Field Guide to the Bird Songs of Britain and Europe (Set of 14 records, RFLP 5001-5014 + supplement, RFLP 5015)

Description:

The Peterson Field Guide Series. Scarce complete set of vinyl records nos. 1-14 and supplement no. 15, The insert notes that 'The purpose of the Peterson Field Guide To the Bird Songs of Britain and Europe is to act as a gramophone record counterpart of the pocket identification book, A Field Guide to the Birds of Britain and Europe, by Roger Peterson, Guy Mountford and P.A. D. Hollom'.

The original plan was was to produce fourteen full-length LPs, twelve covering the main species and a further two covering the 'accidentals'. In 1980 a supplementary disc was issued, no. 15. The complete set includes 1,088 separate recordings of 585 species taped by 117 recordists in 43 countries, with a total running time of almost exactly 12 hours.

At the time of production, high-quality field recordings of birds were still relatively rare and technically difficult to capture. The project represented a monumental cooperative effort in the early era of wildlife audio documentation. It was one of the first large-scale attempts to integrate sound into the popular practice of field identification, anticipating today’s use of digital recordings and apps.

Sture Palmer, (d. 1988) was one of the leading pioneers of wildlife sound recording. Jeffery Boswell (1931- 2012) was a wildlife film-maker and natural history broadcaster who worked for the BBC.

Condition

15 long-play (33rpm) vinyl records each in its original printed sleeve, with inner sleeve, liner notes (listing tracks) and an explanatory insert. Neat withdrawn stamps from an institutional library. Very good complete set.