Austrian Mediathek

The Austrian Mediathek, or Österreichische Mediathek, is Austria's principal archive for sound recordings and videos related to the country's cultural and contemporary history. Established in 1960 by the Austrian Ministry of Education under the name Österreichische Phonothek, it developed from a sound-focused collecting institution into a national audiovisual heritage archive. Since 2001 it has operated as a branch of the Technisches Museum Wien, integrating its preservation and public-access work into the institutional framework of Austria's technical and cultural heritage sector. The archive's remit covers audiovisual media published or produced in Austria, together with international recordings that have a significant connection to Austria. It also selectively records radio and television programmes received in the country. Its holdings are not limited to commercially issued recordings: they include broadcast material, live events, oral-history interviews, personal estates, scientific films and recordings that document public life. The collection therefore functions both as a preservation repository and as a source for research into Austrian music, literature, politics, science, media history and everyday experience. The Mediathek's holdings extend from the nineteenth century to the present. Formats represented in the collections include instantaneous discs, shellac records, vinyl records, audio tapes, DAT cassettes, compact cassettes, CDs, DVDs, multiple generations of video formats and born-digital or digitised files. Notable bodies of material include the former collection of the Austrian Institute for Scientific Film, live recordings of sessions of the Austrian Parliament, recordings of Burgtheater premieres dating from 1955 onward, post-war radio material in the Rot-Weiß-Rot collection, and interwar shellac recordings assembled by Günther Schifter. The archive also preserves selected radio and television broadcasts, oral-history testimonies and the estates of Austrian artists and scientists. Preservation is a central part of the institution's identity. Because analogue carriers deteriorate and playback technologies become obsolete, the Austrian Mediathek places particular emphasis on digitisation, digital preservation and long-term access to audiovisual files. Scientific and editorial projects examine the collections, establish context and make selected material usable for education, scholarship and the public. The institution is a reference archive rather than a conventional mass-market streaming service. Only portions of its holdings are available online, but its digital initiatives provide substantial public access. These include virtual exhibitions, thematic databases, an acoustic chronicle of Austrian history from 1900 to 2008, and journale.at, which presents Ö1 radio journals from 1967 to 1999. The online project Österreich am Wort makes more than 9,000 sound recordings and videos on Austrian cultural history accessible through the web. Through these services, the Austrian Mediathek combines archival stewardship with digital cultural mediation while retaining its role as a specialist research collection.

The institution now known as the Austrian Mediathek was founded in 1960 as the Österreichische Phonothek, or Austrian Phonothek, by the Austrian Ministry of Education. Its original identity reflected an emphasis on sound recording, but its collecting and preservation responsibilities later expanded to encompass moving-image material and a broader range of audiovisual documentation. The archive's purpose has been to preserve media that illuminate Austria's cultural, political, scientific and social history, including both material produced in Austria and foreign recordings connected with the country. Over time, the collection grew across successive generations of recording technology. Its holdings came to include instantaneous discs, shellac and vinyl records, magnetic tapes, DAT and compact cassettes, CDs, DVDs, video formats and digital files. The chronological span reaches from the nineteenth century to the present. In addition to published recordings, the archive acquired or preserved broadcast material, live recordings, interviews and personal or institutional collections. Among the significant holdings are the former collection of the Austrian Institute for Scientific Film, recordings of Austrian Parliament sessions, Burgtheater premiere recordings from 1955 onward, the post-war Rot-Weiß-Rot radio collection and Günther Schifter's interwar shellac collection. A major institutional change occurred in 2001, when the Österreichische Mediathek became a branch of the Technisches Museum Wien. The relationship placed the archive within a larger museum organisation while preserving its specialist role in sound and audiovisual heritage. Its responsibilities include collecting, preserving and selectively recording radio and television programmes received in Austria. It excludes film on photographic carrier material and photography, which fall outside its defined audiovisual remit. Digitisation and digital preservation have become increasingly important to the institution's work. The Mediathek addresses the physical deterioration of analogue carriers and the disappearance of playback equipment by converting selected holdings into digital formats and developing methods for their long-term preservation. Research and scholarly projects also assess the archival holdings, identify their historical significance and add interpretive context. Public access is provided through the archive's reference services and through selected online projects. The institution has created virtual exhibitions and thematic databases, including an acoustic chronicle presenting Austrian history between 1900 and 2008. The journale.at platform provides Ö1 sound-radio journals from 1967 to 1999, while Österreich am Wort offers more than 9,000 recordings and videos related to Austrian cultural history. These initiatives extend the archive's reach beyond on-site researchers and support education, cultural history research and public engagement. The Austrian Mediathek remains an active preservation and access institution whose work connects historical media carriers with contemporary digital scholarship and public discovery.

• 2008

  End of the acoustic chronicle's documented period

  [1]Österreichische Mediatheken.wikipedia.org

  The archive's acoustic chronicle presents selected audiovisual documentation of Austrian history from 1900 through 2008.

• 2001

  Becomes a branch of Technisches Museum Wien

  [1]Österreichische Mediatheken.wikipedia.org

  The institution became part of the Technisches Museum Wien and continued its specialist work in audiovisual heritage preservation.

• 1960

  Austrian Phonothek founded

  [1]Österreichische Mediatheken.wikipedia.org

  The Austrian Ministry of Education established the Österreichische Phonothek as a national institution for collecting and preserving sound recordings.

National audiovisual heritage archive and specialist reference institution focused on preserving, contextualising and providing access to Austrian sound recordings and videos.

• Archival collection

  Audio archive

  The audio archive contains Austrian and Austria-related recordings spanning the nineteenth century to the present. It includes music, literature, political speech, scientific material, radio programmes, oral-history interviews, live events and personal estates. Physical carriers range from shellac and vinyl records to magnetic tape, cassettes, CDs and digital files. The collection is preserved as a research resource rather than offered as a conventional commercial music service.

• Archival collection

  Video archive

  The video archive preserves selected Austrian and Austria-related moving-image recordings, including broadcast material, scientific films and cultural documentation. Its holdings cover multiple historical video formats as well as digitised and digital files. The archive's remit excludes film on photographic carrier material and photography, allowing the institution to concentrate on video and related audiovisual media.

• Online archive

  Österreich am Wort

  Österreich am Wort is an online access project focused on Austrian cultural history. It makes more than 9,000 sound recordings and videos available online, enabling users to explore historical voices, performances, interviews and audiovisual documents without visiting the physical reference archive.

• Online radio archive

  journale.at

  journale.at provides full-length Ö1 sound-radio journals from 1967 to 1999. The service preserves and presents a substantial body of Austrian broadcast journalism, making historical radio coverage available for research and public listening.

• Digital exhibition

  Acoustic Chronicle

  The acoustic chronicle is a thematic digital presentation of Austrian history through selected sound and audiovisual documents. Its coverage runs from 1900 to 2008 and uses archival recordings to connect major historical periods with the voices and sounds preserved by the Mediathek.

1. 1Österreichische Mediatheken.wikipedia.org
2. 2Österreichische Mediathek official websitemediathek.at