Collection and Modulation: The Public Archive Consciousness of Crystal Records

Interview Date: August 31, 2023
Interview Method: Written interview

Yeh Hsing-Jou (referred to as “Yeh” in the following):
Please share your journey from getting to know Crystal Records, joining Wax Club, to your employment with Crystal Records.

Ho Ying-yi (referred to as “Ho” in the following):
Around the mid-1980s, while writing a “Western Music Review” column for the Min Sheng Daily and Independence Evening Post, I met Jen Chiang-Ta, the overseas manager of 金聲唱片 (predecessor of PolyGram), and Wang Ming-hui, the overseas manager of Rolling Stone Records (Blacklist Studio). Through Jen Chiang-Ta, I also got to know 程港輝, who was working at the time for River Records. The four of us shared an interest in underground music, independent music, and alternative music in both Europe and the United States (collectively referred to as “new” music at that time). We decided to form the Wax Club, organizing a bi-weekly record appreciation event and publishing a thin journal.

While working at the United Evening News, I ceased writing columns for Min Sheng Daily and United News. However, I volunteered as the editor-in-chief for Crystal Records’ “The Rocker” monthly magazine (old version) and managed the promotion for several albums. Simultaneously, in 1991, I took charge of the field coordination for the sound collection and fieldwork of “Sounds from Taiwan’s Underclass (Part 1).” In 1992, I resigned from the United Evening News and joined Crystal Records, not through recruitment but by my own decision.

Yeh: Please tell us about the “Sounds from Taiwan’s Underclass” project.

Ho: “Sounds from Taiwan’s Underclass” was a very spontaneous project. At that time, while working at the United Evening News, a reporter wrote a story about an elderly person donating their possessions. When I recounted this story at Crystal Records, Jen Chiang-Ta suggested that it would be fantastic if we could carry a recorder around to capture the voices of these ordinary people.

I thought it was a great idea, but the project needed more careful planning. At the time, I had reservations about traditional music collection efforts by institutions like the Council for Cultural Affairs, as it seemed to lean towards the elite. If you only recorded what was officially defined as “art,” how would you interpret the significance of the voices flowing within the society’s structure? For example, recording Li Tian-lu is undoubtedly good, but is the Kimkong Glove Puppetry bad? Does its artistic achievement not require more detailed analysis? Most importantly, traditional Glove Puppetry Academy was already confined to the elite, while what was truly prevalent in the folk (on TV, in Parade Formation, at temple fairs) was the Kimkong Glove Puppetry. It was the genuine sound of Taiwan. Shouldn’t it be recorded and preserved?

As “Sounds from Taiwan’s Underclass” was later replaced by the larger-scale “Sounds of Taiwan – Taiwan Sound Archive” and only produced two episodes, we essentially put the sounds we encountered that didn’t fit the traditional field collection concept into this category. Methodologically, it was more like approaching it with the concepts of urban anthropology. Instead of focusing on its artistic value, we were more concerned about the position and meaning of this sound within the social structure, dissecting the power dynamics behind the changes in sound.

Yeh: Please share your thoughts on the documentary produced by the Green Team for Crystal Records’ “Sounds from Taiwan’s Underclass” project in 1991.

Ho: The documentary was one element of the entire recording process. Because our approach differed from traditional field recordings, we didn’t focus on musicology but rather on the analysis of the meaning behind the sounds. For instance, when recording the street cries of vendors in Huaxi Street, you had to delve into the intricacies to appreciate the psychology and verbal artistry behind this form of art. Therefore, from the beginning of the sound collection project, each recording session had a field reporter accompanying, and the Green Team’s main role was to document visuals following the field reporter.

In addition to documenting the life stories of the recorded individuals, field reporters included an analysis of the significance of the sounds, examining their survival and transformation amid societal changes. These reports were later compiled into a book.

Yeh: Please discuss Crystal Records’ initiation of the “Literature Voice” Series in 1993. Additionally, elaborate on the original intent, reception, and subsequent developments of the album “Yang Kui: Mother Goose Gets Married.”

Ho: The concept for the “Literature Voice” Series originated from Chu Yueh-hsin. Initially, he wanted to release “Yang Kui: Mother Goose Gets Married” under New Taiwan Records, but they declined. He then decided to approach Crystal Records. At that time, we were very enthusiastic about the project and even considered Lai Ho continuing the series after Yang Kui.

I handled the promotional positioning at the time, focusing on the theme of “literature transformed into song,” guiding the younger generation of listeners to explore early Taiwanese literature. Since the music produced for “Yang Kui: Mother Goose Gets Married” was quite simple and moving, we thought the series should continue.

