LibGuides: HON1000: Women & Music: Databases

Search Tips

Never put in your entire research question when you search
Break up your search into keywords
Write down several different possibilities for searching
You will need to search different terms and combinations - there is no such thing as a perfect search

Beyond Music Databases

While much of what you're looking for will be available through our dedicated Music databases, your research may also benefit from other disciplines.

For instance...

If you're looking at the women in the music industry, you might want to look in a Business database.
If your topic deals with social issues related to women in music, a Sociological database might provide additional perspectives.

If you've searched our Music databases but still haven't found what you're looking for, talk to your professor about looking elsewhere.

Music & Sociology Research Databases

The library has a large number of research databases, but it's important to know which one will work best for your needs.

Not all databases contain journal articles, and some are more appropriate for this course than others.

Because you are exploring both music and society, it will be important to look in a variety of sources to find the information you need.

Below are a few recommended databases to begin your research:

Music Periodicals Database This link opens in a new window
Bibliographic database containing over 1.3 million citation records for articles from more than 425 international music periodicals, with full-text access for selected titles. The majority of citation records date from 1996 to the present, with approximately 200,000 records covering the period from 1874 to 1995. The database covers a comprehensive range of subject areas in both scholarly and popular music journals. Articles examine the full spectrum of subjects and all aspects of music, including music education, performance, ethnomusicology, musical theater, theory, popular music forms and composition. Articles cover a diverse array of musical genres, from the liturgical chants of medieval monks to the eclectic sounds of contemporary alternative rock musicians. Updated monthly. [1874 - Present]
JSTOR Arts and Sciences Collections (I through IX, and XIV) This link opens in a new window
Archive of over 1,450 major journals in the humanities, social sciences, business, education, area studies, mathematics and statistics, and much more. Funding for the acquisition of the JSTOR Arts and Sciences V, VI, VIII, and IX Collections was provided by a generous gift from the Student Government Association. [18th Century - Present]
Oxford Music Online This link opens in a new window
Oxford Music Online is a full-text portal to high-quality music reference sources, including the Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, containing over 50,000 articles on composers, performers, conductors, instruments and notation, forms and genres, and individual works. The database also includes the full text of The Oxford Companion to Music and The Oxford Dictionary of Music.
ProQuest Social Science Database This link opens in a new window
ProQuest Social Science Database, a subset of the ProQuest Central database, offers indexing and full text for hundreds of academic journals, providing extensive coverage across a wide range of social science disciplines including anthropology, criminology, economics, education, political science, psychology, social work, and sociology. Contains full-text content for over 1,200 titles.

Remember: You can access the databases from off campus using your WPUNJ username and password!

What About Google Scholar?

You'll see Google Scholar on our Databases list, but be cautious of starting your research here.

Like the full Google search, it will often give you more results than you need and some may be off topic.

This is a great place to go if you have a solid research question or thesis statement, and if you've exhausted our other Databases already.

Google Scholar (Full Text @ Cheng Library) This link opens in a new window
Access full-text articles from the Library's subscription e-journals using the familiar Google search engine.

For access to our subscription journals through Google Scholar, select the link above and then follow these steps:

1. Click on the top-left corner menu on the screen
2. Select "Settings" from the menu
3. On the next page, select "Library links" from the menu on the left side of the screen
4. Type "wpunj" in the search field and run the search
5. Select "William Paterson University - Cheng Library - Full Text @ Cheng Library" and then click on the "Save" button

This will enable you to see the "Full Text @ Cheng Library" links displayed with your search results.