Research Guides: Music Education: Dictionaries & Encyclopedias

Dictionaries & Encyclopedias

The following music dictionaries and encyclopedias provide entries on music education history, pedagogical methods, and resources, as well as biographical entries about musicians and music educators. Entries may include images, musical examples, and bibliographies of scholarly sources for further reading.

Dictionaries Focused on Music Education Topics

Dictionary of Music Education by Irma H. Collins
Call Number: Ebook
Publication Date: 2013
Biographical Dictionary of Black Musicians and Music Educators by Lemuel Berry
Call Number: MUSIC REF ML85.B43
Publication Date: 1978
Dictionary of Music Education: A Handbook of Terminology by Mark C. Ely; Amy E. Rashkin
Call Number: MUSIC REF MT1 .E49 2005
Publication Date: 2005

General Music Dictionaries

Oxford Music Online This link opens in a new window
Provides access to Grove Music Online, Oxford Dictionary of Music, and Oxford Companion to Music. The authoritative resource for music research with over 52,000 articles written by nearly 9,000 scholars charting the diverse history and cultures of music around the globe.

The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians by Stanley Sadie (Editor); John Tyrrell (Editor)
Call Number: MUSIC REF ML100 .N48 2001
Publication Date: 2003
The 29-volume New Grove Dictionary is the standard starting point for music research. Entries are written by scholars and include extensive bibliographies, composers' works lists, and numerous images and musical examples. Content is also available online through Oxford Music Online.
The Grove Dictionary of Musical Instruments, 2nd ed. by Laurence Libin (Editor-In-Chief); Anne Beetem Acker; Carolyn Bryant; J. Richard Haefer; James B. Kopp; Jeremy Montagu
Call Number: MUSIC REF ML102.I5 N48 2014
Publication Date: 2014
Newly revised and expanded into 5 volumes, features in-depth scholarly entries on musical instruments from all over the world, with images. Some of the new content is not yet available in Oxford Music Online.
Oxford Companion to Music
Call Number: available online through Oxford Reference
Publication Date: 2011