Music
Research Guides
Research guides (also called bio-bibliographies) contain biographical information and list books, articles, and other sources about composers and their works.
Shelved in Reference at ML 134, alphabetical by composer.
Thematic Catalogs
These books list a composer's works, usually with the opening phrase of music (incipit), information on manuscripts, published editions, and sometimes bibliography. Useful for identifying a piece or verifying information about it.
Shelved in reference at ML 134, alphabetical by composer.
Library Search
Directories
In the library:
International who's who in classical musicCall Number: ML106.G7 W441x (Reference)- International who's who in popular musicCall Number: ML104.P66 I57x
- Musical America worldwideCall Number: ML12 .M88 (Reference)
Composers on the Web
- Contemporary Music TimelineLists events related to contemporary music from the birth of Bartok in 1881 through the 20th century. Links to related articles in Oxford Music Online
- Interviews by Bruce DuffieThis page lists interviews conducted with hundreds of contemporary composers and other musicians by Bruce Duffie, award-winning classical music announcer and producer.
- MusRef: Composers' WebsitesLinks to more than 150 composer websites.
- New Music USA Online LibraryDatabase with over 57,000 works by more than 6,000 composers, with 14,000 media samples (recordings and scores). (January 2013) Includes composer profiles.
- Performing Arts Encyclopedia - Library of CongressA guide to the music, dance and theatre collections and exhibitions at Library of Congress.
Biographies of Musicians
Biographies are shelved at ML 385-ML 429. Major categories:
Individual
- ML 410 Composers
- ML 416-417 Keyboardists
- ML 418 String Players
- ML 419 Other instruments
- ML 420 Singers
- ML 421 Performing groups
- ML 422 Conductors
Collective
- ML 390 Composers
- ML 396-397 Keyboardists
- ML 398 String players
- ML 399 Other instruments
- ML 400 Singers
- ML 402 Conductors
Each category includes musicians of all genres (classical, jazz, popular, folk, etc.)
Composers' Lives & Music
Biographies of individual composers are shelved at ML 410, alphabetical by composer. Collective biographies, which include multiple composers, are at ML 390.
Most biographies emphasize the composer's life, but many include information about and even some analysis of the music.
Books specifically on appreciation and analysis of composers' works are at:
- MT 100 Opera
- MT 115 Choral
- MT 120-121 Songs
- MT 125 Orchestral
- MT 135 Band
- MT 140-145 Chamber and solo instrumental
See also the Biographical Information page of this guide.
Guides to analyses:
Music Analyses by Call Number: ML128.A7 D5 1991 (Reference)ISBN: 0028701100Publication Date: 1991-05-01Where analyses may be found in books, periodicals, and dissertations.
Mla Index and Bibliography Series by Call Number: Electronic BookISBN: 1461700795Publication Date: 2007-01-01Locates analyses of works by over 1,000 19th- and 20th-century composers in journals and other print sources, 1940-2000.
Primary Biographical Resources
Biographical dictionaries are shelved in Reference at ML 105 and ML 106. Biographies are also included in many Dictionaries & Encyclopedias.
- Baker's biographical dictionary of musicians by Call Number: Electronic BookISBN: 0028660919Publication Date: 2001
Baker's Biographical Dictionary of Popular Musicians since 1990Call Number: ML102.P66 B35 2004 (Reference)ISBN: 0028657993Publication Date: 2003-10-21
- Musicians Necrology 1991-2018Birth and death dates for thousands of musicians.
Collected Works
These are generally the most authoritative editions of a composer's works. They are shelved at M 3.
To find a work in the editions: find the composer's biography in Grove Music Online (in Oxford Music Online) and go to the list of works. It usually indicates in which volume of the edition(s) a work appears.
Access to Oxford Music Online is under the Dictionaries & Encyclopedias tab above.
Composers' thematic catalogs (Ref ML134) may also have this information.
Composers from Underrepresented Groups
- Institute for Composer DiversityFounded by composer Rob Deemer, this institute is hosted at the State University of New York at Fredonia. The institute's site hosts two databases, one for composers and one for works. These databases are searchable by a number of data fields, including demographic criteria and work genre/type.