• Finding Recordings
• Finding Books and Scores
• Reference Resources
• Articles
• Web Resources
• Research Tips 

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Finding Recordings

Using Catalogs:

• Use the library's online catalog to find recordings owned by Stewart Library.
  • Search by general keyword or browse alphabetically by author (composer or performer), title, or subject
  • Be sure to limit by CD's, Cassettes, Tapes under Limits at the bottom of the screen.
• Use WorldCat to find media in other libraries locally and globally.
  • Select Sound Recordings. Be aware that many libraries do not loan sound recordings.
  • For home or off campus access please use your WSU Login.

Audio tapes, CD's and videos are housed on the Lower Level in the Media/Reserve collection, generally under the call number M.

Audio Files on Web Sites: Use Web resources listed below and Internet search engines to find music audio files. AltaVista's Advanced Audio Search is an excellent place to begin.

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Finding Books and Scores

Using Catalogs: Use the library's online catalog, to find scores and books on vocal music, technique, performance practice, singing, choral music, opera and other related topics. You can search by keyword or alphabetically browse by author, title and subject. To find scores by a specific composer, do a general keyword search using the composer's name and the word scores. For example, to find Mozart scores, enter Mozart scores as a general keyword search. Scores are generally found in the M 1 - M 1490 call number range on the upper Top Level of the library. Use WorldCat to find books in other libraries. Unlike recordings, most libraries are willing to loan music books and scores. For home or off campus access please use your WSU Login.

Music Books and Scores: Most music books and scores in our library are found in the General Collection under the call number M on the upper level. It is useful to browse the shelves in this area to get an overview of our music collection. 

Useful call number areas for vocal music are:

M 1500 -- opera scores M 1600 -- songs ML 1 - 3930 -- literature on music ML 457 -- performance practice ML1400 -- choral music ML1500 = history of choral music ML 3930 -- literature on music for children MT 1 -- MT 960 -- musical instruction and study MT 1 -- pedagogics MT 2 - MT 5 -- history and criticism MT 7 -- music theory MT875 -- choral singing

Subject Headings: Useful Library of Congress Subject Headings are: 

• Vocal Music
• Singing
• Choral Singing
• Performance Practice
• Choruses
• Cantatas
• Opera
• Choirs
• Conducting, choral
• Children's choirs
• Voice (medical aspects)

Useful subdivisions include: methods, instruction and study, interpretation

From Bookstores: Order books online from Amazon Books or Barnes and Noble. Also use Books in Print sources as needed.

Interlibrary Loan: If we do not own a particular book or article you need, we will borrow it for you from another library through Interlibrary Loan.

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Reference Resources

Reference resources include encyclopedias, dictionaries and other materials you use to "refer" to. Use these resources for background information on a topic. For home or off campus access please use your WSU Login.

ONLINE REFERENCE RESOURCES

• Oxford Music Online [Now includes Grove Music Online]: The authoritative encyclopedia for all aspects of music. Includes links to digital sound, images, and related sites. Updated quarterly and annually. Be aware that our subscription allows for only 6-8 simultaneous users.
• Oxford Reference Online: Click on Performing Arts to access several music reference resources.
• xreferplus: Click on Music to access several music reference resources

PRINT REFERENCE RESOURCES (Encyclopedias and Dictionaries)

Listed below are some selected examples. Use the catalog or browse the shelves to see many more reference books on Music

• Choral music for children - Reference, ML128.J8C5 1990
• Choral music for women's voices - Reference,  ML128.V7B87
• A Dictionary of Opera and Song Themes - Reference, ML128.V7B3 1976
• Garland Encyclopedia of World Music - Reference Table 3A
• New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians (Reference Table 3A) - This contains long articles on a wide variety of subjects. Each article has a bibliography. Online version is listed above.
• New Harvard Dictionary of Music (REF ML 100 .N485 1986) -- has definitions of musical terms and historical articles. 
• The Library also owns a number of more subject specific dictionaries and encyclopedias including: The New Grove Dictionary of American Music, The New Grove Dictionary of Jazz, The Guinness Encyclopedia of Popular Music in America, and many others. 

