Music Library Thematic Displays: Graduate Student Orientation

The Collection

Our physical collection includes resources on topics and instruments from the middle ages to the present including: 

• Instrumental, Vocal, Orchestral, and Miniature Scores
• Jazz Charts
• Periodicals
• Scholarly and Pedagogical Books
• CDs and DVDs
• Recordings of Live Performances

To find the items you need, you can look at the UT Libraries catalog via OneSearch on the library's website. You can request materials online (see more on how to do that below) or write down the item's Call Number to check it out on your own! 

Call Numbers

Each item is assigned a Call Number, which serves as an address for physical items in our collection. Typically Call Numbers are a mix of letters and numbers that indicate a book's subject area, publication date, and specific copy in a collection.

Our collection uses the Call Number system used by the Library of Congress, which puts music related items into three main subclasses:

1. Subclass M - Musical Scores
2. Subclass ML - Literature on Music
3. Subclass MT - Instruction and Study of Music

For more details and specific areas in the LOC's classification system, see this PDF from the Library of Congress. 

Technology

You can check out electronics and devices from the library as well. We have the following devices available for checkout: 

• Laptops (Macbook Pro's or Windows PC's) that come with Finale, Sibelius, or Musescore installed.
• Cameras, video cameras, and projectors
• Microphones (Blue Yeti USB Mic) 
• Technology adapters (USB-C to USB/HDMI, HDMI to HDMI, USB to Lightning Cable, and more) 
• iPads with Apple Pencils (12.9in 4th Gen. iPad, 2nd Gen. Apple Pencil)
• Electric keyboards and electronic page turners

Printing, scanning, and copy services are available, too!

To print and copy, students must put money on their VolCard account through myUTK

Requesting materials online is a quick and simple way to gather the sources you need. 
You can check out materials online by following these steps: 

1. On the UT Library Website, sign in using your netID and password.
   

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2. Find the book or resource you would like to request and select its title.
   

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3. In the pop-up menu that appears when you click the title, click Physical Item and select your preferred pickup location. 

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Allow 1 to 2 days for the book to arrive at the location or wait for an email to update you when your materials are ready to be picked up! 

And remember, you can come and explore our collection in person as well! 

The Broadway Musical West Side Story premiered in 1957 with a book by Arthur Laurents, music by Leonard Bernstein, and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim. It tells the story of two teenage street gangs, the Sharks and the Jets, in New York City in the 1950's and is based on Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. It was adapted for film in 1961 and would win 10 Oscars including Best Picture and Best Director.

Another film adaptation directed by Steven Spielberg is in the works to be premiered in December 2021.

At the 2021 GRAMMY Awards, Dernst Emile II, H.E.R., and Tiara Thomas won Song of the Year for H.E.R.'s song "I Can't Breathe," written in reaction to the murder of George Floyd in May 2020 and inspired by the protests following his death. 

Watch the music video for "I Can't Breathe" on Youtube here.

Within our collection at UT Libraries, you can easily search for music by underrepresented composers and musicians by simply searching through our collection. For more information, read the feature in the welcome letter or through this QR code, you will be immediately taken to the search engine.

Located in World's Fair Park in downtown Knoxville, a bronze caste statue by Russian artist Victor Bokarev stands in honor of the composer Sergei Rachmaninoff and his performance at the University of Tennessee on February 17, 1943. This was the last public performance Rachmaninoff gave before his death on March 28, 1943. 

Learn more about the Rachmaninoff statue "Rachmaninoff: The Last Concert" and find it in World's Fair Park at https://www.visitknoxville.com/listings/statue-of-sergei-rachmaninoff/1677/.

UT Libraries also has a separate LibGuide for our Rachmaninoff Collection that can be viewed here! https://libguides.utk.edu/c.php?g=989911&p=7161058

Louis Armstrong was the man who became known as a jazz ambassador. He played jazz trumpet and many in the jazz world followed in his footsteps. The music library offers a jazz subject guide, https://libguides.utk.edu/jazz, highlighting databases, print resources, and audio/visual resources. This guide can be used as a starting point for exploration and research.

Two notable databases available for free for being a UT student are Naxos Music Library: Jazz and Jazz Music Library.

Musical notation is different in America than in other countries. Is the quarter note in American musical notation equal to the crotchet or semibreve?

UT Libraries has numerous databases for students to access. We highlight here just a few of our databases and what they can do. 

Music Periodicals Database, Oxford and Grove Music Online, and WorldCat are all great starting places for research. 

The Berlin Philharmonic's Digital Concert Hall and Naxos Music Library/Naxos Jazz offer unique and high quality audio and video recordings.

