Alberton’s Sheet Music Collection from 1850-1915

Abstract

The Victorian era in colonial New Zealand is lacking extensive research in regards to sheet music collections, particularly in social settings. This research examines the sheet music collection of the Kerr Taylor family of Alberton to recover the attitudes, recreational avenues, and views of the early Auckland elite.

The Alberton sheet music collection is set within the socio-historical context, and a history of the Kerr Taylor family is provided for added context. Individual acquisition of various family members (Patty Taylor, Winifred Kerr Taylor, Mildred Kerr Taylor, and Muriel Kerr Taylor) is discussed, condition of the collection is described, and the collection considered in relation to Victorian values. This is presented as a partial case study, with the answers to the research questions woven into the essay narrative.

The Alberton sheet collection reflects the norms of Victorian musical values, and music held an important place in the lives of the Kerr Taylors. Patty Taylor and Winifred, Mildred, and Muriel Kerr Taylor are the most prominent names in the collection, with pieces of sheet music existing in varying states of condition. Names and years are the most common annotation, but there are exceptions.

This project adds to the body of knowledge surrounding the Kerr Taylor family and Alberton. The sheet music collection exists in the wider context of the bulk of the Alberton collection, and there is scope a more detailed exposition of the music collection, or for the music collection to be considered within the broader Alberton collection.