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MARC FAST-TRACK PROPOSAL
DATE: September 22, 2025
REVISED:
NAME: Adding Type of Cutting to the Definition of Field 344 Subfield $d in the MARC 21 Bibliographic Format
SOURCE: Music Library Association (MLA)
SUMMARY: This paper proposes redefining Field 344 (Sound Characteristics) subfield $d (Groove characteristic) in the MARC 21 Bibliographic Format to include the audio carrier attribute Type of Cutting, which is currently only recordable in Field 007/11 (Sound Recording).
KEYWORDS: Field 344 (BD); Sound Characteristics (BD); Subfield $d, in Field 344 (BD); Groove characteristic (BD); Type of cutting (BD)
RELATED: 2025-DP08; 2011-08; 2021-07; 2021-14
STATUS/COMMENTS:
06/25/25 – Discussion Paper 2025-DP08 was converted to a MARC Fast-Track proposal at MAC Annual meeting.
09/22/25 – Submitted to the MARC Steering Group for consideration as a MARC Fast-Track proposal.
11/25/25 – Results of MARC Steering Group review - Approved.
The groove of a sound recording carrier has several distinct characteristics, one of which is type or direction of cutting. As described in the Association for Recorded Sound Collections' ARSC Guide to Audio Preservation, cylinder recordings were made with a stylus that transcribed sound waves by changing the depth of the groove, a technique known as vertical or hill-and-dale cutting. Early grooved discs also exhibited vertical cutting, before lateral cutting—in which the sound wave is transcribed parallel to the plane of the disc—became standard. (See pp.15-19 of the linked ARSC document for an overview of early format characteristics.)
Field 344 was introduced by MARC Proposal 2011-08 to encode carrier characteristics for sound recordings; subfields corresponded to the eight characteristics listed in Original RDA Chapter 3.16.1.3. Additional subfields were defined by MARC Proposals 2021-07 and 2021-14. Field 344 is currently defined in the Bibliographic Format as follows:
Subfield $d (Groove characteristic) is defined as "The groove width of an analog disc or the groove pitch of an analog cylinder." This corresponds to the RDA Manifestation element groove characteristic, which is defined as "A groove width of an analog disc or a groove pitch of an analog cylinder" and has element subtypes groove width and groove pitch for the respective aspects.
This information is also coded in MARC field 007 for Sound Recordings, where 007/05 is defined as Groove width/groove pitch.
Field 007/11 for Sound Recordings is currently defined in the Bibliographic Format as follows:
11 - Kind of cutting
h - Hill-and-dale cutting
l - Lateral or combined cutting
n - Not applicable
u - Unknown
| - No attempt to code
There is no corresponding location in Field 344 to record the type of cutting, although the Library of Congress vocabulary "Groove Width/Pitch/Cutting" invokes all three aspects and includes values for type of cutting (vertical cutting, lateral or combined cutting) alongside values for groove width (coarse groove, microgroove) and groove pitch (standard pitch, fine pitch).
This paper stems from Discussion Paper No. 2025-DP08, which was generally supported by the MARC Advisory Committee at the 2025 Annual meeting. A motion was approved to convert the paper as written into a fast-track proposal.
In an effort to ensure that all audio carrier attributes coded in Field 007 for Sound Recordings can be recorded in the variable fields, this paper discusses revising the definition of Field 344 subfield $d to incorporate Type of Cutting, an attribute which can currently only be recorded in 007/11.
The name of subfield $d, Groove characteristic, is certainly broad enough to include the type of cutting of grooves in a disc or cylinder. Given the association of these three groove characteristics—width, pitch, and cutting—we believe that incorporating Type of Cutting into this subfield is preferable to creating a new subfield. An additional instance of Field 344 with its own subfield $d can be used to record this data with a source specified in subfield $2.
For older discs which may be either vertically or laterally cut, the type of cutting of a particular disc is vital information for the user, as using the wrong equipment to play a disc can damage it. Including Type of Cutting in Field 344 ensures that systems are more likely to display this data in a human readable form so that users are informed about the correct equipment to use.
Revise the definition and example for Field 344 (Sound Characteristics) subfield $d in the Bibliographic Format as follows (changes in bold brackets):
$d - Groove characteristic
The groove width of an analog discor[,] the groove pitch of an analog cylinder[, or the type of cutting].344 ##$aanalog$2rdatr
344 ##$dcoarse groove$2rdagw
[344 ##$dvertical cutting]
Note: The examples below include groove width and pitch in field 344 subfield $d to illustrate the combination of those attributes with type of cutting, despite the Music Library Association’s Best Practices for Music Cataloging Using RDA and MARC21 - Supplement 1, which currently recommends that Groove Characteristic only be recorded in field 344 subfield $d if nonstandard for the type of carrier.
007 ## sd#bsmennmplne
300 ## $a 1 audio disc ; $c 12 in.
337 ## $a audio $2 rdamedia
338 ## audio disc $2 rdacarrier
340 ## vinyl $2 rdamat
344 ## analog $2 rdatr
344 ## $g stereo $2 rdacpc
344 ## $c 33 1/3 rpm
344 ## $d microgroove $2 rdagw
344 ## $d lateral or combined cutting
007 ## sd#dmsdnnmshna
300 ## $a 1 audio disc ; $c 10 in.
344 ## $a analog $2 rdatr
344 ## $c 78 rpm
344 ## $g mono $2 rdacpc
344 ## $d coarse groove $2 rdagw
344 ## $d vertical cutting
007 ## se#zmssnnnwhza
300 ## $a 1 audio cylinder (2 min., 40 sec.) : $b analog, 125 rpm, mono ; $c 2 1/4 x 4 in.
344 ## $d standard $2 rdagrp
344 ## $d vertical cutting
The current MARC-to-BIBFRAME program already creates bf:soundCharacteristic – bf:GrooveCharacteristic triples from byte 007/11. The "Groove Width/Pitch/Cutting" list at ID.LOC.GOV (https://id.loc.gov/vocabulary/mgroove/) also includes terms for vertical cutting and lateral or combined cutting, implying that type of cutting is in fact a groove characteristic intended to be recorded here. This proposal therefore brings the MARC subfield definition into alignment with the BIBFRAME class.
In field 344 (Sound Characteristics) subfield $d (Groove characteristic) in the MARC 21 Bibliographic Format, revise the definition to include type of cutting (see Section 3 for full description of changes).
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