Reference Resources Guide: Music

DESCRIPTION
Musicians describe music as a universal language, organization of sounds, and creative expression. Music's meaning and role differs between cultures, but physical sound laws are universal.

Hispanics create their own Grammy Awards ceremony in Miami; they have a television network, newspapers, and radio stations. Pockets of Caribbean people exist in Washington DC, Houston, Dallas, Florida, New York City, Atlanta, and Connecticut. The music industry is unlikely to record gospel music.

Zimbabwe's music is distinctively different from other African music. Musician Hope Masike plays the mbira, which is a traditional Zimbabwean instrument. Many musicians in the country are combining traditional instruments with modern music styles.

The arrangement of sounds in music determines the listener's emotional response. Consonance is explained in terms of mathematical relationships. Dissonance creates an unpleasant sensation in the auditory system.

Although the gospel music that the Los Angeles Interdenominational Choir sings sounds different, it still contains the same spirit and inspiration as earlier music.

From 1600 to 1750, music was complex and ornamental. Learn about rhythm components, chords, and composition elements with overviews of Bach, Vivaldi, and Handel. Instrumental forms include the suite, sonata, concerto grosso, and fugue.

The gateway to Grove Music Online, with access to search The Oxford Dictionary of Music and The Oxford Companion to Music
The authoritative resource for music research with over 52,000 articles written by nearly 9,000 scholars charting the diverse history and cultures of music around the globe

The BPL collection includes many different music resources including Music Online Listening (listed as individual databases), RISM, Classical Scores Library, and a number of wonderful resources for music.
Note: cards may be obtained via the BPL's web page and are available to residents of Massachusetts, including students who live in Massachusetts to go to school. Please see BPL eCard web page for more information.

Indexes articles from more than 705 international music periodicals on all aspects of classical & popular music. 1970-present. Updated regularly.

A streaming classical music listening library, with acess to almost 130,000 CDs with more than 1.9 million tracks. Updated monthly. Limited to 10 simultaneous users.