General Reference Works
Encyclopedias/Dictionaries - General
Apel, Willi. Harvard Dictionary of Music. 2nd ed.
Contains definitions of all kinds including many used in musical performances, and articles on music, history, aesthetics,
theory, etc. The bibliographies list books, periodical articles, and references to examples of music.
[Ref ML 100 .A64]
Arnold, Denis, ed. The New
International coverage of composers, and their works, careers, and achievements, opera plots, terms, and institutions,
as well as theory, form, notation, instruments, forms, scales and modal patterns, music theory, and the history of music in
individual countries or geographic areas.
[Ref ML 100 .N5]
Die Musik in Geschichte und Gegenwart.1949-1979.
A comprehensive work, international in scope and written in German with long articles by specialists. Covers individual,
compositions, genres, and cities, composers, performers, scholars, theorists, patrons and publishers of music, and
people in other arts whose works were important to music. Terminology, musical genres, forms, institutions, orchestras,
societies, and cities with significant musical traditions are included.
[Ref ML 100 .M92]
Fink, Robert and Robert Ricci. The Language of
Twentieth Century Music: A Dictionary of Terms.
Schirmer Books, 1975. 125p.
Defines the basic terminologies of chance music, computer music, electronic music, film music, jazz, musique concrete,
multimedia, rock, twelve-tone music, instruments, performance practices, musical analysis and movements in
contemporary plastic and graphic arts.
[Ref ML 100 .F55]
Emphasizes the coverage of major contemporary figures and their works. Contains 6000 entries of composers, musical
instruments, genres, operas, and performers. Terms and illustrations are provided.
[Ref ML 100.W48]
Hitchcock, H. Wiley and Stanley Sadie. The New
Grove Dictionary of American Music .
of Music, 1986. 4v.
Provides good expositions, descriptions, and identifications of both personalities and subjects in the realm of American
music. It describes the whole range of American music culture from acid rock to serious concert music and embraces
grand opera as well as country and western contributions. There are 2500 entries, two-thirds of which are biographical.
[Ref ML 101 .U6 N48]
Kennedy, Michael. The
Includes entries for composers and musicians (including living persons), individual compositions, musical instruments,
terms, films, and organizations, etc. Lists of compositions are given for composers.
[Ref ML 100 .K35]
Landon, Grelum and Irwin Stambler. The
Encyclopedia of Folk, Country, & Western Music. 2nd. ed.
Martin's Press, 1984. 902p.
An alphabetical arrangement of articles on individuals, performers, and performing groups. An excellent section includes
music awards from a variety of organizations and there is a useful and comprehensive bibliography.
[Ready Ref ML 102 .M88 G7]
Sadie, Stanley, ed. The New Grove Dictionary of
Music and Musicians.
More than half of the entries are for composers, but performers, scholars, theorists, patrons and publishers of music,
and people in other arts whose works were important to music are included. Terminology, musical genres, and forms
are fully treated. There are entries for institutions, orchestras, and societies, as well as for cities and towns with
significant musical traditions.
[Ref ML 100 .G885]
Thompson, Oscar, ed. The International
Cyclopedia of Music and Musicians. 11th ed.
2511p.
Gives accurate and reliable data on a variety of topics, issues, individuals, and developments. Included are entries on
music history, criticism, folk music, opera, compositions, etc. Biographical coverage of composers is excellent and the
narratives are accompanied by calendars of their lives and a listing of their works.
[Ready Ref ML 100 .T47]
Encyclopedias/Dictionaries
- Jazz
Case, Brian and Sam Britt. The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Jazz.
Offers about 400 biographical sketches of jazz musicians from the last fifty years giving brief biographical information, a
discussion of the career, and a selected discography.
[Ref ML 120.J3 C34]
Kernfeld, Barry (ed.). The New Grove Dictionary
of Jazz.
Most of the entries are short descriptions of the more important jazz performers and players. Entries are also made for
recording companies, jazz venues, and terminology.
[ML 102.J3 N48 1988]
Encyclopedias/Dictionaries
- Opera
Kobbe, Gustav. Kobbe's Complete Opera Book.
Discusses the development of opera giving the stories of more than 300 operas, brief notes on the composers,
illustrative musical phrases, dates of first performances, important revivals, etc. Includes older operas which are still
being performed and modern works by contemporary composers.
[Ready Ref MT 95]
Sadie, Stanley (ed.). The New Grove Dictionary
of Opera.
