Introduction
When first beginning a research project, it's a good idea to get background material on your topic. Reference works can save you a lot of time. They have done the work of compiling information about a person or topic for you - this can give you some context for the topic you are studying and help you frame your research question. They also have useful bibliographies that can jump start your research process.
Dictionaries and encyclopedias can be found for broad areas of music and for very specific subjects, so its best to start big and work your way smaller as you narrow your focus.
Reference Databases
- Music Reference Collection This link opens in a new windowComprehensive resource for research on the music of people worldwide.
- Oxford music online This link opens in a new windowOxford Music Online allows the simultaneous searching of The New Grove Dictionary of Music, 2nd edition; The Oxford Dictionary of Music; The Oxford Companion to Music; and Encyclopedia of Popular Music
- Oxford reference This link opens in a new windowCross-searchable online database of Oxford University Press subject dictionaries and reference works. Music & Dance reference resources include The Oxford Dictionary of Dance (2 ed.), Dictionary Plus Music, The Grove Book of Operas (2 ed), The International Encyclopedia of Dance, The Oxford Companion to Music, A Dictionary of Opera Characters (2 ed.), The Grove Book of Opera Singers (2 ed.), The Oxford Companion to the American Musical, The Oxford Dictionary of Music (6 ed.), and the Encyclopedia of Popular Music (4 ed.)
Dictionaries
The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians by Call Number: ML100 .N48 2001ISBN: 1561592390Music & Dance Library-Reference (In Library Use Only)
The online version is available through Oxford Music Online as Grove Music Online. Grove Music Online includes Grove Jazz and Grove Opera.
Check the Library Catalog for older editions of Grove -- useful for comparative musicology.
Die Musik in Geschichte und Gegenwart: Allgemeine Enzyklopädie der Musik (MGG), 2nd ed. by Call Number: ML100 .M92 1994ISBN: 3476410226Music & Dance Library-Reference (In Library Use Only)
Sachteil for things, Personenteil for people.
MGG, like the other large foreign language sets, can be very useful for offering a comparative view or offering more information than Grove
The Harvard Dictionary of Music by Call Number: ML100 .H37 2003ISBN: 0674011635Music & Dance Library-Reference
A handy quick reference--this volume only includes things and concepts, no people.
The New Grove Dictionary of Jazz by Call Number: ML102.J3 N48 2001ISBN: 1561592846Publication Date: 2003-02-11Music & Dance Library-Reference (In Library Use Only)
New Grove Dictionary of Opera by Call Number: ML102.O6 N5 1992ISBN: 0333485521Publication Date: 1992-01-01Music & Dance Library-Reference (In Library Use Only)
New Grove Dictionary of Women Composers by Call Number: ML105 .N39 1994ISBN: 0333515986Publication Date: 1994-11-01Music & Dance Library-Reference (In Library Use Only)
More Reference Sources
Baker's Biographical Dictionary of 20th Century Classical Music by Call Number: ML105 .S612 1997ISBN: 0028712714Shelved at Music & Dance Library-Reference
Baker's Biographical Dictionary of MusiciansCall Number: ML105 .B16 2001ISBN: 0028655257Shelved At Music & Dance Library-Reference
A Chronology of American Musical Theater by Call Number: ML1711.8.N3 N67 2002ISBN: 0195088883Shelved At Music & Dance Library-Reference
The encyclopedia of popular music. 4th ed. by Available online -- (Source: Oxford reference)
Encyclopedia of Recorded Sound by Call Number: ML102.S67 E5 2005ISBN: 041593835XShelved At Music & Dance Library-Reference
International Dictionary of Black Composers by Call Number: ML105 .I5 1999ISBN: 1884964273Shelved At Music & Dance Library-Reference
Histories
The Oxford History of Western Music by Call Number: ML160 .T18 2005ISBN: 0195169794Shelved At Music & Dance Library-Reference (In Library Use Only)
