Music Performance

Reference sources are designed to provide users with quick and authoritative background information on a given subject. They are the ideal place to familiarize yourself with a subject and its existing literature, although they should never be the culmination of your research process. Databases collect scholarly articles and information, and they can direct you to academic journals available from the Libraries. A complete list of databases can be found at the Libraries website. The following reference sources and research databases are all available online, although log-in might be required off-campus.

Online Databases and Resources:

Many journals can be found in multiple online databases while others are in-print at Bracken Library. Click here to search for a specific journal title, including online and physical locations. Use the filters on the left and the search bar above to narrow your results. You can also download the browser extension LibKey Nomad to eliminate paywalls you might encounter, if you find an article on Google, Wikipedia, or a publisher's website.

The Music Collection at University Libraries uses Library of Congress Classification, or LCC, for organizing books and scores on the shelves. This system, maintained by the national library of the United States and utilized by libraries across the country and around the world, groups together items on similar subjects. Each item is then assigned a unique call number which combines alphabetical and numerical characters. These features are designed to make browsing library collections easier for users and librarians alike. Tip: Enter the first part of a call number into OneSearch to see all items in a given section.

Call Numbers for Music Performance:

ML 76   Competitions, prizes, etc.

ML 159 - 3785   History and criticism

ML 385 - 429   Biography

ML 394 - 402   Collective. Performers

ML 416 - 419   Instrumentalists

ML 420   Singers

ML 421   Performing groups

ML 422   Conductors

ML 457   Interpretation. Performance practice

ML 458   Conducting

ML 459 - 1380   Instruments and instrumental music

ML 700 - 747   Piano. Music and playing

ML 850 - 897   Violin. Music and playing

[Find call numbers for "Music and playing" for each instrument]

ML 1400 - 3275   Vocal music

ML 3790   Music trade

ML 3795   Music as a profession

ML 3820   Physiological aspects of music

ML 3830 - 3840   Psychology of music

MT 1 - 960   Instruction and study

MT 68   Improvisation. Accompaniment. Transposition

MT 75   Interpretation

MT 80   Embellishment

MT 85   Conducting. Score reading

MT 170 - 810   Instrumental techniques

MT 820 - 915   Singing and vocal technique

Users are encouraged to search for items beyond University Libraries' catalog via RILM Abstracts of Music Literature and WorldCat. Materials not available in print or online may be requested through Interlibrary Loan. Please allow up to seven days for electronic delivery and up to fourteen days for delivery of physical items.