Objective
Explore topics in Western music history to 1800 using encyclopedia entries, books, articles, and recordings through the PLU Library.
Subject Guide
Accessing and Downloading Articles
There are three main ways that you can access articles in full text through the library. Most of our journals are in digital format, but these methods work for print, too.
Directly from the database you're searching: Look for a PDF or HTML link.
Via "Check the PLU Library for full text": If you see this link, click it. The Article Linker will show you all the ways that article is available, including whether it's part of our print collection.
Via Interlibrary Loan: If this is the only option the Article Linker offers you, don't worry! We can get almost any article, at no charge to you. Most are delivered online within a few days of your request. (It works for books, too!)
Explore Potential Topics
General resources such as Wikipedia and the reference works listed below can be great places to start exploring a topic, especially if your topic is still far too broad for the scope of your project. To begin, click the Oxford Music Online link below and see what's offered on your topic. Don't worry about getting too specific at this point--but if something captures your interest, follow it.
- Oxford Music Online (Grove Music) This link opens in a new window
Composer, performer and librettist biographies, encyclopedic coverage of music genre and form, works lists. Combines the New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, the New Grove Dictionary of Opera, the New Grove Dictionary of Jazz, the Oxford Dictionary of Music, and the Oxford Companion to Music.
- Oxford History of Western MusicRichard Taruskin's classic and exhaustive study of the Western classical tradition, from the earliest musical notation to the late twentieth century.
Follow References and Citations
One of the great powers of resources like Oxford Music Online--and Wikipedia too!--is their reference lists. Using the same references that the creators of these resources used can be a rewarding research strategy. Here's how to do it:
- Look at the citation closely. What kind of document is it? A book, article, music recording, or something else? Is there a link to the citation? Does it work?
- If it's a book, article, music score, or similar, look it up in the library catalog. Does the PLU library have the item?
- If not, look up the same item in Worldcat Discovery. Make sure to click "Libraries Worldwide" on the search results page.
- Use Interlibrary Loan to request the item from another library.
Keyword Searching in the Library Catalog
The library catalog is your best option for finding composer biographies, musicological studies, scores, and music recordings.
For best results, try these strategies:
- For books about music, search by time period (such as "17th century"), geographic location, work type (such as "orchestral music"), or descriptive terms (such as "history", "criticism", or "appreciation").
- For books about composers, search on the composer's name. Use the Book format limiter to filter out articles and other materials.
- For recordings, enter the composer's name and use the Music format limiter.
- For scores, enter the composer's name or a few words from the work title, and use the Musical Scores format limiter.
Not finding what you need? Search WorldCat Discovery, expand your search to Libraries Worldwide, and take advantage of Interlibrary Loan.
Reading Music Call Numbers
All music call numbers start with the letter M. Easy to remember! But there are different kinds of music resources, denoted by their call number letters:
- M alone: A music score, recording, or video performance.
- ML: Literature about music; musicology, biography, music history, etc.
- MT: Literature about music education, exercise books, and teaching materials.
If the library is closed, or for your own convenience, you can place a hold for print items from the catalog. Then, pick them up from library staff.
Finding Music Articles
- Music Index (EBSCO) This link opens in a new window
The Music Index is a comprehensive guide to music periodicals and literature featuring digitized content from 1970 to present. This database contains cover-to-cover indexing and abstracts of articles about music, musicians, and the music industry for more than 475 periodicals, as well as book reviews, obituaries, news, and selective coverage for more than 230 periodicals.
- Academic Search Complete (EBSCO) This link opens in a new window
Academic Search Complete is a database of academic journals, magazines, and other scholarly resources, covering a wide range of subjects across the humanities, sciences, and social sciences. It's a great starting point for research, especially with its inclusion of many open access publications.
- JSTOR This link opens in a new window
JSTOR provides comprehensive access to peer-reviewed scholarly journals, books, and primary sources from varies disciplines within the humanities and social sciences.