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MH211/MH314 - Survey of Western Music I & II: Finding Articles

A guide for students in MH211 and MH314 researching music history topics from medieval times through the Classical era and from the Romantic era through the present.

Accessing Article Databases

To access any of the article databases discussed on this page:

1)  Sign in to myMillikin

2)  Click on "Library Databases" (under the Academics menu)

Screen shot of library databases button in myMillikin

3)  Click on the subject "Music"

Screen shot of library database subjects

4)  On the next screen, click on the title of the database you wish to search, some options include:

RILM
Music Index
JSTOR
Academic Search Complete

RILM & Music Index

    Music Index      RILM  
Dates of coverage  1949 - present    1967 - present 
Format Print: 1949-2001 
Online: 1970 - present		 Print: 1967-1979 
Online: 1967 - present
Updates Monthly Monthly
Content Periodical articles from scholarly journals, magazines, and trade publications, book reviews, obituaries, & news articles Academic articles, dissertations, bibliographies, books & book chapters, book reviews, limited recordings and websites
Scope Primarily English-language  International (214 languages, 155 countries)
Records include Citations & abstracts, some links to full-text Citations & abstracts, some links to full-text
Primary subject focus  Classical and popular music, music education, music industry & business  Scholarly works, musicology, ethnomusicology, composition, performance practice, music therapy, music pedagogy

 

RILM Search Tips

  • Because RILM is international in coverage, you will likely retrieve non-English results:
    • you may need to limit your results to those written in English. Use the limit, towards the bottom of the screen below the search boxes, labeled Language of Item to select the desired language.

Screen shot of RILM language limit

    • while the abstract or even the title may be in English, the actual article may not be. Click on the title of the article you are interested in, and look at the Language field to confirm the article is in a language you can read before proceeding.

Screen shot of RILM language field

  • RILM covers not only articles, but
    • dissertations and master's theses: these are difficult to obtain since usually only one or two copies exists worldwide. Ignore these results unless you have the patience, time, and money needed to request them through interlibrary loan. Even then, you may not be successful in obtaining them.

Icon for dissertation/thesis

    • books and book chapters: you will have to search the title of the book to see whether Staley Library, or another I-Share library owns it.

Screen shot of Check Print Available via Millikin's Online Catalog

Music Index Search Tips

  • Content is mostly English, but you may obtain results for articles in other languages. This is indicated at the end of the article title, in parentheses.

Screen shot of article title with (French) language indicator

JSTOR

JSTOR Search Tips

  • If you want to limit your results to articles (eliminate books reviews and other, miscellaneous content), check the "Articles" Item Type box, below the search boxes.

Screen shot of limiting to articles in JSTOR

  • If you are researching a person, try searching their name in quotations marks to eliminate results about others with similar names (for example "Clara Schumann" to get fewer articles about Robert Schumann. Elisabeth Schumann, etc.).

Using quotation marks in a JSTOR search

  • If you would like to eliminate non-English search results, use the Language limit below the search boxes. Select "English" from the drop down menu.
Non-English result in JSTOR Limiting results to English in JSTOR
  • You can select a subject area from the list below the search boxes. This will limit your search to the JSTOR journals in that subject area.

Limiting search to a subject area in JSTOR

  • To view the article, click on the article's title in the search results, then click on "View PDF." Click on "Accept JSTOR's Terms and Conditions and proceed to PDF."

JSTOR pdf link

*Caution- JSTOR pdf files are extremely high quality scans, which means they can take quite awhile to print.

 

Academic Search Complete

Academic Search Complete Search Tips

  • To limit your search to scholarly/peer-reviewed articles, check the box next to "Scholarly (Peer-Reviewed) Journals," on the left side of the screen.

Limiting to scholarly journals in Academic Search Premier

  • To preview a description of the article (abstract), hover your mouse of the symbol of the magnifying glass.

Screen shot of article preview

 

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