Scope and arrangement
The Dr. Ingrid Brainard Papers contain documents from the 1890s to 2000, and cover the academic and professional career of the distinguished dance historian and author. The collection is divided into eight series: Personal Papers, Professional Correspondence, Teaching Materials, Writings, Cambridge Court Dancers, Conference Materials, Research, and Images. Personal Papers include correspondence between Ingrid, her family, and her husband Paul Brainard. Diaries, immigration papers, and materials from Ingrid's childhood in Germany are also held in this series. This includes Ingrid's school materials and Hitler Youth songbook. Professional Correspondence contains materials dating from the 1960's onward; marking the time Ingrid completed her doctorate and began serious scholarly work. Teaching Materials includes tests, papers, evaluations, and lecture notes from Ingrid's varied teaching positions, arranged by institution. Ingrid wrote many articles, published and unpublished, and these are contained in the Writings series, along with unpublished articles of her colleagues and articles that Ingrid edited. Ingrid headed a historical dance group, the Cambridge Court Dancers, whose papers are contained in the fifth series. This includes member lists, costume patterns, and notes for the lecture and dance sessions that Ingrid held using the group. Ingrid was an active participant in many scholarly conferences, including the Congress on Research in Dance and the International Congress on Medieval Studies. These materials include papers, handouts, notes, and conference information, and are arranged by conference. Research includes photocopied articles, music, and dance reconstruction used by Ingrid for her work. This series also includes a large number of handwritten notes on various subjects. The final series, Images, includes photographs of Ingrid and other dance colleagues, copies of dance related art, negatives, slides used for lectures, and posters.
These papers will be of special interest to researchers interested in historical dance, as Brainard collected copies of many original manuscripts during her time in Europe. The writings also include many unpublished papers on the subject of dance history. The collection is also of interest to World War II scholars, as Brainard wrote many letters during and immediately after the war describing conditions and home life. A point of interest is Brainard's 1933 Hitler Youth songbook. The bulk of the materials are in English, with some German and French included.
The Ingrid Brainard papers are arranged in eight series:
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1933-1957
Contains correspondence, diaries, financial records, family history, school work, and Brainard's childhood memoribilia.
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1963-2000
Contains correspondence between Brainard and various collegues.
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1962-1994
Lecture notes, exams, handouts, and other papers pertaining to Ingrid's time as a professor.
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1967-2000
Papers written by Brainard and her contemporaries, mostly on the subjects of historical music and dance. Many are unpublished.
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1969-1996
Papers, correspondence, flyers, and other materials relating to Brainard's historical dance troupe, the Cambridge Court Dancers.
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1963-2000
Brainard's materials, papers, handouts, and notes for various conferences attended.
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1953-2000
Includes articles, notes, and dance reconstructions either created by or gathered by Brainard to aid in her writings and dance performances.
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1960-1990
Personal photographs, research images, and slides used by Brainard.