Web resources for music librarians. by Lesley Anne Clayton, B.A. (Hons.) A Master's Dissertation, submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the award of Master of Arts degree of Loughborough University. September 1998 Supervisor: Professor Cliff McKnight, B Tech, PhD,C Psychol., A.F.B.P.S. Department ofInformation and Library Studies © L.A .Clayton, 1998 Abstract. This dissertation is concerned with finding out what resources are available to the music librarian on the Internet, to see how widespread use of the Internet is amongst music librarians and to see if this is an area of concern to them. The project endeavored to discover if the music librarians felt that the Internet could compete with the more traditional sources that are available. Both traditional and electronic sources were identified to try to assess what was available. A questionnaire was distributed to music librarians across the United Kingdom to find out what traditional sources they used, to asses how they felt about the Internet and to discover whether they had received any training or not. The music librarians were asked to list the most frequently used websites or search engines to compare them with the traditional sources. The different types of institution were identified and also the age groups were requested to see if any of these things had a bearing on their use of the Internet. The results of the questionnaire were then used to create a website of music resources specially designed for music librarians and were supplemented by other music sites that had already been identified. It was discovered that approximately two thirds of those music librarians questioned did use the Internet, but to very varying levels. When looking at frequencies of use of the most popular websites or search engines only five were used by five or more music librarians. It was also found that use of the Internet was more widespread in academic or conservatoire libraries than in any other type of institution. Training was not very widespread and there was a definite need for the promotion of good music sites. Acknowledgements. I would like to thank Professor Cliff McKnight for all his patience and advice whilst I have been completing this dissertation. I would also like to thank my mother for her continuing support and for providing the means to enable me to undertake this course. Special thanks go to Kate and Louise for keeping me vaguely sane for the last 12 months. I would also like to express my gratitude to the computer staff for helping me with building the web site. Lastly I would like to thank all the music librarians who answered my questionnaire and those kind few who evaluated the website. ii CONTENTS: Page Abstract I Acknowledgements 11 Contents III List of figures Vi List of tables Vii Chapter One: Introduction 1 1.1 Aims 1 1.2 Objectives 2 1.3 Methodology 3 1.4 Project outline 3 Chapter Two: Music libraries and librarians 5 2.1 IAML (UK) 5 2~2 Existing sources for music librarians 7 2.2.1 Paper sources 7 2.2.2 Electronic sources 13 2.3 Existing music projects 19 2.3.1 Project EARL 19 2.3.2 Music Libraries On-line . 20 2.3.3 HARMONICA 22 Chapter Three: Methodology 24 3.1 Preliminary 24 3.2 Literature review in brief 24 Hi 3.3 Internet searching 25 3.4 Discussion groups 25 3.5 Questionnaire 26 3.5.1 Design of the questionnaire 27 3.5.2 Contents of the questionnaire 27 3.6 Website design, construction and evaluation.29 Chapter Four: Literature review 31 Chapter Five: The survey 39 5.1 Response to the questionnaire 39 5.2 Results of the questionnaire 39 Chapter Six: Discussion of results 56 Chapter Seven: Website design, construction 62 evaluation 7.1 The website design 62 7.1.1 What makes a well designed website 62 7.1.2 What makes a good website 63 7.1.3 Sources to be included in the website 63 7.1.3.1 Classical 64 7.1.3.2 Pop 65 7.1.3.3 Folk 66 7.1.3.4 Jazz & Blues 66 7.1.3.5 Country & Western 67 7.1.2.6 Ethnic & World 67 7.1.2.7 Music Gateways 68 7.1.2.8 Miscellaneous 69 7.2 Website construction 71 7.3 Evaluation ofthewebsite 71 7.3.1 Criteria for evaluation 71 7.4 Evaluation by music librarians 72 7.4.1 Speed ofloading 72 7.4.2 Sites included 72 7.4.3 Site design and aesthetics 73 iv 7.4.4 General comments 74 Chapter Eight: Conclusions and recommendations 77 8.1 General comments 77 8.2 Use of the Internet 77 8.3 Promoting the Internet 78 8.4 'Web resources for music librarians' 79 8.5 'Hard copy' versus 'On-line' 79 8.6 Hope for the future 80 Bibliography 82 Appendix A: Questionnaire 85 Appendix B: Print out of 'Web resources for 89 music