The Music research collection contains materials on every facet of musical study, including biography, history and criticism, ethnomusicology, theory and composition, and music education; the collected editions of all the major composers (and many less well-known composers), many musical first editions and other rare items; and the important music indexes, encyclopedias and bibliographies.
Besides reference works, scores and librettos, there are over 400 periodicals and many other American and foreign music journals, including a number devoted to musical instruments, many of the standard recording review journals, and popular music magazines.
Searching for music can be tricky for many reasons, including:
In music, title searching can be complicated!! Searching the uniform title will retrieve all catalog records, in all formats (sound recording, score), containing the piece regardless of title variations printed on the item. Just click the link labeled "Uniform Title" on the catalog record.
Form Titles are used when the original name is also a musical form. (i.e. Concerto, Sonata) Note that the type of composition will also be plural unless the composer only created one work in that form.
Form titles are constructed using the following information:
Type of composition or form, instruments or voice, thematic catalog # or opus #, key
Example of a Beethoven Sonata:
Sonatas, piano, no. 5, op. 10, no. 1, A major
Distinctive Titles are used fwhen the original name is not a music form.
Example of the opera La Bohéme by Puccini:
Bohéme
Collective Titles are used for collections that contain multiple works by one composer. There are three options.
1. Works in a single musical form.
Beethoven, Ludwig van, 1770-1827.
Concertos [includes all concertos written by Beethoven]
2. Works in a single performance medium.
Brahms, Johannes, 1833-1897.
Organ music [includes all musical forms for organ written by Brahms]
3. Works in a mixture of forms and media.
Gershwin, George, 1898-1937.
Works [includes all works by Gershwin]
Portions of a Work
The name of a movement or a portion of a work, such as an aria, can be added to the end of a form or distinctive title. Other words can be added to describe that particular version.
Examples:
Messiah. Hallelujah.
Messiah. Selections.
Tosca, arr.
Sometimes musicians have different translations to their name or use a nickname. Determining the name of an artist in our catalog will insure you have the correct person and that you are finding all the information about that person.
An authority name can include the following:
Last name, First name, birth and death date.
Examples:
Armstrong, Louis, 1901-1971.
Beethoven, Ludwig van, 1770-1827.
Jones, Norah, 1979-
Tchaikovsky, Peter Ilich, 1840-1893.
Swift, Taylor, 1989-
Why use Subject Headings?
How do I search using Subject Headings?