Guide to the Papers of Margaret Kartomi, 1961-2002

Summary

Collection number:

MS 9921 et al

Creator:

Kartomi, Margaret J., AM FAHA, Professor (Margaret Joy)

Extent:

(16 boxes + 1 folio box + 1 file)

Language:

English and English

Preferred citation:

Items from this collection should be cited as '[Title or description of manuscript item], Papers of Margaret Kartomi, National Library of Australia [class number, box number and series and file number]'.

Availability:

Available

Access conditions:

Part available for research; part requires permission for research. Not for loan.

Background

Content Summary:

The papers of Margaret Kartomi document her activities as a composer, musicologist and ethnomusicologist.

Kartomi has published widely on aspects of the musical cultures of Asia, Australia and Europe, contributing new theoretical approaches in the areas of culture contact, music aesthetics, organology and the nature of child-created music. Her main specialisation has been Indonesian music, and since the 1990s she has also conducted extensive research on Jewish music in Southeast Asia.

The papers consist largely of correspondence, research and publications, dating from the 1960s to 2002. There are also musical compositions written in the 1960s.

Biographical Note:

Margaret Kartomi (nee Hutchesson), born in Adelaide in 1940, is a pianist, composer, musicologist and one of Australia's leading ethnomusicologists.

Kartomi studied at the University of Adelaide, receiving an AUA (Diploma of Associate in Music) with Chief Practical Study in Pianoforte in 1961, a Bachelor of Arts in 1963 and a Bachelor of Music in Composition and Piano, with Honours, in 1964. In 1968 she completed her PhD at Humboldt University, Berlin.

Kartomi returned to Australia and was employed at Monash University as a research fellow. In 1989 she became a professor and was appointed Head of the Music Department. She has held visiting professorships and guest lectured in many other universities internationally.

From a young age Kartomi interacted with people from diverse cultural backgrounds, as her family was active in helping refugees settle into Australian life. She became interested in Indonesian culture, and at the age of 19 visited Indonesia with her family. As a teenager she also met Hidris Kartomi, an Indonesian who had settled in Adelaide, and the two later married.

Since the 1970s Kartomi and her husband have travelled extensively, especially in Southeast Asia. Kartomi has conducted fieldwork and recorded music in many parts of Indonesia and neighbouring countries, including Australia. The Kartomi Collection of Music of 24 of the Provinces of Indonesia is held in the Monash Music Archive and National Library of Indonesia, Jakarta.

Kartomi has written, contributed to and edited many books and articles about a wide range of music-related subjects. Her major publications have included Matjapat songs in central and west Java (1973), Musical Instruments of Indonesia (1985), On concepts and classifications of musical instruments (1990), and The gamelan Digul and the prison camp musician who built it: an Australian link with the Indonesian revolution (2002).

In 1984 Kartomi was elected a Fellow of the Australian Academy of the Humanities and in 1991 she was inducted as a Member of the Order of Australia for her services to music.

Kartomi continues to hold a number of institutional and society affiliations including membership of the American Musicological Society and the International Council for Traditional Music, and Council membership of the Society for Ethnomusicology. She has twice been President of the Musicological Society of Australia, and remains a member of the Society. She is also Director at Large of the International Musicological Society.

Today, Kartomi continues her long association with Monash University, where she is Coordinator of Research and Ethnomusicology. She also co-founded and co-directs the Australian Archive of Jewish Music at Monash University.

Prof. Margaret Kartomi staff listing on Monash University Music Conservatorium website.

Transcript of interview with Margaret Kartomi by Ian Henschke on ABC Radio 7 November 2005.

Provenance:

The papers were donated by Margaret Kartomi in January 2003.

Arrangement:

The papers were received by the Library in a semi-ordered state. Some were in labelled folders or bundles, which have been kept intact as named subject files. Other papers, particularly the correspondence series, were not in any discernible order and they have been arranged chronologically by Library staff. Where a file or group of papers was not labelled but appeared to be deliberately grouped, its arrangement has been retained.

There is some overlap between series. Series 1 contains a wide range of material so should be checked for possible additional papers related to the named subject files in the other series. An example is the Gamelan Digul project.

Indexed terms

Names:

Kartomi, Margaret J., AM FAHA, Professor (Margaret Joy)

Conditions Governing Access:

Access conditions may apply to this collection, please refer to the collection's catalogue record for further information (http://nla.gov.au/nla.cat-vn879174).

Conditions Governing Use:

Copying and publishing of unpublished manuscript material is subject to copyright restrictions. For such material, written permission to publish must be obtained from the copyright holder(s). Copying of unpublished material for research purposes is permissible 50 years after the death of the creator of the material.

Preferred citation:

Items from this collection should be cited as '[Title or description of manuscript item], Papers of Margaret Kartomi, National Library of Australia [class number, box number and series and file number]'.

Location of this collection:

National Library of Australia

Parkes Place

Canberra ACT 2600, Australia

Contact:

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