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Melinda Richards collection on Russian composers

 Collection — Carton: 1
Identifier: MSS 7862

Scope and Contents

Collection was created as part of the research done by Melinda Richards for her honors thesis entitled, "Musical Life in Post-Soviet St. Petersburg as Seen Through Composer's Eyes," completed at Brigham Young University. The collection spans the dates 1984 to 1996 and contains pamphlets of Russian composers that include a brief biography and list of composer's main works, as well as audiotapes of composer interviews and music recordings.

Dates

  • 1984-1996

Creator

Language of Materials

Materials are in English and Russian.

Conditions Governing Access

Open for public research.

Conditions Governing Use

It is the responsibility of the researcher to obtain any necessary copyright clearances.

Permission to publish material from the Melinda Richards collection on Russian composers must be obtained from the Supervisor of Reference Services and/or the L. Tom Perry Special Collections Board of Curators.

Biographical History

Melinda Richards (b. 1970) was born in Wurzburg, Germany, while her father was stationed with the U.S. Army, but grew up in California, Utah, and Colorado. She speaks Russian fluently and holds degrees from Brigham Young University, Middlebury College and Indiana University.

Richards served a mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the Ukraine from November 1991- May 1993. Upon completion of her mission, she returned to BYU, graduating magna cum laude with University Honors with Bachelor of Arts degrees in music and Russian. Her honors thesis, "Musical Life in Post-Soviet St. Petersburg as Seen Through Composer’s Eyes," received a superior rating and was published in abbreviated form in "Insight," the BYU Honors Program Journal.

Richards worked four years at the Davis Center for Russian and Eurasian Studies at Harvard University. While there she completed a master’s program in Russian at the intensive four-summer, language-immersion program at Middlebury College in Middlebury, Vermont. Then completed a full-time master’s program in public affairs at Indiana University’s School of Public and Environmental Affairs in Bloomington, Indiana.

Since January 2007, Richards has been the program director for Firefly, Inc. a non-profit organization based in Washington-DC. Where they are working on child welfare reform in Russia (www.fireflykids.org).

Extent

1 carton (1 linear ft.)

Arrangement

The original order of the collection has been retained.

Custodial History

Donated by Melinda Richards in June of 2008.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Donated; Melinda Richards; June 2008.

Appraisal

General donation (Section IV.a.i.5 Music Special Collections Development Policy September 2010)

Processing Information

Processed; Melissa James; July 2011.

Title
Register of Melinda Richards collection on Russian composers
Author
Melissa James
Date
2011 July 11
Description rules
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin
Language of description note
Finding aid written in English in Latin script.

Repository Details

Part of the L. Tom Perry Special Collections Repository

Contact:
1130 HBLL
Brigham Young University
Provo Utah 84602 United States