• Database Access and Searching: Naxos Music Library

    Learn about the databases available through LWC and search strategies to get the most and best information from them!

    Access *Naxos Music Library*

    Naxos Music Library is a comprehensive collection of classical music offering over 2,236,500 tracks of Classical, Folk, and other World Music. Users can search titles by composer, artist, period, year of composition, instrument, or genre.


    Click on the image below for direct access to this database.

    Search Tips

    Adapted from the Naxos Music Library Information page (Aug 26, 2021).

    The Basics of Keyword Search
    To enter a query, type in a few descriptive words and press Enter (or click the Search button) for a list of relevant web pages. Since Keyword Search only returns web pages that contain ALL the words in your query, refining or narrowing your search is as simple as adding more words to the search terms you have already entered. Your new query will return a smaller subset of the pages Keyword Search found for your original "too-broad" query.

    Choosing Keywords
    For best results, it's important to choose your keywords wisely. Keep these tips in mind:

    • Try the obvious first. If you're looking for information on Beethoven, enter “Beethoven” rather than “German composer”.
    • Use words likely to appear on a site with the information you want. “Piano Quintet” gets better results than “music for piano, violin, viola and cello”.
    • Make keywords as specific as possible. “Eroica symphony” gets more relevant results than “Beethoven symphony”.

    Automatic "and" Queries
    By default, Keyword Search only returns pages that include ALL of your search terms. There is no need to include "and" between terms. To restrict a search further, just include more terms. For example, to search for Schubert’s Trout Quintet, simply type: Schubert Trout
     
    Capitalisation
    Keyword Search searches are NOT case sensitive. All letters, regardless of how you type them, will be understood as lower case. For example, searches for “mozart”, “Mozart” or “MoZaRt” will all return the same results.

    Word Variations (Stemming)
    To provide the most accurate results, Keyword Search does not use "stemming" or support "wildcard" searches. In other words, Keyword Search searches for exactly the words that you enter in the search box. Searching for “concerto” or “concerto*” will not yield “concertos” or “concerto grosso”. If in doubt, try both forms: “sonata” and “sonatas” for instance.

    Naxos Music Library User Guides

    Video Tutorials