Cerritos College

Getting Background Information on Your Topic

Reference books such as the music encyclopedias, dictionaries, and handbooks listed below are a good starting point for your research because they help you become better acquainted with your specific type of guitar or biographical information on a famous guitarist.

Baker’s biographical dictionary of musicians.
Reference ML105. B16 1992

The new Grove dictionary of music and musicians. 2nd ed.
Reference ML100 .N48 2001

The Milton Cross new encyclopedia of the great composers and their music.
Reference ML385 .C7 1969

Musical instruments of the world: an Illustrated encyclopedia.
Reference ML102 .I5D5

The illustrated encyclopedia of musical instruments.
Reference ML102 .I5I5 1996

The New Grove dictionary of musical instruments.
Reference ML102 .I5N48 1984  vols.1-3

Reserve Books - Fall 2003

Once you have done your background research you will be ready to conduct more comprehensive research using books, journals, magazines, newspapers, and the Internet.

Books

Books can provide a broad overview of a topic or in-depth information. Use the Library Catalog to find books available in the Cerritos College Library. You can search for books by author, title, subject, or keyword. Listed below are some Library of Congress Subject Headings used in the catalog for books relating to the guitar. Use these terms to Search by Subject. Remember, this list is by no means conclusive.

You can do a Word search to find books on your specific work. You can also find information about a composer by searching under Subject.

Newspaper and Magazine Articles

Journals and magazines usually provide the most current information. Journal articles are more scholarly or professional while magazine articles tend to be shorter and more general. Newspaper articles, while not usually scholarly or professional, can give you the most current news and some additional facts on your topic. To find articles on your topic, use one of the online indexes listed below. They are available at http://www.cerritos.edu/library/http://www.cerritos.edu/library/e-resources.html.  Use subject headings similar to those used to locate books. The Library also has print indexes that must be used to find older articles, generally anything published before 1985.