Provides brief entries for operas, composers, performers, and scholars. Opera genres, and forms are fully treated.
[Ref ML 102.O6 N5 1992]
Encyclopedias/Dictionaries
- Popular Music
Mattfeld, Julius. Variety Music Cavalcade, 1620-1969. A Chronology of Vocal
and Instrumental Music Popular in
the
Lists popular music chronologically with a brief account of various events occurring each year. Also includes hymns,
secular and sacred songs, choral compositions, and instrumental and orchestral works.
[Ref ML 128 .V7 M4]
Encyclopedias/Dictionaries
- Musical Instruments
Sadie, Stanley, ed. The New Grove Dictionary of Musical Instruments.
3 volumes.
Five broad categories of articles are included: 1.instruments of classical Western music; 2. makers of those instruments;
3. modern Western instruments (including electronic ones) and their makers; 4. performing practice; and
5. non-Western and folk or traditional instruments- the latter category being particular well presented.
[Ref ML 102 .I5 N48]
Histories
Grout, Donald Jay with Claude V. Palisca. A History of Western Music.
4th ed.,
There are a glossary, bibliography, and a chronology of Western musical development as well as a number of
illustrations. Title, subject, and name indexes are furnished.
[Ref ML 160 .G87]
Slonimsky, Nicholas. Music Since 1900. 4th
ed.
A chronology of stylistic music trends from 1900 to 1969 and includes letters and other primary source material.
[Ref ML 197 .S634]
New
V. 1 Ancient and oriental music; v. 2 Early medieval music up to 1300; v. 3 Ars nova and the Renaissance, 1300-1540;
v. 4 The age of humanism, 1540-1630; v. 5 Opera and church music, 1630-1750; v. 7 The age of enlightenment,
1745-1790; v. 8 The age of Beethoven, 1790-1830; v. 10 The modern age.
[Ref ML 160 .N44]
Introductory volume: Early history, Middle Ages, Folk song, etc.; v. 1-2 Polyphonic period; v. 3 Music of the 17th
century; v. 4 Age of Bach and Handel; v. 5 Viennese period; v. 6 Romantic period; v. 7 Symphony and drama.
[Ref ML 160 .098]
Raeburn, Michael, and Kendall, Alan (eds.). Heritage
of Music.
v.1 Classical Music and Its Origins; v.2 The Romantic Era; v.3 The Nineteenth Century Legacy; v.4 Music in the
Twentieth Century
[Ref ML 3901.F7 1990]
Biographies
Ewen, David (ed.). Great Composers, 1300-1900.
Has short essays on the lives and accomplishments of composers drawn from all over the world. Arranged in
alphabetical order, with appendixes listing entries by nationality and chronologically.
[Ref ML 105.E94]
Ewen, David (ed.). Musicians Since 1900:
Performers in Concert and Opera.
1978.
Has short essays on the lives and accomplishments of composers drawn from all over the world. Arranged in
alphabetical order, with appendixes listing entries by musical type.
[Ref ML 105.E97]
Sadie, Julie Anne, and Rhian, Samuel. The
Norton/Grove Dictionary of Women Composers.
& Company, 1995.
Brief essays, arranged in alphabetical order, on women composers. Includes a chronology outlining important historical
events in history of women composers.
[Ref ML 105.N38 1995]
Slonimsky, Nicholas. Baker's Biographical
Dictionary of Musicians. 7th ed.
1984. 2577 p.
Gives compact biographies of musicians of all ages and nations with bibliographies of the musician's own works and
works about him. Includes selected pop singers, rock and roll musicians, and singers in movie musicals.
[Ref ML 105 .B16]
Bibliographies
Booth, Mark W. American Popular Music: A Reference Guide.
An inventory of resources for studying American popular music. Offers short outlines of books, periodicals, and special
collections on the subject. The book is divided into sections by musical type.
[ML 102.P66 B65 1983]
De Lerma, Dominique-Rene. Bibliography of Black
Music. v. 3: Geographical Studies.
Press, 1982. 284p.
Covers geographical studies, including books, articles, dissertations, essays, etc., and ethnomusicology.
[Ref ML 128 .B45 D44]
Duckles, Vincent H. and Michael A. Keller. Music
Reference and Research Materials.
526p.
Provides bibliographic information and annotations for 2,000 different reference books including dictionaries and
encyclopedias, guides to systematic and historical musicology, bibliographies of music literature, bibliographies of music,
catalogs of music libraries and collections, histories and bibliographies of music printing and publishing, discographies,
yearbooks, and directories.