librarians' v LIST OF FIGURES: Page Figure 1: Types of query music librarians are asked 40 Figure 2: % of music librarians asked about set genres 42 Figure 3: Use of the Internet amongst music librarians 46 Figure 4: When music librarians started using the Internet 47 Figure 5: % of music librarians: levels of comfort & training 48 Figure 6: % of music librarians willing to use the 51 Internet in the future Figure 7: % of membership of IAML (UK) 52 Figure 8: Response to questionnaire from different types of library 53 Figure 9: % of age groups of music librarians questionned 54 vi LIST OF TABLES: Page Table 1: Types of query music librarians are asked 40 Table 2: Suggested other types of query 41 Table 3: Types of genre music librarians are asked 42 about Table 4: Suggested other genres 43 Table 5: Most popular traditional reference sources 44 Table 6: Frequencies of use 45 Table 7: When music librarians started using the Internet 46 Table 8: Levels of comfort and training on the Internet 48 Table 9: Most popular websites and search engines 49 Table 10: % of music librarians willing to use the Internet 51 in the future Table 11: Rate of response to the questionnaire 53 Table 12: Age groups of the music librarians questionned 54 Table 13: Diffusion of use of Internet across the different 55 types of library Table 14: Age groups use of the Internet 55 vii Chapter One: Introduction. CHAPTER ONE Introduction The Internet appears to be the reference tool that all libraries hanker for and certainly the Government seems to think that it is important, as they have declared that every school and public library should have access to the Internet by the year 2000. Music librarians seem to be one of the last groups oflibrarians to be convinced that the Internet is a viable reference tool, as a result of this there has been very little written by music librarians or in general in the U.K about this topic. Therefore it seems the ideal time for research to be done on this subject as it is such a current area of discussion amongst music librarians and their professional body, the International Association of Music Libraries, Archives and Documentation Centres (IAML (UK». 1.1 Aims The aim of the project was to gain practical information on the use of reference material by music librarians and as a result of this research, to build an Internet resource for music librarians or other interested parties, that would provide links to useful sites. The links would include both sites that I had identified myself as being of use and those sites that music librarians had listed as their most frequently used and most popular sites. 1 ---------------------- --- Chapter One: Introduction. 1.2 Objectives The objectives of the project were to assess if there was widespread use of the Internet by music librarians and by implication, whether it was a resource that they felt could compete with the traditional paper-based reference sources available to them. Initially the project was to identifY both the traditional and electronic reference sources that were used on a fairly regular basis by music librarians and how frequently they referred to them in the course of their work, also the types of questions they get asked and about which genres they were asked. The project aimed to discover at what time in the last decade did music librarians begin to use the Internet to answer their enquiries and to see ifage had any effect on whether they chose to use the Internet or not. Of the five types ofinstitution that were identified - National Copyright libraries, public, academic or conservatoires, church or cathedral and libraries of societies or institutions - the project was to identifY which of these used the Internet most widely as a reference source. The project was also intended to identifY how comfortable those music librarians who said they used the Internet were with using it as a reference tool and whether they had received any training on how to execute searches to a professional standard. Of those librarians who do not use the Internet at present, the project aimed to identifY whether they would consider using the Internet as a reference tool in the future or whether they considered it an inappropriate resource for their institution 2 Chapter One: Introduction. and/or materials. As the International Association of Music Libraries, Archives and Documentation centres is the official professional body for music librarians, it was decided that the project should discover the proportion of music librarians that were members, whether personal or institutional.