Great Expectations, Often Unrealised: Archival Dilemmas in Papua New Guinea and Beyond

Since its establishment in 1974 as a government institution focussed on cultural research, the Institute of Papua New Guinea Studies (IPNGS) has been mandated to develop and maintain an archive of Papua New Guinea music.
Recordings consist of those made by IPNGS staff, outside researchers, commercial recordings, etc., including a major component of historical recordings beginning in 1898. Cooperation with other archives and studios, as well as donations and purchases have made the music archive the largest collection of Papua New Guinea music materials in the world. Our own publications have made extensive use of these materials as well.
While this appears to be a wonderful resource, users are often sadly disappointed when trying to obtain copies of some materials, having to deal with imperfectly understood copyright legislation and unclear status of ownership. Researchers want to make greater use of such materials in publications, but are frustrated because we often don’t know from whom we can seek permission for commercial materials or who to consult for the use of traditional materials.
Some questions will always be difficult to resolve, but I would like to suggest possible solutions for the increased usage of audio-visual materials in research, applicable to both commercial and archival recordings. Increased accessibility without comparable usability greatly diminishes the value of archives.

Date: 
10 OCTOBER WEDNESDAY
Start time: 
09:00
Venue: 
Auditorium
Title (author 1): 
Mr
First names (author 1): 
Don
Surname (author 1): 
Niles
Institution: 
Institute of Papua New Guinea Studies
Country: 
PAPUA NEW GUINEA
presentation type: 
spoken