If you use the Finding Scores tutorial, please take a few minutes to fill out this feedback survey to let me know what you think!
1. To find music in the libraries, go to the library's homepage, and in the main search bar, type in as much as you know about the music. For example, you can include title, key, opus number, publisher or performer information. Hit enter.
2. In the results, click the link on the bottom of the "Books & Media" box to "view all results".
3. Use the filters on the left to refine your search. You can specify that you want printed music (score), sound recording, or video recording. You can also specify if you want to limit to only online resources under "availability". Under "Resource Type" you can select "scores" for printed music, or "audio" for sound recordings and more.
4. Once you have found the piece you're looking for, click on the result and look directly under the title where the "uniform title" is listed. The uniform title is how the library catalogue refers to works with more than one possible title, including works whose originally titles are not in English or works with generic titles like "Symphony" or "Sonata." Click on the uniform title to find all items with that title, and filter again for the resource type you want (e.g., scores, audio, etc.). Now you can search editions, score types, and recordings and find the exact item you want.
Tips:
***Try using the English plural of a generic title, such as symphonies or sonatas, instead of the singular version of the term.
***Check the catalogue record for scores for publisher, date, score type, and other relevant information to make sure it is the type of score you want. For example, the study score in the image above won't work for you if you need a conductor's score!
***You can use the same method for finding the uniform title for a piece to find the library's preferred spelling for composers' names (see above: Tchaikovsky).
***If you use connector words, such as AND, OR, be sure to capitalize them in this search.
Music materials at Charles Library, Temple University's main library, can be found on the fourth floor under the call numbers M, ML, and MT. Find the call number for your instrument and browse the stacks for music to play! My favorite section is M1503, the opera vocal scores. Enjoy the vast resources available for you at Temple University Libraries!
M – Music Scores
ML – Books, information about music (see the "Find Books" tab for more information about ML and MT call numbers)
MT – Music Education and Theory
More details about the Library of Congress classification for music.
Locating music in historic editions, often published in large collections, can be tricky. These large sets usually consist of music by one composer (Complete works = Gesamptausgaben) or in monuments of music (Denkmäler), which include works by many composers. Try these steps to locate specific pieces within these collections.
Collected Editions, Historical Series & Sets & Monuments of Music: A Bibliography, by George R. Hill and Norris L. Stephens [Berkeley: Fallen Leaf Press, 1997].
Historical sets, collected editions, and monuments of music : a guide to their contents. This is the predecessor to the Hill and Stephens work compiled by Ann Harriet Heyer.
Many libraries have begun digitizing their primary source materials. Once you know which library owns a specific manuscript or edition, check the library's website to see if a digital image is available.
