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Music

Useful information

To find a score or recording of a particular musical work using the Search@UW search tool:  

  1. Enter the name of the composer or piece of work and the term score or recording in the search box. Then refine your results by selecting the option "--Books and Media@UWRF" e.g., "Bach AND scores"         

To find a score or recording of a particular musical work using the University Library's online catalog you will need to include information about the following:

  1. Composer’s name -
    1. Last, first, and middle (or middle initial) if at all possible.
    2. Think about alternative transliterations if the name comes from a language that uses an alphabet other than the Roman alphabet, e.g., Cyrillic, Hebrew, Chinese, etc..
  2. Title of the work in its original language, e.g., The Marriage of Figaro = Le nozze di Figaro; B Minor Mass = Messe in H-Moll; Quartet for the End of Time = Quatuor pour la fin du temps.
  3. Alternative titles or nicknames, such as "Moonlight Sonata" or "Jupiter" Symphony.  
  4. Is the piece part of a larger work?  For example, an aria from a particular opera, e.g., "Quando m'en vo" = "Musetta's Waltz Song" from Puccini's La Boheme OR "No One Is Alone" from Sondheim's Into the Woods.
  5. Nationality of the composer.  This helps determine your search terms, for example:
    1. piano = Klavier (German) = clavier (French, technically, "keyboard")
    2. violin = Geige (German) = Violon (French)
    3. viola = Bratsche = alto
    4. double bass = Kontrabass (German) = Contrebasse (French)
    5. bassoon = Fagott (German) = basson (French) = fagotto (Italian)
    6. oboe = hautbois (French)
    7. percussion battery = Schlagzeug (German) = batterie (French)
    8. string quartet = Streichquartett (German) = quatuor a cordes (French)                             
  6. Numbers associated with the work, such as sequence, opus, or thematic catalog numbers.  Examples of some common thematic catalog numbers include:
    1. "BWV" = Bach Werke Verzeichnis (J.S. Bach)
    2. "D" = Deutsch (Schubert)
    3. "Hob." = Hoboken (F.J. Haydn)
    4. "K" = Kochel (Mozart)
    5. "R" = Ryom (Vivaldi). 
    6. **You can often find thematic catalog numbers using the Libraries' catalog or the "works" section at the end of composer entries in The New Grove Dictionary (REF ML100 .N48 2001).
  7. Key signature or voice type/range.
  8. Instrumentation (or original instrumentation of work).
  9. Score format that you desire, e.g., full or conductor's score, mini-score, vocal score, piano reduction.

Where can I find this info?