Getting Started: Topic Development & Reference Materials
Unless you are very familiar with your subject matter, you will want to spend a significant amount of time identifying the specific topic that interests you. In fact, you may want to examine several potential topics from which to make a final choice.
In selecting your topic be sure to consider the kind of resources that you will need to use to support your thesis. For example, if you wish to examine the personal relationship between two composers, it is likely that you will need to use primary sources. Have your composers written autobiographies? Are there published collections of correspondence between the composers?
A bit of preliminary research will help you determine the viability of your research topic. Below, you will find a link to online Reference tool and a list of printed books that are located in the Reference Collection that should help you.
- Oxford Music Online This link opens in a new windowMultiple music reference resources in one location. Contains Grove Music Online, as well as The Grove Dictionary of Music, The Oxford Dictionary of Music, and The Oxford Companion to Music.
REFERENCE PRINTED MATERIALS
The New Grove Dictionary of Music and MusiciansCall Number: Ref. ML 100.N48 2001ISBN: 0195170679Publication Date: 200129 volume set is one of the basic reference resources for music. While music from around the world is treated, western music is its particular strength.
Oxford History of Western MusicCall Number: Ref. ML160 .T18 2005ISBN: 0195386302Publication Date: 2005
The Oxford Companion to MusicCall Number: Ref. ML100 .S37 2002ISBN: 0198662122Publication Date: 2002
The New Harvard Dictionary of MusicCall Number: Ref. ML100 .N485 1986ISBN: 0674615255Publication Date: 1986
The Life and Times of the Great ComposersCall Number: Ref. ML390 .S8 2004ISBN: 0195222180Publication Date: 2004
The New Grove Dictionary of Musical InstrumentsCall Number: Ref. ML 102.I5 N48 1984ISBN: 0943818052Publication Date: 1985
The New Grove Dictionary of OperaCall Number: Ref. ML 102.06 N5 1992bISBN: 0195221869Publication Date: 1992
The Oxford Dictionary of OperaCall Number: Ref. ML 102.O6 W37 1992ISBN: 0198691645Publication Date: 1992
