The Archive houses an ethnographic sound collection relating to the Pacific which is of national and international significance. Formerly known as the Archive of Māori & Pacific Music.
Established in 1970 to promote research into the music of the indigenous people of New Zealand, the Māori, and those of the people of the Pacific Islands, its holdings today include material from most tribal groups of New Zealand and most Pacific Islands areas, commercial and field recordings of vocal and instrumental music, oral histories, stories and language resources.