Kenya Collections Archive

Compiled by Reinhardt Schuhmann, Kenneth Schweitzer, and Jud Wellington, the Kenya Collections Archive is made up of three 5-inch tapes and three seven-inch tapes of music and spoken word recorded in Congo, Gold Coast, Kenya, Ruanda-Urundi, and South Africa by Mr. and Mrs. Edward C. Sweeney. In addition, the collection features a number of materials described below:

A one seven-inch tape of African songs recorded by Henry Serunkenya, in Kampala (Uganda), Africa, by USIS in August 1960. Choral songs, called ‘Serunambi’ composed by Serukenya. Thirteen cylinders of music done by the Kavirondo, Kikuyu and Meru Tribal music of Kenya probably recorded by James Barnes, 1913.

There is material which has the life work of Vida Chenoweth, ethnomusicologist. There are also manuscripts, sound recordings, photographs, and films mainly of her work with the Usarufa in Papua New Guinea, but other culture groups are also represented. The is also work done by her students, a total of 43.75 linear feet, including two 5-inch tapes, three 7-inch tapes, and 39 audiocassettes of music of Kenya and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Approximately 700 film and audio elements relating to Pete and Toshi Seeger's filmmaking from 1955-1965 at various locations in: Angola, Australia, Austria, Canada, England, Ghana, India, Indonesia, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Kenya, New Zealand, Nigeria, Poland, Russia, Somoa, Sweden, Tanzania, Trinidad, Ukraine, and the United States. In the United States, locations include Beacon, New York; Circle Pines, Michigan; Hamilton, Ohio; Huntsville, Texas; Los Angeles, California; Madison, Wisconsin; New York, New York; Newport, Rhode Island; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma; and Washington, DC, among others. Collection includes three bamboo flutes.

There is a lecture by Kiprop Lagat, curator of Ethnography and an Assistant Director at the National Museums of Kenya, recorded at the Library of Congress, Washington, D.C., and September 18, 2008. Lagat's visit was sponsored by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), and the lecture was co-sponsored by the American Folklife Center (AFC) with the African and Middle Eastern Division (AMED) of the Library of Congress.

Lastly, there are six audiocassettes of Maasai traditions recorded in the Laikipia region of Kenya. These recordings were possibly made by Ole Tingoi.