Auburn University Libraries - Music

Program Notes

Sources for program notes can be found in places such as:

Biographies of composers
Music dictionaries and encyclopedias
Prefaces of scores
CD and record liner notes

Major orchestras and choral societies often host websites with well-written program notes. A web search for 'program notes' and the name of the piece will usually bring up a number of sites. Many websites have program notes, but as with anything on the Web, consider the source before using the information. (See Caveat Lector: Let the Reader Beware http://www.lib.auburn.edu/bi/newcaveat.htm)

Many program notes are copyright protected. Please be respectful of the works of others and only reproduce those notes where the author has specifically given permission

Music Encyclopedias

Grove Music

A major resource for information about music and musicians, great and small. It includes opera synopses, composer and performer biographies, and articles about musical topics. Grove Music includes The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians (2nd ed.), The New Grove Dictionary of Opera, and The New Grove Dictionary of Jazz (2nd ed.).