Research Guides: Music Research Tools: Welcome

Welcome

Welcome to the Music Research Tools guide. Here you will learn about the various tools available to you through the library to start research for various projects. Music materials are found in a variety of places through Campbell Library and through the library website:

The Performing Arts Collection can be found on the Second Floor of Campbell Library. Here, you will find all of the scores, CDs, and most of the reference books (encyclopedias, special music dictionaries, catalogs, and introductory research books), and some of the books on music education and performance.

The Fourth Floor of Campbell Library contains the majority of our books on music history, music performance, music education, the music industry, and music therapy. Check with a librarian or a library assistant to see where your resources might be located.

This guide, the guides linked below, and many of the library databases provide access to lots of materials that you cannot find for free online.

Best Places to Start

Oxford Music Online This link opens in a new window
Use Oxford Music Online as a starting point for research! It serves as a music-specific dictionary and biographical encyclopedia.
This is a continuously updated online version of the former historically significant print references:The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, The New Grove Dictionary of Opera, The New Grove Dictionary of Jazz, and The Grove Dictionary of American Music. The former can be cross-searched. Separate searches are available for the Oxford Dictionary of Music, and the Oxford Companion of Music. Articles include biographies, bibliographies, composers’ works lists, and illustrations. It includes numerous “tools and resources,” or indexes, for accessing the textual and musical content as well as links to related sites, sound archives, illustrations.

Library Search
Use Library Search to search most of the physical and online holdings that the library has access to in all disciplines.

RILM Abstracts of Music Literature This link opens in a new window
Use RILM Abstracts to search academic literature about music.
A product of the Répertoire International de Littérature Musicale. RILM Abstracts is a comprehensive music bibliography features citations, abstracts and subject indexing. For readers of all levels, elementary music education to advanced music theory. Information is fully cited, abstracted, and indexed. RILM has been a leader in supporting worldwide music scholarship since 1967, has the backing and participation of the three major international scholarly music societies (International Musicological Society; International Association of Music Libraries, Archives, and Documentation Centres; and International Council for Traditional Music).
Music Periodicals Database This link opens in a new window
Use the Music Periodicals Database to search for scholarly and journalistic writing about music.
Indexing and abstracts for many international music periodicals with some coverage from 1874. Full text for over 110 journals with current file and backfile coverage going back to the first published issue for a number of core music journals. Subjects covered: history, education, performance, composition, theory, ethnomusicology, popular music. (ProQuest)
Naxos Music Library This link opens in a new window
Stream mostly classical music from this high-quality library, and read the liner notes for information about the pieces.
Provides streaming audio of music recordings, including over 500,000 tracks and 48,000 CD’s on over 132 record labels. Genres include classical, jazz, folk, and some non-western world music.
Medici.TV This link opens in a new window
Video library of concerts, operas, ballets and other classical music performances.
Medici.tv boasts a collection of 1500 classical music videos: concerts, operas, ballets, archives, documentaries, artist profiles and educational programs, among others. This wealth of programs makes Medici.tv the largest online classical music video library in the world. Each year, several hundred new programs are added to its catalog, including films about the current music scene, and archives from the 1950s.

Music Research Tools

Welcome

Best Places to Start

Library Search

Related Guides