Music 150/250: Introduction to Music Traditions & Music: Medieval thru 17th Century: Library Catalog

Before you jump in to find articles on your topic in periodicals, take a moment to think about what you're looking for. This step is important, not just for this class, but for any research you'll do in the future, whether it's for school or your own interests.

Ask yourself some questions:

• Does my topic fit within any broad subject area(s)?
• Would a subject index, a general index or both suit my needs?
• Do I need current information or historical information on my topic?
• Is there a subject index in print, but not electronic, format that will be helpful?

Planning your search strategy can save you time in the research process. It will help you focus your search so you choose the most useful indexes or databases with which to start. It certainly beats getting right into a general electronic database, typing in topic words you haven't thought about much and sorting through the, often extensive, list of results.

Above all, don't give up if you don't find material on your subject right away! Try thinking of other words to describe your subject. You may find material on your topic listed under some of these synonyms. Check the Library of Congress Subject Headings volumes at the reference desk, or try using a thesaurus.

Even if you don't succeed with the synonyms you try, don't give up yet! Remember, each index and database has a certain coverage of periodical titles, so you may need to try a different index/database that would cover periodicals more suited for your topic.

Also remember you can ask a librarian at the reference desk to help you search for your topic; the librarians are there to help you in your research, and they have experience searching the library's many indexes and databases. A librarian may be able to help you think of more synonyms or help you use an index thesaurus to come up with subject name(s) you need. A librarian may also be able to help you use a particular index or database in other ways to locate material on your topic, or s/he may direct you to a better index or database for researching your topic.

Most databases allow the user different searching methods. One of the most common searching methods is Boolean Searching, also called keyword searching. This type of search tells the database to retrieve all of the records in the database which contain a word or a set of words. You can alter the results by using Boolean Operators which are the words AND, OR and NOT. See below for an explanation of these terms. Some databases require the Boolean operators to be capitalized or they are searched just like regular search terms.

AND

Example: cookies AND milk

Will retrieve records which contain the word “cookies” and the word “milk.” This operator is used to lessen the number of records retrieved. This is the most common default Boolean term.

OR

Example: caffeine OR coffee

Will retrieve records which contain the word “caffeine” or the word “coffee.” This operator is used to broaden the number of records retrieved.

NOT

Example: chocolate NOT cake

Will retrieve records which contain only the word "chocolate" but not the word "cake." This operator is used to reduce the number of records retrieved.

Use the Fusion Plus catalog as your first option for locating books, scores, microfilms, journal titles (but NOT articles), sound recordings, and videos owned by Indiana State University, as well as Web-based resources that are accessible via the catalog (electronic books and journals, databases).

Searching for specific types of music-related materials in an online catalog can be much easier and quicker if you know your Keyword search option.

For example, in the ISU Online Catalog, you can select Keyword searching and then set more limits to discover how to limit your Keyword searches to: 

• Location [e.g., Main Library or Music Listening Library]
• Material type [e.g., Music score, Non-musical recording, musical recording

In addition to using the Set More Options, you can also design searches on the main Keyword screen such as: 

• Mozart AND sound
• Mozart AND music
• Mozart AND scores
• Mozart AND full score?
• Mozart NOT {voice or piano}
• Thematic catalogs AND {composer}
• Thematic catalogs AND {type of music}
• Music AND thesis

What you are looking for can make a difference in where you should look. Different types of sources offer different information.

Books:
Books take about a year to be published. They will not include the latest studies and research. Textbooks and encyclopedias are good for basic information. Further editions of books demonstrate that a source has been updated to reflect new information and may be a standard source in the field. Are there newer editions available?

Reference Books:
Reference books, such as encyclopedias and dictionaries, collect accepted facts from the established literature. In health and science, they can be huge and may take years to put together. Therefore, they do not contain the most current information, although they may mention studies that were recent at the the time of publication. But they are a good one-stop-shop to start by learning the basics of a topic.

Journals:
The latest research is published in journals. It can be difficult to find basic information in journals. Nowadays, most journals have a web site that allows viewing of the table of contents and summaries of articles.

Databases:
Databases are very useful and efficient for searching through journals. Sometimes they include books, and other sources. Every database follows different rules for searching and storage. Effective use depends on knowing those rules. Commercial medical and science databases commonly provide only summaries of articles and do not include full text. They can be very expensive.