Rare Books and Manuscripts Library

William S. Burroughs audio recording, Nova Convention, December 1, 1978

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Credit Line

  • William S. Burroughs Papers, Rare Books and Manuscripts Library, The Ohio State University

Details

Title
  • William S. Burroughs audio recording, Nova Convention, December 1, 1978
Alternative Title
  • N1-N3
Creator
Contributor
Language
Resource Type
Genre
Date Created
  • December 1, 1978
Permanent Link
Unit

Description

Summary
  • In 1978, the Nova Convention, a three day convention meant to honor William S. Burroughs and his work, took place in New York City, New York. It consisted of readings, film screenings, concerts, panel discussions, lectures, exhibitions, and more. Side A: In this recording, dated December 1, 1978, William S. Burroughs describes the purpose of Nova Convention. Several performances then follow Burroughs speech. Anne Waldman reads a piece called "Plutonium Ode" and Ed Sanders performs pieces such as "Uranium Willy," "Hymn To Aphrodite From Sappho," and "The Lilly" (by William Blake). Following this, Burroguhs performs another piece which he called "Sex and Death." In this piece he discusses a variety of themes including brainwashing, cults, and the difficult history of Christianity
Description
  • Side A: silence resumes at 28:03 minutes and continues until 31:17 minutes
  • Side A: voice begins speaking over the grating noise at 20:02 minutes and continues until 20:36 minutes
  • Side A: Anne Waldman speaks briefly in poor Spanish during one of her pieces
  • Side A: telephone rings at approximately 24:08 minutes and continues until approximately 24:24 minutes
  • Side A: feedback (sounds similar to scratching) begins at approximately 01:30 minutes and continues until approximately 01:50 minutes
  • Side A: silence heard from 21:11 minutes and continues until 24:53 minutes
  • Side A: silence and soft audience noise/back ground noise can be heard from 17:09 minutes until 19:14 minutes
  • Side A: grating noise without the voice continues from 20:37 minutes and continues until 21:10 minutes
  • Side A: voice resumes at 31:18 minutes and continues until 35:10 minutes
  • Side A: beeping resumes at 29:10 minutes and continues periodically until 44:06 minutes
  • Side A: voice can be heard at 24:54 minutes and continues until 28:02 minutes
  • Side A: grating noise begins at 19:15 minutes and continues until 20:01 minutes
  • Side A: beeping can be heard periodically from approximately 00:00 minutes until approximately 03:00
Provenance
  • According to James W. Grauerholz, executor of William S. Burroughs' estate, the audio tracks were Howard Brookner's safety copies of his sound rolls for the film “Burroughs: The Movie”

Find This Item

Item Identifier
  • SPEC_RARE_CMS_87_audiofile_42
Collection Identifier
  • SPEC.RARE.CMS.0087
Related Finding Aid
Source Collection
Source
  • Item digitized from Box 57, William S. Burroughs Papers (WSB97), Rare Books and Manuscripts Library, The Ohio State University Libraries

Additional Details

Extent
  • 00:44:40 [Side A]
Medium
  • Audio cassette
Time Period (Topic)
Subject
File Format

Access Condition

Access Rights
  • Users may access the recordings on site in an Ohio State University Libraries’ reading room.
Rights Statement
Rights Note
  • This item, made available for research and educational purposes, may be protected by copyright; the user is responsible for making a final determination of copyright status.

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Items

Thumbnail Title Date Uploaded Visibility Actions
Asset Front 2018-12-31 Public
Box Side 2018-12-31 Public
Tape Back 2018-12-31 Public