Opera Literature
Music 505

Spiro Shetuni
Cataloging/Database Management Librarian
Winthrop University
June, 2008

Dacus Online Catalog (DOC)

DOC can be searched by work, title, subject, etc.  The database lists all types of materials in Dacus Library and the Music Library, including books, DVD's, videos, journals, and online databases.

For a subject search, suggested headings are:

Bibliographies

DeVenney, David P.  The Chorus in Opera:  a Guide to the Repertory.  (Ref.  ML128.C48.D47 1993)

Duckles, Vincent.  Music Reference and Research Materials:  An Annotated Bibliography.  5th ed. (Ref. ML113.D83 1997)  The classical bibliography of reference materials in music.  Opera section, pp. 74-87; extensive references to composers and operas in index.

Ewen, David.  Musicians Since 1900:  Performers in Concert and Opera.  (Ref. ML105.E97)

Marco, Guy A.  Opera:  a Research and Information Guide.  (Ref. ML128.O4.M28 1984)

Parsons, Charles H. Mellen Opera Reference Index Series title.  19 vols. (Ref. ML102.O6.P25 1986).  Listed below as a dictionary also.  Volumes have individual titles.

Dictionaries, Encyclopedias, Histories, and Chronologies

Harvard Dictionary of Music. (Ref. ML100.A64 2003)

Moore, Frank Ledlie.  Crowell's Handbook of World Opera.  (ML102.O6.M6)

New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians.  2nd ed. 29 vols. (Ref. ML100.N48 2001;  Music Library ML100.N48 2001).  The classic, basic English language reference source for music.  Newly updated, very comprehensive. Also available online at Grove Music Online

New Grove Dictionary of Opera.  4 vols. (Ref. ML102.O6.N5 1992)

New Kobbe's Opera Book.  (Ref. MT95.K52 1997)

New Penguin Opera Guide. Rev. ed of the Viking Opera Guide.  (Ref. ML102.O6.V55 2001)

Parsons, Charles H. Mellen Opera Reference Index.  Series title.  18 vols. (Ref. ML102.O6.P25 1986).  Various volumes have separate individual titles.  This source is also listed above as a bibliography.  

Simon and Schuster Book of the Opera:  a Complete Reference Guide - 1598 to the present.  Translation of L'Opera:  Repertorio della Lirica dal 1597.  (Music Library  ML102.O6.O63)

Who's Who in Opera:  An International Biographical Directory of Singers, Conductors, Directors, Designers, and Administrators.  (Ref. ML102.O6.W5)

Online Databases - Full-Text

Databases available through Dacus Library Online

Academic Search Premier   Provides full-text for nearly 4700 publications, including more than 3600 peer-reviewed journals.  Coverage spans virtually every areas of academic study and has information dating as far back as 1975; updated daily.

Grove Music Online  "Grove Music Online is an integrated music resource on the web, including the full text of The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians (second edition), The New Grove Dictionary of Opera and The New Grove Dictionary of Jazz (second edition). Grove Music Online is regularly updated to ensure it remains the most up-to-date music reference work on the internet." (Publisher's description).

JSTOR  Scholarly journal archive covering all subject areas, many going back to the 19th century; includes 32 journal in music.

InfoTrac. Group of Databases which provide abstracts and full-text articles and images from magazines, journals, reference books, etc.  Use Expanded Academic ASAP, General OneFile, or General Reference Center.

Online Databases - Indexes

Databases available through Dacus Library Online

RILM Abstracts of Music Literature  International bibliography of scholarly writings on music as well as music-related disciplines.  Dating from 1967 through the present, this database offers indexing of sources published in over 140 languages.

FirstSearch.    A selection of databases covering information in the performing and decorative arts and humanities.  Those useful  for music include:  Arts and Humanities Search and Dissertations.

Web Sites

The Aria Database  ( http://www.aria-database.com )  Diverse collection of information on over 1000 operatic arias.  Database includes translations and aria texts of most arias as well as a collection of MIDI files of operatic arias and ensembles.

The Metropolitan Opera.  New York, NY (http://www.metopera.org/)

Operabase ( http://operabase.com/index.cgi?lang=en ) Very extensive web site featuring news, reviews, artists, etc.

OperaGlass ( http://opera.stanford.edu/main.html ) Stanford University site with detailed information on various aspects of opera, including composers, libretti, synopses, etc.

University of California, Berkeley. Music Library (http://www.lib.berkeley.edu/MUSI/)

Worldwide Internet Music Resources  (http://www.music.indiana.edu/music_resources/)  One of the finest, most well organized collections of music sites available, from the largest music school in the world.