Music Guide

Use the U of M catalog as your first option for locating books, e-books, scores, journal titles (but not individual articles), audio and video recordings, electronic databases, and microfilm or microfiche.

For tips on searching: Keyword, Author/Composer, Title, Subject, Number, Advanced Search.

Don't forget to search for ebooks as well as those in hard copy.  Most of the titles in our collections of ebooks will be found in the catalog as you search, but some collections are not included.  It is important to check the collections themselves.  Click on the "Find ebooks" tab above to search for titles and to see video tutorials on searching and downloading ebooks.

Call Numbers

Books and scores are given Library of Congress (LC) call numbers, which group similar materials together. Understanding the components of a call number will help you browse the shelves effectively.

• M - Music Scores
• ML - Literature on Music (biographies, histories, dictionaries
• MT - Instruction and Study (theory, composition, pedagogy, self-instruction, excerpt books)

Overview of LC classification for Music - M

Anatomy of a Call Number for Scores

Sheet music is best defined by physical format. It occurs as:

• Single sheets, printed on one or both sides
• Folios (one sheet folded in half to form four pages)
• Folios with a loose half-sheet inserted to yield six pages
• Double-folios (an inner folio inserted within the fold of an outer folio to make eight pages)
• Double-folios with a loose half-sheet inserted within the fold of an inner folio to produce 10 pages.

The content of sheet music varies widely. It can be either popular or art music, and while songs and solo piano music are the most commonly represented genres, sacred and secular choral music, dance music, and other genres also appear in this format.