Oral Traditions

Through most of Newfoundland and Labrador history, artists expressed themselves primarily through the folk arts, much of it transmitted orally from one generation to another. This collection includes material related to storytelling, recitations, songs and ballads, folktales, sayings, or chants. Much of this artistic material was locally composed, but performances could be drawn either from an older traditional repertory or learned more recently, sometimes from printed sources. The collection also includes recordings on contemporary and applied storytelling.