Special Collections and Archives

The collections reflect the College’s research strengths in the arts, culture and society, particularly in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. The Library houses a number of special collections relevant to the study of music, including The Serge Prokofiev Archive and the collection of the Centre for Russian Music.
Opening hours:

Visitors from outside the College should make an appointment to view material from the special collections. Members of the college do not need to make an appointment. All Special Collections material may be viewed only in the Special Collections reading room.

Contact: Althea Greenan or collection contact listed below, Tel:(020) 7717 2295, Email special.collections@gold.ac.uk

Download guide as pdf

Searching the collections

Several of the collections can be searched
from the main library catalogue (http://library.gold.ac.uk) under Other categories/Special Collections. Finding aids are available for most collections and archive material is partly listed.

Services

Staff will photocopy materials, or readers may use their own digital cameras to photograph items, subject to copyright and other permissions being granted and if requested in advance. There is a small charge for photocopies.

No copying of sound or video material is permitted.

Study facilities

For more information about the collection strategy

The Collections:

• The Serge Prokofiev Archive: an archive dedicated to this composer
• The collection of The Centre for Russian Music: a research archive of Russian music
• A.L. Lloyd Collection: world- wide traditional music
• MacColl and Seeger Collection: British and Irish folk-song ballads
• The Allan Bush Collection: East European music
• The Dennis Stevens Collection: the life and music of Claudio Monteverdi (1567-1643)
• The Creative Curating MA Archive: projects from the MA in Creative Curating from 1996 onwards
• The Nimarkoh Indent Archive: this features work by BANK, Grennan & Sperandio, Inventory, Mute and Emma Rushton & Derek Tyman
• The Bank Archive: a set of flyers from shows by the group Bank
• The London International Festival of Theatre Collection: videos of drama performances from around the world
• Theatre and Ireland: a collection from the National Library of Ireland, the British Library and Trinity College, Dublin
• The National Campaign for the Arts Archive: this covers the work of the NCA from 1985 to 1998
• Terence Kelly: a collection dealing with radio in Britain from the 1970s to 2001
• Dr Albert Ellis (1913 - ): papers on Rational-Emotive Behavior Therapy
• Richard Hoggart: Warden of Goldsmiths College 1976-1984
• The College Publications Collection
• The College Archives Collection : the history of the College
• The Women's Art Library/MAKE

The Serge Prokofiev Archive
Serge Prokofiev Archive
The Serge Prokofiev Archive contains the Fonds of Serge, Lina and Oleg Prokofiev, and a specialist library. The Fonds include music manuscripts, correspondence, press cuttings and photos. The Serge Prokofiev Archive is the only archive in the world wholly dedicated to this composer. Established at Goldsmiths College in 1994, the Archive owes its existence to the initiative of Mme Lina Prokofiev, the composer's widow, who set up the Serge Prokofiev Foundation (Charitable trust No. 326370), with the objective of furthering the knowledge and study of Prokofiev's life and work.
After Mme Prokofiev's death in 1989, the Foundation decided to set up and support an archive where all available materials relating to Prokofiev, including family papers, would be regrouped under one roof.
Contact: Access is by arrangement with the Curator, Noëlle Mann.
Tel: +44 (0)20 7919 7558
Fax: +44 (0)20 7919 7255
Online: The Serge Prokofiev Archive
For more information about the collection

The collection of The Centre for Russian Music
The collection is the main research archive of Russian music outside Russia. This extensive and wide-ranging collection includes manuscripts, rare scores and editions (orchestral, operatic and chamber works), books, recordings and periodicals related to Russian music of the 17th - 20th century.
For more information about the collection
The Centre for Russian Music itself is in the Music Department.
Contacts: Professor Alexander Ivashkin
Peter Morris, Subject Librarian for Music.

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A.L. Lloyd Collection 
This consists of the library and papers of the folk-song specialist A.L. (Bert) Lloyd. The collection covers traditional music from around the world, but is particularly strong on East European folk-song. Lloyd, being a member of the Communist Party, had unprecedented access to Communist States during the Cold War period. The books are catalogued, but not the papers.
Contact: Peter Morris, Subject Librarian for Music.

MacColl and Seeger Collection 
This is the library of the folk-singers Ewan MacColl and Peggy Seeger, two key members of the Folk Music revival, which began in the 1950s. The collection covers British and Irish folk-song and ballads, but is particularly strong on Scotland. Catalogued.
Contact: Peter Morris, Subject Librarian for Music.

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The Allan Bush Collection 
This is a small part of the library of the composer Alan Bush (1900-1995). The collection, mainly music scores, covers East European art music and folk song with some other scores used by the composer personally. Catalogued.
Contact: Peter Morris, Subject Librarian for Music.

