This collection comprises a large number of the musical manuscripts of the twentieth-century British composer David Barlow (1927-1975), formerly a lecturer in the Department of Music at Newcastle University, although it is not a complete collection of his works. The material comprises over 100 items which cover the musical genres of orchestral, opera, choral, songs, solo works, instrumental and chamber music, although some of the scores are incomplete. Barlow's musical influences included biblical and literary interests and the collection includes his church operas David and Bathsheba and Judas Iscariot as well as his children's opera The Selfish Giant. The collection also contains copies of many of Barlow's important works which are held at the British Music Information Centre, as well as some early manuscripts (mainly short works and sketches) and copies of recordings of Barlow's music and interviews, held on ten reel-to-reel tapes at present.

The Stanford Collection comprises the musical manuscripts (published and otherwise) of Irish composer Charles Villiers Stanford (1852-1924) and was brought together by Dr. Frederick Hudson, at one time a member of staff in the Department of Music.The collection, representing approximately seventy-five percent of Stanford's output (symphonies, operas, chamber, concerto, piano and organ works, church music and choral works), includes autograph manuscripts and photocopies of autographs, as well as transcripts of Stanford's letters to The Times, essays and articles. For many years organists in Canada and England were of the opinion that there were no brass or percussion parts for St. Patrick's Breastplate but the score proves that there were!