Heritage Quay is an important centre for the study of contemporary, classical and art music.
At the heart of the archive is the British Music Collection, the music library and administrative records of the British Music Information Centre
(BMIC). The music library contains 40,000 scores and over 23,000 sound recordings of 20th and 21st Century British composition. Most of the
collection relates to post-1960 and contemporary music, but also encompasses some works from the late 19th century onwards.
We also hold the Society for the Promotion of New Music Archive (originally named The Committee for the Promotion of New Music) which was
founded to promote the creation, performance and appreciation of new music by young and unestablished composers. Additionally, the
Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival Archive is a major resource for international contemporary music composition and performance and
consists of records from its foundation in 1978 through to 2023. The collection contains administrative records as well as programmes, recordings
and more.
The Brass Band Archive records over a century of brass band history in Britain and internationally. The collection includes a vast array of material
relating to several aspects of brass band history, such as material recording the relationship between banding and industry and the history of brass
band contests. It also contains photographs, uniforms and scrapbooks, plus items relating to a number of specific bands and banding individuals.
It contains a wealth of brass band publications as well as an extensive collection of sheet music.
The Handbell Ringers of Great Britain Archive includes a complete collection of the national journal ‘Reverberations’, as well as newsletters issued
by each of the regional committees. In addition, there are details of annual national rallies and bi-annual International handbell events attended by
representatives of the Handbell Ringers of Great Britain. There are also various documents associated with activities in the regions, and also some
items of historical significance in the history of tune ringing on handbells which can be traced back to the mid 1800s. The archive also contains a
variety of recordings on various formats.
You can also explore the work of individual composers in collections such as the Phyllis Tate Archive, the Derek Bailey Archive, or the Roberto
Gerhard Digital Collection.
If music from the roaring 20s is more your thing, the British Dance Band Collection contains over 21,000 recordings from that period. The focus of
the collection is British recordings of dance band music from the inter-war period, however there are some early examples of ragtime recordings from
the 1910s and many recordings that were released throughout the 1940s.
Our collections also provide a flavour of the rich and diverse musical life of the Huddersfield area. The archives of the Incorporated Society of
Musicians Huddersfield Branch and the Huddersfield Musical Society are held by us, as well as many other smaller collections.
Links to music collections held at Heritage Quay are listed below in alphabetical order:
