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- MUS 101/114
Guide Details
Fall 2009 - Dr. Maria Archetto - MUS 101/114
Locating Background Resources
Search online to begin your research; try DiscoverE or any of our online reference sources.
Background sources are a critical step of the research process. Use them to help you get an overview of your topic, brainstorm related search terms, and find more resources in the bibliographies of reference articles to help advance your research.
Also, try browsing the bookstacks (our collection of books you can check out) in the subject areas related to your topic: 780 is the section for Music, and 790 is the section for Performing Arts. (You may also want to try History in the 900s and Religion in the 200s.)
Recommended Background Resources:
Two of THE MOST IMPORTANT resources for studying music:
- 1.) Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians: Available through Oxford Music Online
The godfather of music reference sources - particularly valuable for information about composers' critical and popular reception in their societies and for comprehensive bibliographies at the end of its articles! - 2.) Naxos Music Library: Listen to streaming music available from over 100 CD labels!!
Besides Western classical music, jazz and world music are also included.
After you have died from the combined awesomeness of Grove and Naxos, you can (and should) also try:
- DiscoverE
Search Emory Libraries' not-your-grandmother's-library-catalog for books AND articles, all in one place - Garland Encyclopedia of World Music Online
Contains articles covering topics, issues, trends, and scholarship in all areas and all time periods of world music - Oxford Reference Online
Includes full-text content from more than 170 reference works in all subject areas - Credo Reference Unlimited
Full-text articles from reference books from all subject areas - Encyclopedia Britannica Online
Kicking it old-school style; full-text articles with hyperlinks to related encyclopedia entries
Locating Books
Use DiscoverE, Emory Libraries' mega-search tool, to find books and resources in our catalog (as well as in our online databases and digital collections).
DiscoverE includes materials from all Emory libraries. You can request that items from other libraries be sent to you here at Oxford by clicking on the Available (Get It) link next to the item(s) you want to request.
Recommended Search Terms:
Remember to search by words, and not by sentences or phrases.
Use the connector "AND" to build specific searches:
- mendelssohn AND bach AND revival
- brahms AND schumann
Locating Articles
Search for a composer, a composition title, a performer or ensemble, or musical terms or concepts (such as "music AND therapy" or "baroque AND rococo AND music") in article databases.
Concert reviews can tell you a lot about the history of the performance of a particular piece. Search for "review" as a keyword in combination with a performance group, a composer, or a composition:
- Atlanta Symphony Orchestra AND review
- Sibelius AND review
Recommended Article Databases:
The Databases @ Emory website lists several databases that contain articles about music.
All-scholarly, full-text databases covering a variety of disciplines:
- JSTOR
On the Advanced Search screen, limit by document type to search for "Articles" - Project Muse
While searching, pay attention to the Subject Headings beneath each article - they can help you find the most relevant results
Music-specific databases:
-
RILM Abstracts of Music Literature
On the Advanced Search screen, limit your search to the language "English" (unless you are comfortable reading other languages) -
International Index to Music Periodicals
This database only provides abstracts; ask a librarian if you need help finding the full-text of an article!
General Sources:
If you're searching for current reviews, try some general (that is, not subject-specific) databases:
Evaluating and Citing Your Sources
Whether you're looking at a blog, a book, or a journal article, you always need to evaluate the item for its credibility, its usefulness for your research, and its quality as a source of information. If you have questions about whether or not a source is appropriate for your assignment, ask a librarian!
Evaluating Sources:
Don't forget to evaluate your sources based on:
- Relevance
- Evidence
- Author of source
- Publisher of source
- Timeliness
- Comprehensiveness
Another crucial step of the research process is avoiding plagiarism by CITING YOUR SOURCES!! The library offers 2 options for helping you cite your sources in bibliographies:
- EndNote
Software available on all the library computers (and available for download onto your personal computer) that creates in-text and bibliographic citations in Microsoft Word - Zotero
Also available on all library computers; an add-on for the Firefox browser that allows you to capture bibliographic information from web pages - even from a page of search results from a database or amazon.com! - and drag-and-drop a citation directly onto any area where you can type
Ask a librarian for help with either of these citation tools that will completely blow your mind!