[Ref ML 113 .D83]
Ferris, Sharon Paugh and Guy A. Marco. Information
on Music: A Handbook of Reference Sources in European
Languages.
Volume 1 furnishes annotated entries for over 500 basic and universal sources in the field of music and related areas.
Volume 2 covers the
[Ref ML 113 .M33]
Floyd, Samuel A. Black Music in the
Research Materials.
An organized survey of the literature, research materials, and archives for African American music. Sections for
bibliographies, discographies, indexes, and topical studies.
[ML 128.B45 F6 1983]
Heintze, James R. Early American Music: A
Research and Information Guide.
Has annotated descriptions of over 1900 items. The historical studies section divides the literature into topical studies,
biographies, as well as histories, chronologies, and area studies.
[ML 120.U5 H46 1990]
Horn, David. The Literature of American Music in
Books and Folk Music Collections: A Fully Annotated
Bibliography.
Nearly 1500 books relating to any aspect of American musical life are cited and carefully annotated. Arrangement is
chronological then by type or form.
[Ref ML 120 .U5 H7]
Iwaschkin, Roman. Popular Music: A Reference
Guide.
Includes 5,000 items covering folk, country, Cajun, black, jazz, stage and screen, rap music, African pop, Grand Ole
Opry, jazz in German, songwriters and composers, music industry figures, music education, instruments, music business,
and careers.
[Ref ML 128.P63 I95]
Jackson, Richard.
Includes sources of bibliography
concerning many aspects of music in the
blues, ragtime, jazz, pop music, opera, women in music, and twentieth century music. Covers biographical sources as
well.
[Ref ML 120 .U5 J2]
Kennington, Donald. The Literature of Jazz: A
Critical Guide. 2nd ed.
Selective but aims to list all the significant material A published in English up to the end of 1979. Periodical articles are
not included but there is a list of jazz periodicals. Chapters are presented in the form of bibliographical essays on
specific aspects of the literature with a full bibliography at the end of each chapter.
[Ref ML 128 .J3 K45]
Mixter, Keith E. General Bibliography for Music
Research.
Presents references to general bibliographical tools both musical and non-musical that may aid those engaged in
research in music. The coverage is
on books from North America and
[Ref ML 114 .M595 G4]
Watanabe, Ruth Taiko. Introduction to Music
Research.
Includes information on use of the music library, general library card catalogs, selection and development of a research
topic, and brief survey of music bibliography and related research materials.
[Ref ML 3797 .W37]
Journals
The Music Quarterly. (1915-1985, 1986-present)
The American Musical Journal. (1834-1835)
Dwight's Journal of Music. (1852-1881)
Indexes and
Abstracts (Print versions)
Music Article Guide. Winter 1966-.
The nation's only annotated quarterly reference guide to selected significant feature articles in American music
periodicals geared exclusively to the special needs of school and college music educators. Offers subject and
author approaches with full information appearing under the subject entry.
[Ref ML 1 .M39]
The Music Index: The Key to Current Music Periodical
Literature. 1949-.
Indexes, by author and subject, about 350 periodicals, some of them selectively, representing various aspects of the
music field, ranging from musicology to the retailing of music. Gives complete indexing for musical periodicals, and
indexes articles pertinent to music in some general publications. Includes obituaries, book reviews, and reviews of music
performances and recordings.
[Ref ML 118 .M84]
Popular Music Periodicals Index. 1973-1976. Ann Metuchen, N.J.: Scarecrow. 4v.
Provides access/retrieval to both record reviews and article in 70 general and specialist popular music magazines. The
written literature assessed comes
from
[Ref ML 118 .P66]
RILM Abstracts of Music Literature.
1967-1978.
Provides abstracts indexed by computer of articles (both in books and periodicals), reviews, dissertations,
iconographies, catalogs, etc. Classed arrangement with annual author-subject index.
[Ref ML1 .I83]
Indexes and
Abstracts (On-line versions)
Extended Academic database - available at university library website.
Humanities Abstracts - available through library website or library OPACs
Dissertations Database - available through library website or library OPACs
Internet
Resources
The Internet provides access to numerous web sites including private and public
institutions. It also provides access to e-mail communication, and list-servs
on a wide range of subjects.
For further information contact Bradley Tolppanen
Humanities Reference Librarian