However, Crystal Records went through significant changes, including the illness of Jen Chiang-Ta’s daughter, who went to the United States for treatment. Many grand plans were halted due to lack of funds. Chu Yueh-hsin moved to Rolling Stone, leading to a lack of leadership for the project. “Yang Kui: Mother Goose Gets Married” became the only release in the Taiwanese Literature Voices series. To the best of my recollection, Lai Ho mentioned the idea, but it seemed no one proceeded to discuss copyrights and songwriting stages.

Yeh: Following up, looking back from today, between 1991 and 1995, with series like “Literature Voice” Series, “Sounds from Taiwan’s Underclass” (1991, 1995), and the “Sounds of Taiwan – Taiwan Sound Archive” quarterly journals (1994, 1995), was there continuity for Crystal Records?

Ho: The true continuity lies in “Sounds from Taiwan’s Underclass” evolving into the “Taiwan Sound Archive.” Because of the production of “Sounds from Taiwan’s Underclass,” I kept pondering what exactly constitutes “Taiwanese sounds.” Since official institutions were already recording and preserving hall-level items (at that time only sold in cooperatives under the Council for Cultural Affairs, far from being considered promotion), and that was not sufficient to represent what we recognized as “Taiwanese sounds,” we needed to figure out how to approach field recording.

At that time, I had a crucial field partner, Fan Yang-kun, who is now an assistant professor at Tainan National University of the Arts. We spent a lot of time researching how to create the “Taiwan Sound Archive.” We decided to use the classification method of ethnomusicology, categorizing field subjects into rituals, operas, folk songs, instrumental music, etc. We then further divided them into “traditional” and “changing” under each main category. For example, the Harvest Festival is under “Traditional Rituals,” 牽亡陣（Kan-Mong-Gua-Din）是「變遷祭祀篇」，北管是「傳統戲曲篇」and the puppetry of the Golden Light Troupe is under “Changing Operas.”

This approach aimed to capture the evolution of sounds, establish a historical perspective, and transfer the definition of “Taiwanese sounds” from official institutions to the public.

Similarly, adhering to the concept of “Sounds from Taiwan’s Underclass,” we believed that “sound” is not just “sound”; the cultural and social structural factors behind the sound must be analyzed. Therefore, we concurrently published the “Sounds of Taiwan” quarterly journal. It included our field research, analysis, and field stories because they couldn’t all be squeezed onto CDs.

Yeh: Please share your thoughts on initiating the “Index Crystal” Reunion at the end of 2020, and your current approach in managing it.

Ho: For the thoughts behind initiating the “Index Crystal” Reunion, please refer to our inaugural statement (see end of text).

As for the current thoughts:
Managing an archive is exhausting and requires the involvement of many people. Our management committee consists of twelve members responsible for scanning past CDs, promotional materials, converting music files, creating videos, maintaining the blog, and cloud storage.

Contacting many artists has become challenging, and various connections must be utilized. Some CDs have become rare overseas, requiring friends to help us search, followed by outsourcing to collectors for scanning and conversion.

Throughout this process, many friends have contributed, sometimes even friends of friends, all without receiving any compensation. If there are expenses (such as cloud rental and scanning fees), the management committee absorbs them. Many articles reminiscing or reevaluating Crystal’s works must be written by artists, music critics, and cultural commentators, all of whom volunteer their help.

The “Index Crystal” Reunion archive (“Index Crystal” Blog) differs from typical record labels managing YouTube channels. It invests more effort in preserving and analyzing texts. The main goal is to leave a comprehensive archive for future researchers. Crystal Records’ music products can be freely listened to on YouTube; there’s no need to purchase them at high prices in the second-hand market. The printed versions of every album are stored in the cloud, making it convenient for future research.

Yeh: This year (2023), PigHeadSkin initiated and is about to host the 30th-anniversary concert for “Yang Kui: Mother Goose Gets Married” next month (September). During this period until early next year, there are plans for a series of activities, such as reissuing the 1993 album (this is a 2023 Yang Kui concert crowdfunding reward, jointly produced with the 2023 Yang Kui concert recording album), and small-scale concerts. Following the previous question about your thoughts on initiating the “Index Crystal” Reunion, how do you view this concert and the series of Yang Kui’s activities?

Ho: Since the establishment of the “Index Crystal” Reunion, Chu Yueh-hsin has already organized the 30th-anniversary revival concert for “Live Music II.” Now (in 2023), he is hosting the 30th-anniversary concert for “Yang Kui: Mother Goose Gets Married” and planning a reissue. The “Index Crystal” Reunion management committee naturally assists as much as possible, but the primary work of the management committee still revolves around the preservation of the archive. The more complete our preservation, the more areas researchers can focus on, and history can be better presented.