Babelscores, the UT Song Index, and the UT Analysis Index provide contemporary and local resources for finding and exploring repertoire.

These are only a few of the databases we have available through UT Libraries. To look at more databases including JSTOR, Alexander Street Press, the Encyclopedia of Popular Music, Smithsonian Global Sound, and more, you can find them at lib.utk.edu/music.

Chris Durman            Nathalie Hristov         Kathryn Shepas        Ethan Graham Roeder
cdurman@utk.edu     mhristov@utk.edu     kshepas@utk.edu     ethangraham@utk.edu

Our library staff has created subject guides for all instruments and popular topics in music including Music Education, LGBTQ+ Studies in Music Musicology, and more. Each LibGuide contains databases, physical and online books, and journals accessible through UT Libraries. These guides are great to use at the start of the research process or when preparing for a recital or concert. 

Below are links to a few music guides and thematic display guides.

• LGBT Studies in Music Subject Guide: https://libguides.utk.edu/c.php?g=188566&p=1245582
• Springtime in the Music Library: https://libguides.utk.edu/musicdisplays/spring
• Cello Subject Guide: https://libguides.utk.edu/c.php?g=188616&p=1245913

Dolly was born in Pittman Center, near Locust Ridge, Sevierville and Pigeon Forge, TN in the shadow of the Smoky Mountains.

Here in Knoxville, we're 30 minutes away from the breathtaking Smoky Mountain views and outdoor adventures. Visit https://visitsevierville.com when you need a break from town or are looking for a trip away from campus! 

"Once I had a girl on Rocky Top, half bear, other half cat, Wild as a mink, _______"

Originally recorded in 1967 by the Osborne Brothers, the song immediately became a top 40 hit before it made its way to Neyland Stadium at UT to become its unofficial fight song in 1982 alongside "Down the Field" and "Fight Vols, Fight." 

The song's lyrics: 

Wish that I was on ol' Rocky Top
Down in the Tennessee hills
Ain't no smoggy smoke on Rocky Top
Ain't no telephone bills
Once I had a girl on Rocky Top
Half bear, other half cat
Wild as a mink, but sweet as soda pop
I still dream about that

The Banjo is one of the staple instruments of the Appalachian music ensemble, often being heard alongside fiddles and guitars. Originating in the Appalachia region of the United States, this style of music played a key role in the American folk music revival in the 1960's. 

But where is the banjo from? 

The Banjo as we know it today was popularized in the 19th century United States, but that banjo was preceded by numerous West African plucked string instruments. With the instruments African origins, Appalachian music draws upon not only by southern hymns and Scottish music, but African-American musical traditions as well. 

The Banjo Player by William Sidney Mount, Oil on Canvas, 1856.

UT Libraries Special Collection's has a research guide for the topic of Appalachia. Explore more of these rare resources by clicking the link to the subject guide, https://libguides.utk.edu/special_appalachia.

UT's School of Music holds the distinction of being an All-Steinway School. This means that every piano in the School of Music, from the practice room to the recital hall, is designed by Steinway & Sons. 

This distinction is held by more than 200 universities, conservatories, and schools internationally including the Oberlin Conservatory, the Cleveland Institute of Music, the Curtis Institute of Music, the Yale School of Music, the Royal Welsh College of Music & Drama, the China Conservatory of Music's School of Piano, and many more. Several Southeastern Conference schools bare hold the distinction, as well as several fellow Tennessee universities.

The All-Steinway campaign for UT was financed under the leadership of Jim Powell, a UT alumnus and donor, and his wife, Sandy. The campaign was completed in 2013 with 58 donors contributing. 

UT Libraries offers numerous instructional guides and resources on playing, maintaining, and learning about pianos and piano music. You can find just a few of our resources below, of explore more on our Piano Literature, Pedagogy, and Accompanying LibGuide.

The historic Tennessee Theatre located in downtown Knoxville on S. Gay Street opened its doors in the year 1928. The Tennessee Theatre is home to the Knoxville Symphony Orchestra. The DeVine Music Library holds copies of Knoxville Symphony Orchestra concert programs that date back to around the year 1947 for their 14th season.

Read and loan the book Knoxville Symphony Orchestra: fifty years of the KSO: a legacy of symphonic excellence or locate the book in the music library using the call number ML200.8.K662 K6 1984.

Balinese Gamelan is very popular in Bali, Indonesia, and is similar to Western Orchestras in the way that there are different sections that have specific roles in the music. You can join the balinese gamelan ensemble at UT by contacting Dr. Jonathon Adams at jadams@utk.edu for more information visit https://music.utk.edu/musicology/ut-balinese-gamelan.php.

An orchestra is made up of four sections: strings, woodwinds, brass, and percussion.