The Dennis Stevens Collection
The collection from the eminent musicologist Denis Stevens, covers the life and music of Claudio Monteverdi (1567-1643) and his contemporaries, and includes books, scores, journal offprints, press cuttings, concert programmes and audiocasettes. Catalogued.
Contact: Peter Morris, Subject Librarian for Music.

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The Women's Art Library/MAKE
The resource began as an artist-led slide library, promoting women artists by encouraging deposits of visual and written documentation, and was developed in order to enhance public knowledge of the practice, impact and achievement of women in visual culture.

Online: The Womens' Art Library/MAKE

The Creative Curating MA Archive
This represents innovative contemporary curatorial practices. It contains printed, visual and electronic documentation of curatorial projects from students and alumni of the MA in Creative Curating in the Department of Visual Arts at Goldsmiths College, compiled by the Course Director, Anna Harding, from 1996 onwards and deposited in the library in 2002. A list of curators is available.
Contact: Jacqueline Cooke, Subject Librarian for Visual Arts,

The Nimarkoh Indent Archive
This is a collection of printed matter including preview cards, comics, flyers - that is the by product of the Indent publication and lecture series (1999) that examined contemporary artists' relationship to collaboration and self-publishing as a mode of critique. The archive features work by BANK, Grennan & Sperandio, Inventory, Mute and Emma Rushton & Derek Tyman and was compiled by Virginia Nimarkoh. It consists of seven boxes. Contents are listed.
Contact: Jacqueline Cooke, Subject Librarian for Visual Arts

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The London International Festival of Theatre (LIFT) Collection
This consists of over 400 unique videos of drama sent to the organisers of the London International Festival of Theatre since 1984 by companies from around the world. This collection is being put onto the library catalogue, and is fully listed on a database accessible to library staff. New videos are added after each biennial festival.
Contact: Sheila Turley, Subject Librarian for Drama

Theatre and Ireland
This is a collection of microfilms of manuscripts, diaries and other items held in the National Library of Ireland, the British Library and Trinity College, Dublin, including: The W.A. Henderson Scrapbooks (5 reels), 1899-1911, containing newspaper cuttings, programmes, newsletters, playbills, photographs and letters relating to the Abbey Theatre and cultural life in Ireland at the beginning of the 20th century; Drury Lane under Sheridan 1776-1812 (16 reels), containing manuscript plays and managerial correspondence; The J.M.Synge mss from the library of the Trinity College Dublin (19 reels); The diaries of Joseph Holloway, 1895-1930, recording almost every major performance at the Abbey Theatre, the Gate Theatre and amateur theatres of Dublin, as well as London and touring performances (105 reels). Kept in the main library.
Contact: Sheila Turley, Subject Librarian for English

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The National Campaign for the Arts Archive
This covers the work of the NCA from its founding in 1985 up to 1998, was deposited in the library in 2000. It consists of 13 boxes of papers arranged broadly according to subject. A list of the contents is available.
Contact: Sheila Turley, Subject Librarian for Drama

Terence Kelly
Terence Kelly was a broadcast specialist reporter for the UK Press Gazette. He has deposited his collection of press cuttings, papers and reports, relating mainly to radio in Britain from the 1970s to 2001.
Contact: Peter Morris, Subject Librarian for Media

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Dr Albert Ellis (1913 - )
This is a collection of his papers on Rational-Emotive Behavior Therapy with Professor Dryden in the College Department of Professional and Community Education. With Dr Ellis' permission a single back-up set of copies is held in the library, but these may not be on-copied. A printed index to the collection is available.
Contact: Sally Houston, Subject Librarian for Psychology

Richard Hoggart
He was Warden of Goldsmiths College from 1976 to 1984. After his retirement he deposited in the library his papers relating to his external work with various committees and organisations. The papers are arranged broadly according to subject, but there is no list. The library also holds a comprehensive bibliography of Richard Hoggart's publications compiled by Marilyn Jones.
Contact: Malcolm Staig, Subject Librarian for History

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The College Publications Collection
This was begun in 1999 to ensure that all publications with the College imprint are accessible at one site and can be searched on the library catalogue.
Contact: Malcolm Staig, Subject Librarian for History

The College Archives Collection
This relates to the history of the College and contains material dating back to the beginning of the 20th century. Most of the material was either deposited in the library by College senior managers or donated by former Goldsmiths' students. Goldsmiths' College Delegacy minutes, 1904 - 1988, The Goldsmithian, 1906 - 1959, photographs and videos are examples of records held. Details of the institutional records held in the collection can be found on the web at http://www.aim25.ac.uk/
Contact: Malcolm Staig, Subject Librarian for History

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Illustrations:

Serge Prokofiev, 1st page, from manuscript of The Classical Symphony
'Pixies' from Popular romances of the West of England: or, the drolls, traditions, and superstitions of old Cornwall. London : John Camden Hotten , nd
The Leopard. From A general history of quadrupeds by Thomas Bewick, vol. III. London: Bernard Quaritch, 1885.

Last modified: 31 October 2006 jc