Music
Whether you’re a new student starting your first assignment or delving into a research project, this subject guide is designed to assist Music students in finding the best information. On this page you'll find key resources, as well as guides to help you develop your academic, study, and digital skills. If you can’t find what you need, you contact the Academic Support Team: library-SAM@salford.ac.uk].
Popular pages on the Library website
Three key actions for getting started
Finding information for your assessments
Developing strong information searching skills saves time and yields relevant results. The Finding Information Skills page covers everything you need for academic searching. Take the Finding Information Skills assessment for a personalised action plan.
- Reading Lists
These are set up by your tutors to guide you to good quality, relevant and useful materials to help you with your studies. They are a great starting point before doing your own research - find out more about your Reading Lists.
- Library Search
Library Search can make your academic life easier by helping you find a range of reliable and trustworthy sources for your work. It contains a wealth of information to help you make the most of your studies, including books/eBooks, journals/eJournals, articles, databases, and more.
Using Library Search may feel daunting at first, but don't worry, we have a range of guides on how to find relevant resources.
Key resources for music students
Books & Journals
The first place you should look is your Reading List – you will find a link to this in your Blackboard modules. It lists all the core texts for your subject as recommended by your lecturers. All our other books and journals can be found in Library Search.
Databases
- Box of Broadcasts - a huge collection of TV and radio programmes broadcast in the UK. It's a great resource for documentaries on all aspects of music, as well as recordings of performances, reviews and critical opinion.
- Performing Arts Periodicals database - articles on all aspects of performance, including music.
- JSTOR – full text of academic books and journal articles - very good for music topics.
- Rock’s Backpages – gives full text access to classic rock and pop magazine articles going back to the 1960s.
- Cambridge Companions – an excellent collection of books providing authoritative introductions to a variety of topics. The music collection includes about 80 titles.
- Arts & Humanities Full Text - provides journal articles on lots of cultural topics including music, theatre, and film.
- Business Source Premier – general full text journal article resources, very good for articles on the Music business.
- IEEE Xplore – electronics database, useful for full text articles on music technology.
- Google Scholar – always worth checking for academic books and journals. To get the most from it, make sure you've added Lean Library to your browser.
Useful Links
There is wealth of information on the internet, just remember to evaluate what you find carefully. These are just a starting point.
- AllMusic - the latest news and views, covering a wide range of music genres
- Sound & Music – a charity supporting those making new music in the UK, especially young people. The website contains some useful information and resources.
- ITMA and The Full English provide access to all kinds of material relating to folk and traditional music in Ireland and England.
- British Library Sound Archive – some classical, jazz, world and traditional music, within a huge archive of sound recordings of all kinds.
Newspapers
These are a great source for reviews and comment on music performances, recordings, and the music industry more generally.
Sources to try include Gale OneFile News and Newsstream. Check our Newspapers web page to see which papers we have access to.
LinkedIn Learning
LinkedIn Learning offers thousands of professionally produced online courses covering technical, creative and professional skills and including music production, recording, composition, learning to play particular instruments and much more.
Always use our institutional login to log in – you will need your University email address and password.
The first time you log in, you will be taken through a setup process to discover courses tailored to your interests.
Find out more in our video: Using LinkedIn Learning at Salford.
Study better
- University Assessments
Whilst studying at Salford you will need to complete a range of assessments. We provide a range of guidance on how to approach the different assessment types you may come across.
- Referencing
We provide eLearning, written guides, and an extensive list of referencing examples.
- Skills A-Z
We have developed eLearning over a wide range of subjects for you to develop your academic skills at home and in your own time.
Workshops
We offer online and face-to-face workshops to help you develop your academic skills. These engaging, interactive sessions cover a wide range of topics which take place throughout the year, so check up on the list regularly.
Click on a workshop title to book onto the session via Advantage. If a session has no remaining spaces, sign up to the waiting list in case a space becomes free!
One to one appointments
You can book a one to one appointment with your Academic Support Team to discuss finding information, academic and writing skills, or digital support.
Follow the link below, choose your school and what you'd like support with, then select your chosen time slot and book on through Advantage.