Repositioning music archives as pedagogical partners: lecturer-informed strategies for University–Music archive collaboration in Kenya

Abstract

The integration of music archives into university teaching in Kenya remains limited despite the cultural and pedagogical value of archival resources. Existing engagements between universities and music archives are often informal and dependent on individual lecturer initiative rather than structured institutional collaboration. Guided by Cultural- Historical Activity Theory, this paper examines lecturer- informed strategies for strengthening university–music archive collaboration in support of culturally responsive music teaching within selected Kenyan public universities. Drawing on Cultural-Historical Activity Theory, the study used lecturers’ perspectives to explore how interactions between universities and music archives are mediated by policies, institutional arrangements, and pedagogical practices. Qualitative data were generated through semi-structured interviews with music lecturers and analysed thematically. The findings reveal that effective collaboration requires a multi-level institutional approach beyond the mere availability of archival materials. Lecturers identified key strategies including formalised partnerships between universities and music archives, joint research and training initiatives, digitisation of archival collections, increased institutional funding, lecturer professional development, and community-engaged archival programmes. Although focused on selected Kenyan public universities, the study contributes to broader discussions on archives, institutional collaboration, and culturally responsive music pedagogy within African higher education. The study further highlights the need for structured institutional frameworks and policy alignment to strengthen the integration of African musical knowledge within higher education curricula.