Third Coast Audio Library

Our vast and ever-growing collection contains thousands of carefully curated audio stories, episodes from Third Coast podcasts, educational sessions on craft from the best makers on the planet, and more.

We’ve also featured some incredible audio work beyond this audio library, in other ways and using other formats: don’t miss the 2021 Web Showcase, featuring a more in-depth look at the winners, judges and even a list of 40 finalists from the 2021 Third Coast/RHDF Competition.

Childhood Trains

What is it about train travel that inspires music and memory? And why do people tend to confess their innermost thoughts once they get on board?

New Orleans' Hurricane Risk

In September, 2002, three years before Katrina devastated America's gulf coast, veteran NPR reporter Daniel Zwerdling investigated what would happen to New Orleans if it fell in the path of a Category 5 hurricane.

The Paint Mixers

Wired with a low-fi tape recorder, performance artist Damali Ayo visited hardware stores and asked employees to mix paint to match different parts of her body.

One-Minute Vacations

The world makes its own music, but we rarely listen with fresh ears says Aaron Ximm, sound artist, field recordist and founder of quietamerican.org.

Who Is Vern Nash?

The day Thelon Oeming moved into an apartment in a working class area of Toronto, he saw a hunched-back man shouting to himself in the middle of the street.

India Song

Originally a text by French writer Marguerite Duras, India Song was next made into an extensive radio program and eventually a film of the same title.

Snow on Plum Blossom

Japanese springtime: the motif of countless haikus and soulful pop songs, spectacular kabuki and elegant Noh plays, short stories, and novels. In Japan, spring begins in winter -- with a lot of noise.

City X

The shopping mall is a cultural and commercial phenomenon in America that most can relate to in some way or another.

Shocking Pink

Australian anthropologist, botanist, and eccentric Olive Pink waged a 40-year, one-woman civil rights campaign on behalf of the Aboriginal peoples until her death in 1975.

Just Another Fish Story

Ten years ago, the people of Lubec, Maine, were met with an unpleasant surprise: an enormous finback whale had washed onto the beachfront of their tiny coastal town.

Electronic Samples Cut-Up

A few years ago, Mark Vernon bought a pile of old reel-to-reel audio tapes at a boot sale (think yard sale, but in the trunks of cars) near his hometown of Derby, England.

Chicago Hustles

Meet Floyd (not his real name), a self-described "cigarette hustler" and part of Chicago's thriving underground economy, where goods and services -- legal and illegal -- are sold under the radar.

When the Dog Was Just the Dog

When her husband brings two puppies home, producer Lea Redfern becomes completely immersed in the world of canines. Now dog culture pervades her every waking moment, from commanding her social life to steering her personal politics.

The Runway

Mary Going runs Saint Harridan, a company that makes custom suits catering to butch women and trans men. Her fans are enthusiastic and dedicated, her products are selling out... and she can barely pay her rent.