Research is required

The process of developing a topic for an oral history project is similar to any other history project: background research is essential. Explore potential topics by developing a working bibliography of books, newspapers, journals and other printed materials. Conduct an internet search to explore similar projects or to find sources outside your local area. A good final product will be based upon a wide range of written sources, as well as your interviews.

Write a statement that identifies the focus of your project. While the initial statement may be relatively broad, it will help you establish a basis for your interview questions. Consider what aspects of your topic involve personal information or perspectives not readily found in typical sources. This will be the core information you will hope to gather in your personal interviews, rather than facts that can be found in written sources.

Once you have conducted your preliminary research and developed a basic set of questions, you are ready to begin making contacts. While you may not know everything about a topic in advance, your research will help you ask intelligent questions. When you call to set up an interview, you might ask a few, "pre-interview" questions and then fine-tune your questions before the first interview

Method without Madness: Go digital!

Documentation Methods
Plan ahead for video, multi-media or broadcast-quality sound.
Your method of documentation depends upon the final product you have in mind. If you would like to create a documentary-style movie, you will need to record your interview on video. If you plan to develop a PowerPoint-type presentation with audio, make sure you collect photographs and documents along with audio recordings. Any presentation that will include live audio (such as an NPR-style radio broadcast) or that documents music or other oral traditions will need to be high in quality and easy to edit, using digital rather than analog (tape recorder) recordings.

Video requires extra planning, and a partner.
If you plan a video presentation, you should collect video recordings from the beginning and work with a partner. Do not make the mistake of conducting audio interviews and then going back to "reinterview" to get the footage you need. It may signal to your interviewees that you do not value your time. Also, the interviewee is far less likely to act naturally. In order to get interesting and clear footage, you will need another person to act as videographer so that you are not distracted by the equipment or trying to have a conversation from behind a camera.

Your first interview might just be your last.
Even if you will be conducting an interview using standard audio recordings only, you should plan to gather everything you need during one appointment. The interview meeting may be your one and only chance to conduct the interview, photograph the subject, and gather additional photographs and documents. If you would like to see photo albums, scrapbooks, etc., mention this in advance so that the interviewee has them ready. A follow-up appointment may not always be possible.

Equipment

Good, working equipment is essential for any oral history project. Fortunately, high-quality audio and video recording equipment are now easily accessible and relatively inexpensive. Most importantly, you need to know how to properly use your equipment (or work with someone who does, in the case of video). Always record your interviews in some manner, no matter how good you are at taking notes. There will always be something you will miss, whether it is the exact way a person expresses themselves or an important piece of information.

Digital audio/voice recorders
Digital audio has become the least expensive way to record high-quality sound. Most of these recorders are small enough to fit in your hand and contain sensitive built-in microphones.
External business microphones are an excellent add-on and allow you to sit at a more comfortable distance from the interviewee, but many recorders have adequate built-in microphones.

Recorders come either with built-in memory (as much as 1300 minutes) or use removable media such as memory sticks which can greatly increase the number of minutes you can store. Whether you choose built-in memory or removable memory, be sure to choose a model that allows you to connect by USB cable to your computer so that you can transfer your audio files to the computer for transcription and make copies on CDs. Or, you can spend a bit more and get a recorder which records directly to CD!

Analog tape recorders
Analog tape recorders (including reel-to-reel tape) were the gold standard of the past. Today, many libraries and archives have analog audio tapes in their collections and these have proven not to deteriorate quickly.

The types of high-quality recorders oral historians once used (and some still use) cost hundreds of dollars. You can record an adequate interview with a standard tape recorder with an external microphone, but it will not compare to digital sound. If you do use such a recorder, buy 60-minute tapes since 90-minute or longer tapes are physically thinner and more likely to break. Built-in microphones are rarely sensitive enough, so you will need to purchase a good-quality external microphone.

Do not use micro-cassette recorders, since the tapes are not usable in other machines and are not of very good quality.

Digital camcorders
If you want to create a video-based presentation, there is no substitute for a digital camcorder and video editing software such as iMovie (for Macintosh computers) and Ulead DVD Moviefactory, Adobe Premiere Elements or Roxio Videowave (for Windows-based computers). Some of these software programs also allow you to input and edit older analog video recordings.

When using a digital camcorder, you will want to work with a partner who will be your videographer. This should be someone who is comfortable with the equipment and who will be a minimal presence during the interview.

You may find that people who are willing to be interviewed on audio will be uncomfortable with a camcorder, so make sure you let them know you will be using a video recorder before the interview.

Digital or Film Camera
Even if you are not planning a multimedia or video presentation, you should bring a camera to your interview to take a photo of the interviewee. A camera may also be used to document living/work spaces, objects, or techniques. If you have more advanced photography skills, you may attempt to make photographic copies of documents or photographs, especially if the interviewee is reluctant to let you borrow them.

Learn about your equipment
Test the equipment in advance. Practice using the recording device and play the recording back to ensure that the audio and/or video sound quality will be good. The night or morning before an interview, check battery levels and that you have all your supplies packed.

Bring necessary supplies such as extra batteries, power cords, film, tapes, microphones, a tripod, questions, release form pen/pencil and paper. It is very embarrassing to have to reschedule an interview because your batteries are dead.

Create a quiet environment. Constant background noise can dramatically affect the quality of a recording. Request that a noisy pet be placed outside or in another room, ask to turn off the TV or turn down the air conditioning.

Check that the equipment is working properly after you record introductions. You may need to place the microphone on a book to reduce vibration noise or ask the interviewee to move closer. You might have to remind them to speak more slowly or loudly if your equipment has limitations.

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