About the Cajun & Creole Music Collection (CCMC)
The Cajun and Creole Music Collection consists of commercial recordings, selected unpublished recordings, and related archival materials. The collection includes the music of Cajuns and Creoles of Louisiana's "Acadiana" and "Creole Country" regions. The collection presents the history, influences, development, and diversity of the region's musical cultures and styles. The recordings, published since 1928, cover the changes and evolution in the musical cultures from artist to artist, performance to performance, and dominant instrument to dominant instrument. They also reveal the influences of the musical cultures on each other and influences from regional cultures and society at large.
Formats include both analog and digital media:
- 78rpm
- 45rpm
- LP (33 ⅓ rpm) records
- 8-track tapes
- audio cassette tapes
- compact discs
- VHS tapes
- DVDs
The expanding collection also contains:
- books
- periodicals
- photographs
- posters
- artifacts
- selected manuscripts
- other archival materials and collections
The collection is open to the public for listening, viewing, and research. Audio-visual stations and playback equipment are available. Dupré Library encourages the use of the collection and offers individual research consultations and scheduled tours or instructional sessions. Although most materials in the CCMC do not circulate, some items such as books and DVDs are available for check-out.
In 2003, Edith Garland Dupré Library received a Louisiana Board of Regents Support Fund, Traditional Enhancement Grant, and began building the foundation for a comprehensive collection of commercially recorded Cajun and Creole music. The library was the recipient of a 2006 Grammy Foundation grant award that was used to continue extensive cataloging and to enhance access to the collection.
Efforts continue to collect, preserve, and provide access to the music, its history, and its future. CCMC welcomes donations of recordings, music label/company materials, personal papers of artists and memorabilia, or monetary donations to assist in supporting and preserving the local musical cultures.