McDonald Collection

The McDonald Collection contains folklore performances and oral history interviews recorded between 1981 and 1989, containing music, recitations and recollections of performances and local history. The interviews were recorded throughout the New England region.

Local history

Key items in the collection

Highlights from this collection demonstrate its historical significance and variety.

The collection of 205 reels, recorded between 1981 and 1989, contain:

music
recitations and recollections of performances
local history.

The interviews were recorded throughout the New England region, including:

Armidale
Walcha
Tenterfield
Glen Innes
Guyra
Uralla.

In most of the recordings, the interviewee would:

play an instrument (accordion, mouth organ, violin)
whistle or sing

as well as discussing the songs, folklore and history of their town or district.

The collection also includes some letters, poems and photographs.

About Barry McDonald

Barry McDonald (born 1955) grew up in Sydney and moved to Armidale in 1976. He studied history at the University of New England and acquired a strong interest in local history, oral history and folklore. He lived next door to Professor Russel Ward, who had pioneered the collecting of folklore and bush ballads in Australia.

In the 1980s he was a schoolteacher in Armidale and later in Queanbeyan.

McDonald was a keen musician, playing the violin in the Armidale Folk Club and other groups.

McDonald got to know the collectors Chris Sullivan and Mark Rummery and this led him in 1983 to undertake a large number of recordings of folk music and oral history in the New England region.

In more recent years he has written a number of academic papers on traditional Australian music.