| Collection | University of Kent Archive |
| Admin history | Professor Allain of the School of Arts and Architecture, visited Ukraine in summer 1993, when he was finishing his PhD about Polish theatre. His visit to rural areas of Polissia, Poltava and Bessarabia was with Polish company Gardzienice and specifically Ukrainian singer and collaborator Mariana Sadovska. The pair went across the country to meet villagers and record traditional songs and music as preparation for a subsequent visit by the theatre group.
Thirty-two years later, Professor Allain learnt that Sadovska had created an archive which included his photos as well as some of their recordings. Crucially, he realised that for Bessarabia, which borders Romania, the music was missing. Special Collections supported Paul in digitisaing the cassette tapes containing his own collection of songs, music and stories recorded in the field, which he has shared with Sadovska and her colleague Jurij Josyfovych, who is working on the archive’s technical side. Aswell as depositing them with Sadovska, Paul has permitted Special Collections and Archives to retain copies for us by students and researchers at the University of Kent. |