Music: Recordings
Streaming Music Databases
- Naxos Music Library This link opens in a new window100 simultaneous GVSU users allowed: please Log-Out when finished. Includes Classical, Jazz, Blues, World, Folk, & Chinese music, notes on the works, biographical info on composers & musicians, & the CD insert.
- Naxos Music Library - Jazz This link opens in a new window20 simultaneous GVSU users allowed. Includes jazz legends to contemporary artists/composers.
- Naxos World Music Library This link opens in a new windowOffers a wide range of world music, from legendary historical musical performances to contemporary global music. Recordings of 1,500+ cultural groups represented, & music from 150+ countries.
- Met Opera On Demand This link opens in a new windowMet Opera On Demand provides instant access to more than 650 full-length Metropolitan performances.
- Opera in Video This link opens in a new windowThe most important opera performances captured on video through staged productions, interviews, & documentaries.
Borrowing Recordings
- WorldCat (FirstSearch) This link opens in a new windowFind CDs from other libraries: search WorldCat like the GVSU Catalog in left box, use the key (e.g., B flat), opus or K# as a keyword--just the number itself. To borrow, click on Get it @ GVSU, then Doc Delivery.
Sound Clips / Web Recordings
- Alan Lomax's world folk recordingsFrom Alan Lomax’s independent archive, digitized and preserved by the Association for Cultural Equity
- Aria DatabaseA diverse collection of info on over 1000 operatic arias: includes translations, aria texts, & MIDI files of operatic arias & ensembles.
- ArkivMusic"The source for classical music"
- AudionautriXCreative commons collection by Jason Shaw
- Classical Music ArchivesFree users are welcome but may only access 5 unprotected files per day after logging-in.
- 15 Places to Get Free Music DownloadsSites to download free music legally; updated Feb 05, 2020
- dig.ccmixterPodsafe music; instrumental music for film, video, soundtracks; free music for commercial uses
- Free Live-Streamed Concert DatabaseGoogle sheet with date, time, performing artist, link, and availability post-concert.
- Free Music ArchiveOffers free downloads under Creative Commons & other licenses
- Free-LoopsFree loops & audio clip downloads to the music production community
- Freesounda collaborative database of Creative Commons Licensed sounds. Browse, download and share sounds
- Internet ArchiveAllows streaming & downloads
- Partners in Rhyme: Royalty Free Music & Sound EffectsScroll down to see free resources available for anyone to download and use as part of educational fair use (GVSU assignments, classroom use).
- Performing Arts EncyclopediaExplore music, theater, and dance at the Library of Congress
Find Recordings at GVSU
Call Numbers for Music recordings
CDs are on the 3rd floor of the Library before the M call number; LP (vinyl) records & DVDs are in the Automated Storage Retrieval System (click the blue Request button to retrieve them).
Place requests for items to avoid having to enter the stacks and handle materials!
- M1-3 Collected or Complete Works
- M5-1490 Instrumental Music
- M1495-5000 Vocal Music
- ML General
- MT Teaching Music
To Find Recordings at GVSU
For LPs, from the Library's homepage, enter: gvsu lp collection and keywords such as jazz or “big band”
Or, go to Books, select Location = Mary Idema Pew – Audio, and put a/some keyword/s in the search box. This will bring back both CDs and LPs.
However, if you click "Audio music" under Material Type, you'll get all formats of music including streaming.
Use separate boxes for your composer, piece title, type of piece, or other keywords. When you put your composer's last name in the box, change the drop-down to "author" instead of keyword. When searching for a type of piece, use the plural, e.g., "sonatas" or "concertos" (not concerti). You may use phrases like "piano sonatas op. 23" with the quotation marks.
One of the complications of searching for music is the many ways publishers can cite the name of a piece. For example, a piano sonata could be called: "piano sonata", "sonata for piano", "sonata no. x for piano", "Klaviersonate", "Sonate fur Klavier", etc. Virtually all of these would have a "uniform title" of "Sonatas, piano ..." so using the plural of the type of piece followed by the instrument name is a good keyword phrase to use in searching.
Searching for Specific Items
- For popular music – search by PERFORMER or by TITLE: Click on Author (for performer) or on Title.
- Type performer's name (e.g., ellington duke). Click on Search.
- Last Updated: Nov 14, 2023 7:31 AM
- URL: https://libguides.gvsu.edu/music