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Finding Articles

ARTICLE DATABASES

To find articles on your topic you need to use article databases, also known as periodical indexes. Each database usually covers a group of subject related journals. Search by subject or keyword in these indexes. For home or off campus access please use your WSU Login.

• Arts & Humanities Search Citations from many of the world's leading arts and humanities journals. 1980 - present, updates weekly. 
• Academic Search Premier Provides access to some full-text articles in thousands of magazines and journals.
• RILM -- Répertoire International de Litterature Musicale  Abstracts of Musical Literature 1969 - present. 
• IIPA -- International Index to Performing Arts Citations, abstracts and some full-text articles on all aspects of the performing arts.
• JSTOR Scholarly, full text journals many of which go back more than 50 years

NEWSPAPERS

• Many other newspapers and broadcast news services are available on the Web.

BROWSING CURRENT PERIODICALS

Current magazines and journals on music and music education can be browsed in the Current Periodicals Area, including:

• American Choral Review   ML1.V889
• American Music Teacher  MT 1 .A512
• The Choral Journal  ML1.C5514
• Journal of Research in Music Education   ML 1 .J86
• Journal of Singing
• The NATS Bulletin ML1.N271

Bound volumes of older issues are found on the lower level in the "M" stacks.

ELECTRONIC JOURNALS

• Internet Resources for Music Scholars: Online Journals and Newsletters - from Loeb Music Library, Harvard University
• Music Journals and Magazines, Newspapers and Periodicals -See this excellent list from Indiana University
• The Opera Critic
• Yahoo: Music: Magazines
• Visit our EJournals page to locate music magazines and journals our library has available in full-text online.

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Web Resources

Here are some WWW sites to get you started. Most of these will take you to other links, so explore!

• L'Atelier du Chanteur/ The Singers Workshop (mostly in French). Good list of links to other resources (scroll down to see many in English).
• The Aria Database is a diverse collection of information on over 1000 operatic arias
• A Brief History of Singing
• The American Folklife Center at the Library of Congress - created  as a repository for American Folk Music, and all aspects of folklore and folklife from this country and around the world. 
• Choral Public Domain Library, a collection of over 2800 free, ready-to-print public domain choral works in PDF format with accompanying MIDI files.  Site maintained by Rafael Ornes.
• ChoralNet, the official website of the International Federation for Choral Music and home of Choralist, ChoralTalk, ChoralAcademe, and many other Internet resources for the choral music world.
• DW3 Classical Music Resources - comprehensive collection of links from Duke University library. See Vocal Arts page.
• Operabase
• Core Music Reference Guide -- from the William & Gail Cook Music Library at the Indiana University School of Music.
• How to Find Sheet Music on the Internet
• International Directory of Music Organizations
• The Lester S. Levy Collection of Sheet Music - of Johns Hopkins
  University contains over 29,000 pieces from1780 to 1960 including full images of those published before 1923 in public domain
• Worldwide Internet Music Resources - from the William and Gayle Cook Music Library Indiana University School of Music 

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Research Tips

• Clearly identify your information need
• Identify key words and search terms to match your topic
• Develop search statements using advanced search techniques
  • Boolean logic, adjacency searching and truncation
• Use the Online catalog to find books
• Use Arts & Humanities article databases to find journal articles
• Go back to the online catalog to see if the journals are in Stewart Library and where they are located
• Use Interlibrary loan to get materials that are not in Stewart Library
• Use search engines to find Web information
• Carefully evaluate the information you find for usefulness and quality
• Revise your search terms and strategy to expand or narrow your results, be creative, look in other areas
• Once you have found information from an Internet site you can Email the documents to yourself, print or save them to a floppy disk 
• Use appropriate style to document and cite research
• Ask for HELP at  Reference, via phone or email

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