Individual Oral History
Do you have a family member whose life should be recorded? Do you have personal stories that need to be told? Do you know a hero whose adventures need to be documented? Narrate’s Individual Oral Histories are 1-on-1 interviews that preserve vital stories for these special people and for future generations.
Individual Oral History customers receive one-on-one consultations, specialized research, personalized interview questions, one-on-one sessions with trained oral historians, high-quality recording, custom editing, and personalized story craft. Narrate’s Individual Oral Histories are the perfect gifts for those individuals who are central to your life - those people whose voices you don’t want to lose, and whose stories you don’t want to forget.
LENGTH: Up to 120 minutes.
PRICE: Starting at $699. UNEDITED: Starting at $399.
Individual Oral Histories Include:
Personalized welcome letter and gift certificate to present to interviewee.
Personal consultation with both customer and interviewee, either in person, online, or over the phone.
Customized, dedicated research.
Two hours (approximate) recorded interview.
Customized editing services.
Finalized, corrected, edited interview in .MP3 and .WAV formats on a jump drive or as a Google Drive File.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Who is a good person to interview for an Individual Oral History?
Your mom or dad, your grandparents or best friend. A local hero, innovator, or raconteur. Perhaps this person has traveled the world, or taken part in historic events, or persevered through and unimaginable challenge. Individual Oral Histories are great opportunities to get all of the details of the story, to learn the real history, and to get the interviewee a chance to reflect on the stories that comprise their lives.
Who are the key players in this process?
This CAN be a pretty confusing process. So there are three “main characters:” the customer, the interviewee, and the interviewer. The interviewer does all research, conducts interviews, and answers all questions. The customer is the person who hires Narrate to undertake this process. The interviewee is the central character, the storyteller, the person with the knowledge, experiences, and wisdom we all want to hear!
What is oral history?
A fantastic question, and one that gets asked quite a bit! According to the Smithsonian Institution Archives, oral history is a “technique for generating and preserving original historically interesting information - primary source material - from personal recollections through planned recorded interviews. This method of interviewing is used to preserve the voices, memories and perspectives of people in history. It’s a tool we can all use to engage with and learn from family members, and the people we share space with in an interview that captures their unique history and perspective in their own words.”
Who is a good candidate for an oral history?
What a fantastic question! In short answer - everyone! Narrate sincerely believes that every person on this earth has wisdom to impart, stories to tell, and experiences to share. But interviewing every person on earth is a pretty tall order, so we suggest a member of your family, a close friend, someone you have a close connection to, who brings you happiness, and who you’d like to know even better. Will knowing their stories, and sharing a platform to share them make the world a better place? We believe so. Give them an opportunity to record their story!
Evan has the ability to ask all the right questions. He uncovered so many of my childhood experiences that I had forgotten. A very valuable experience that I will hand down!
— Richard H.