Featured Database: African American Music Reference

African American Music Reference is a database in Alexander Street’s Music Online: Reference package, which also includes The Garland Encyclopedia of World Music. It brings together important reference texts in this subject area, e-books, liner notes, and other print resources. Other materials include African American iconography and a collection of spirituals and slave lyrics. Currently this database includes over 3,000 books and documents.

The basic search offers a Words Anywhere function, and the Advanced Search allows users to search by Title and Series, Soloist/Performer, Ensemble, Contributor, Genre, Sub-Genre, Instrument, Historical Event, Subject, and Publisher.

We indicate online access to the reference texts and the books in African American Music Reference in our Library Catalog. For example, see International Dictionary of Black Composers.

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