Searching the Library Catalog for Music

The catalog for Fondren Library lists the books, periodicals, and other materials held by the library (including the Business Information Center, the Fine Arts Library and the Government Publications and Microforms Department).  To access the catalog, click here.

In the search window, type what you know of the composer's name and title of the work and/or instrumentation. In general, it is better to use only the operative words. Pachelbel, for example, is as effective as Johann Pachelbel. Opus numbers and thematic catalog numbers (e.g. "K" numbers for Mozart, "RV" for Vivaldi) may be used. Click search catalog.

Examples:         bach and goldberg variations

                          ravel and tombeau de couperin and piano

Scores only or recordings only
To limit your search to scores only, add the words "not sound" to the end of your search.

Examples:         bach and musikalisches opfer not sound

                          mahler and lied von der erde not sound

To limit your search to recordings only, add the words "and sound" to the end of your search.

Examples:         donizetti and lucia di lammermoor and sound

                          mozart and clarinet quintets and sound

Works with Generic Titles
Many works have a generic title: symphony, fugue, prelude, etude, overture, concerto, etc. In general, either use the plural form of the title or truncate using the $ sign.

Examples:         vivaldi and bassoon concertos and RV 501

                          chopin and preludes and op 28

                          haydn and symphon$ and 104

Uniform Titles
Music is published throughout the world in a wide variety of languages. To gather all the different versions of a work in one place, the library assigns a uniform title. NB: Your results will be much more relevant if you limit by format, according to the directions in the  “Scores Only or Recordings Only” section above

To find a uniform title, type what you know in a keyword search and look at one of the resulting records. The uniform title should appear near the top of the record, or it may be combined with the composer's name near the bottom. Once you find the uniform title, redo the search using one or more elements from the uniform title.

Searching For Specific Instrumentation
The scores are arranged according to the Library of Congress Classification System which assigns call numbers by instrumentation and genre.

Do a keyword search to locate a score that matches the instrumentation you need (see "Scores Only or Recordings Only" section above). Then click on the call number to get a list of items with similar call numbers.

Locations

All are in Fondren Library unless stated otherwise.