SEE ALSO the Music Course Webpage for MUSC 286 Women, Gender and Music. This site, created by Dr. Roberta Lamb, includes reading/reserve lists, course schedules and outline of assignments.
Reference Collection
Includes brief historical surveys of women and music, research, biographical data, bibliographies of scores and literature, directories, encyclopedias. The following listing is in Library of Congress call no. sequence.
Women composers and hymnists / C.E. Claghorn ( BV325 .C58 1984)
Contemporary anthology of music by women ( M2 .C77 1997)
Historical anthology of music by women (M2 .H68 1987 and audio tapes 683-685)
Women composers : music through the ages. 1996 -- (M2 .W88 )
Women and music in America since 1900 : an encyclopedia / K. H. Burns, ed. -- (ML82 .W625 2002 2 vols.)
Women composers and songwriters : a concise biographical dictionary / C.E. Claghorn (ML105 .C593 1996)
International encyclopedia of women composers / A.I. Cohen (ML105 .C7 1987 2 vols.)
Women in music / D.L. Nixon ( ML105 .H6 1993)
Women composers : a handbook / S. Stern ( ML105 .S7 1978 )
Contemporary concert music by women / J.L. Zaimont. 1981. ( ML105 .Z34)
Association of Canadian Women Composers directory (ML106 .C3A88 1987t)
Guitar music by women composers / J. MacAuslan, K. Aspen. (ML128 .G8 M33 1997)
Keyboard music by women composers / J.M. Meggett. 1981. (ML128 .H35 M43)
Organ and harpsichord music by women composers / A. Heinrich (M128 .O6O73 1991)
Women composers : a checklist of works for the solo voice / M. Stewart-Green (ML128 .V7S85 1980 )
A guide for researching music of women composers / S. Epstein ( ML128 .W7E67 1991t )
Women and music : a selective annotated bibliography on women and gender issues in music / M. Ericson. 1987-1992. ( ML128 .W7 E75 1996t)
Say can you deny me : a guide to surviving music by women from the 16th through the 18th centuries / B.G. Jackson ( ML128 .W7J3 1994)
Women in American music : a bibliography / J. Skowronski (ML128 .W7 S6 1978)
Women musicians in Canada : "on the record" at the Music Division of the National Library of Canada. Ottawa : National Library of Canada, 1995. (ML136 .O8 G54 1995t)
Women composers : a discography / J. Frasier (ML156 .W6 F7 1983)
A compact discography : women composers on CD / B. Harbach (ML156.4 .W6 H37 1996t)
Women composers, conductors and musicians of the twentieth century / J.W. Lepage. 1980-1988. ( ML197 .L38t 3 vols.)
Pandora guide to women composers : Britain and the United States, 1629 to present / S. Fuller (ML390 .F847 1994t)
New Grove dictionary of women composers (ML390 .N488 1994t)
Gender and the musical canon / M.J. Citron (ML3890 .C58 1993)
QCAT searching: Books and Scores
Items are arranged according to the LIBRARY OF CONGRESS CLASSIFICATION scheme.
Generally, items are shelved, alphabetically, in author order within each subject class number.
Class M (MUSIC) consists of 3 main sections:
M -- Scores. Scores are shelved in 3 sections, by size: miniature, regular stack and oversize.
ML -- Books on music literature, history and criticism. The BIOGRAPHY/CRITICISM number for composers is ML410. Books are grouped in alphabetical order by the biographee/subject. e.g Fanny Hensel ML410 .H482
Click on QCAT at any library workstation to locate books, scores, titles of journals, sound and video recordings, or government documents.
If you know the names of specific authors or performers or organizations, search by Author
If you know the title of specific books or reference works search by Title
Most often, the best way to begin is to search by KEYWORD(s)
KEYWORD(s) searches: combine composer and/or title and subject terms. To avoid retrieving sound recordings add not disc to your search string. e.g. "hildegard saint" not disc. This search will retrieve the scores and books by/about Hildegard von Bingen. Knowing that scores are classed in call numbers beginning with "M" and books about his life and music and role in music education are classed in "ML" or in "MT" you can easily distinguish amongst the citations in the catalogue record displays. In addition, the records are listed in reverse chronological order with the most recent publications first.
Type: women and music. Select a title from the listing. Look at the Full Record to note the LC subject headings. Note the names of authors/performers, etc. that may be linked to the topic.
Once you find the exact wording of a Library of Congress subject heading ...
Search by subject
Some examples to try:
women musicians
women singers
feminism and music
women composers
women - songs and music
canon musical
music teachers
women in opera
women composers music
You can also search names in the subject index to locate works about composers/musicians
. E.g. archer violet or boulanger nadia
QCAT Searching : Sound recordings
Compact discs and LP discs are best located through QCAT.
Use Keyword(s) search mode and add disc to your search string. Alternatively, you can specify "compact disc".
See the section in the Introductory Guide re AUDIO AND VIDEO RECORDINGS
See the QCAT online TUTORIAL for other tips on searching the Queen's University Library online catalogue.
Some examples of subject terms to search in the indexes are .....
women, women's studies, sexuality and music, women composers
Other Online Journal Indexes
A number of other periodical indexes are available at Queen's for online searching, some of which are relevant to the study of women and music:
CBCA (Canadian Business and Current Affairs), Humanities Index, Sociological Abstracts, Social Sciences Index and ERIC (Education Resources Information Clearinghouse). The new Women's Resources International database draws citations and abstracts from essential women's studies databases covering classic works and core studies to the latest scholarship in feminist research.
Click here to search these online indexes and others via the direct link from the Queen's Libraries' homepage under Article Indexes & Databases.
Another useful periodical source is the Canadian Music Periodical Index(CMPI), available through the National Library of Canada website.
At the National Library of Canada there is a site about women in Canadian music
CELEBRATING WOMEN'S ACHIEVEMENTS which includes biographical summaries of Emma Albani, Helen Creighton, La Bolduc (Mary Travers), Kathleen Parlow, Barbara Pentland and Ethel Stark with sample audio clips of their work.
GRIME This site covers Gender Research in Music Education.
CLARA '96 This page which originates at the University of Alabama deals with Clara Schumann. It includes works lists and biographical notes, etc.
WOMEN COMPOSERS is a lengthy bibliography of internet resources by Tara Guthrie.
WOMEN IN MUSIC This University of Washington site provides many interesting links.
The American Musicological Society is a comprehensive link to significant scholarly resources in music, including performance and musicology, ethnomusic, electronic music, theory and composition, education, popular music and topics relating to women.
WOW'EM :Women on the web -- Electronmedia : Composers. This site is based in Florida International University and is aimed at assisting young women in career choices relating to the arts and electronic media. Includes some very interesting links to browse.
Women and music : research guide 