Begin with the instrument
A recording becomes research evidence through the context that accompanies it.
Fieldwork begins before a microphone is switched on. The instrument’s identity, its documented state, the accessible stops and the intended research question shape what should be recorded. The room and the measurement chain are part of the observation.
A session with a traceable context
- Identify the instrument and the state or configuration being recorded.
- Record the equipment, signal path, channel assignment and microphone geometry.
- Plan the notes, stops, combinations and takes required for the question.
- Document deviations, interruptions and observations in the session record.
- Retain original captures alongside non-destructive review and analysis.
OrgRec supports this workflow through specification-bound recording roadmaps, multichannel Broadcast Wave capture, session metadata and review provenance.
Let the question shape the session
Documenting the present sound of an instrument, preparing sampled playback and comparing a physical model require different observations. A playback-oriented session may need controlled repetitions and release behaviour. A comparison of measurements needs a stable account of the recording chain and conditions. Define the intended claim first, then choose the acquisition that can support it.
Cuntz · Worked example#
Is the workbook timestamp the measurement date?
Provenance describes how a record came into being. Applicability describes when a claim concerns its subject. A file timestamp is a third, potentially different fact.
Work through the example 3 STEPS
The same Cuntz observation carries 2020-09-16T10:33:05Z and flags identifying the result time as a workbook modification timestamp, with a source series marked 2019.
Read the qualification
The measurement activity explicitly says its timestamp is the workbook modification time, not an asserted measurement-session time.
Preserve the distinctions
Keep the source-series label, the workbook timestamp and any independently documented session date as separate information. Do not turn the most precise-looking timestamp into the date the pipe was measured.
Ask the right query
A query for files modified in 2020 can use this timestamp. A query for instruments measured during 2020 needs evidence of session dates and cannot silently use the same field.
BASIS FOR THIS EXAMPLE
- Cuntz Positiv · VAO 0.5.0-rc.2 ↗
Published manifest: identities, measurement observations, realization digests, profiles and rights. Exact examples checked against this release.
- MODAVIS Ontology Network 0.1.0 ↗
Identity, state, configuration, evidence, assertions, context and provenance. Teaching examples explain its distinctions without inventing new normative properties.
No exact acquisition date is inferred from the timestamp in this example.
The useful distinction. Precision of formatting is not precision of historical knowledge.
Prepare a record before the first take
| Context | What to establish |
|---|---|
| Instrument | Identifiers, accessible configuration, selected stops and relevant condition notes. |
| Space | Room identity, instrument and microphone positions, and notable background conditions. |
| Equipment | Microphones, interfaces, channel assignment, gain settings and sampling configuration. |
| Procedure | Planned sequence, repetitions, take naming and criteria for repeating or rejecting a capture. |
| Permissions | Agreed access, intended publication and the rights associated with recordings and other material. |
The session record should let another researcher understand what was possible at the time of recording. Inaccessible components, an unavailable stop or an interrupted capture are part of that account. They should not disappear merely because the eventual interface presents a neat instrument model.
A field note that remains useful later
This short note separates an observation from a later editorial decision. It also keeps a rejected take interpretable. Rejection from a playback set need not mean deletion from the research record: retention and access should follow the agreed collection and publication policy.
Sources & further reading
- OrgRec 0.3.2
The recording application’s release record.
- Dominik Ukolov · Musikinstrumente im virtuellen Raum (2026)
Dissertation submitted to Universität Leipzig, 11 September 2026. Chapters 1–6 and 8; Appendix I.4 for the software and resource inventory. See the dedicated research guides for claim-specific section references. Page numbers refer to the printed manuscript pagination. The manuscript is not distributed by this website.
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