Born in 19th-century Cuban dance halls, danzón eventually became the country’s official national dance. Influenced by African and European music and dance traditions, it continues to thrive outside the big island’s borders, in Mexico and beyond, in orchestra halls and dance salons, leaving an indelible mark on Latin American culture. It’s a genre all its own and a lovely bit of romance to remember during Hispanic Heritage Month here in the U.S. The Library has plenty of music, films and books to help you explore its rich history.
Hannah Whitaker, interning this summer as a junior fellow in the National Audio-Visual Conservation Center, discusses her work in helping preserve live recordings from early in the 20th century, including performances by stars such as Bing Crosby, Ella Fitzgerald and Billie Holiday.
George Willeman is the leader of the nitrate film vaults at the Library of Congress Packard Campus. Here, he tells about lost and nearly lost films he's discovered and helped preserve.
"The Battle of the Century," a Laurel and Hardy silent film thought to be lost forever, was found a few years ago and today was entered into the Library's National Film Registry.
Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden announces the 2019 additions to the National Film Registry. Selected filmmakers comment upon the selection of their works.
This is a guest post by Amanda Reichenbach about a new American Archive of Public Broadcasting (AAPB) collection covering education reporting on public television. The AAPB is a collaboration between the Library of Congress and the Boston public broadcaster WGBH. Reichenbach worked on the release while interning last summer at the Library’s John W. Kluge …
