This month’s blog is bringing to the stage, some of the wonderful and specialist performing arts libraries that contribute their catalogues to Jisc Library Hub Discover. We will explore their resources and collections that support those studying, teaching and researching the performing arts and preserve a legacy of artistic expression.
University of the Arts London
University of the Arts London consists of six colleges, each with their own library. Collections include over 500,000 printed items, including books, exhibition catalogues and number of archive collections. The Archives and Special Collection Centre holds over 45 archives and collections, spanning the history of the creative arts. It holds collections dedicated to renowned graphic artists, filmmakers and designers, including the archives of Stanley Kubrick, Tom Eckersley and Her Noise.
Other material held or available includes over 17,000 electronic books, 60,000 electronic journals, and almost 200 online databases.
The constituent colleges are: Wimbledon College of Arts (which offers a range of performance courses), Camberwell College of Arts (offering courses in design and fine art), Central Saint Martins (a world-famous arts and design college), Chelsea College of Arts (with a focus on curating, fine art, graphic design communication, textile, product and interior design), London College of Communication (a pioneering world leader in creative communications education) and London College of Fashion (a world leader in fashion design, media and business education).
Find out more about the library on their Discover information page.
Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama / Coleg Brenhinol Cerdd a Drama Cymru
The Royal Welsh College of Music & Drama provides specialist practical and performance-based training in music and drama, enabling students to enter and influence the world of music, theatre and related professions.
With a focus on performance, the library collection at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama holds over 70,000 items including books, playscripts, journals, performance scores, orchestral sets and audio/visual materials. The library holds a number of special collections including the Drama Association of Wales collection of scripts and the Foyle Opera Rara collection.
Find out more about the library on their Discover information page.
Leeds Arts University
Leeds Arts University is the only specialist arts university in the north of England. The entire University is dedicated to the study of creative subjects. The library has developed a specialist collection of books, journals, magazines and other resources to support students, staff and visitors in all aspects of creative practice and art and design education.
Displays and themed reading lists are an opportunity for the library to celebrate and amplify underrepresented voices throughout the year. The library encourages collaboration with staff and students to co-curate and create exhibitions, alongside regular displays within the library, which highlight and facilitate engagement with the collections. Future exhibitions and events can be found on the LAU website.
The Leeds Arts University Special Collections and they are an important resource for research, teaching, and inspiration and are all discoverable in Library Hub.
Find out more about the library on their Discover information page or from our Library of the Week blog post.
Jerwood Library of the Performing Arts at Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance
The Jerwood Library of the Performing Arts is one of the jewels in Trinity Laban’s crown. Four-time winner of an IAML Excellence Award for Music Libraries, the collection contains over 100,000 items, predominantly sheet music and scores, along with a large collection of sound recordings, books about music and material on theatre, drama, acting and performing. The collections include play texts and books about the theatre, primarily for their musical theatre students. Read more about the performing arts areas of their collection in the Jerwood Library of the Performing arts blog: Exhibition: a whistle-stop tour of the performing arts.
With collections of international significance, the library’s varied special collections and archives include manuscript music, archives relating to the former Trinity College of Music, and rare printed music dating from the early eighteenth century. Find out more about the library on their Discover information page or from our Library of the week blog post.
More information
- View full list of Discover libraries, with details of their collections
- Watch our introductory video on using Discover
- Find out how to conduct basic and advanced searches
- Follow us on Twitter @JiscLibraryHub
All images reproduced with kind permission of the copyright holder.
