Music: ARTS130 - Musical Histories

1. Start your research early to give yourself time to request materials and have them brought to a UWaterloo Library.
2. Brainstorm your search terms. Write them down and keep track of what you have already searched.  Think specifically and broadly.
3. Pin your results or save your query in the library catalogue so you don't have to duplicate your searches.
4. Always check the Details section of a catalogue record for more information about the item, including description, abstract, subject headings, contents.
5. Check the bibliographies of the most helpful items and browse the shelves to find other books on the same topic.
6. Write down your citations as soon as you start taking notes.  Rename any downloads or notes documents with the in-text citations to make finding it easier when citing.

To search for books in print at the Milton Good Library or other Omni libraries, follow these steps:

1. Search in the Library catalogue (Omni) using the simple search field.
2. Enter your keywords.
   • Note: try an advanced search to change from a keyword search to a title or subject search (try: Hamiton, Alexander, 1757-1804 in a subject search)
   • Note: when you find a book that you like, click on the subject headings to see if there are other relevant books in the same subject area
   • Note: the more keywords you use, the fewer the results. See the Searching Techniques section in the Find Books and eBooks tab for more tips.
3. Modify your results by Resource Type: Books & eBooks.
   • Do you need a book immediately?  Modify your results by Availability: Available in Waterloo Library to see only what is owned by UWaterloo libraries.  Keep in mind that it may take books from our Omni partners a few days to get here, so plan ahead.

To search for articles in the Library catalogue (Omni), follow these steps:

1. Enter your keywords in the simple search field.
   • Note: the more keywords you use, the fewer the results. See the Searching Techniques section in the Find Books and eBooks tab for more tips.
2. Modify your results:
   • Choose Resource Type: Articles
   • Choose Availability: Peer-Reviewed Journals

While many articles are available in full-text format, some are not.  In any database, click on the Get It! Waterloo logo to see if the library has a paper copy or search the Library catalogue (Omni) for the JOURNAL title.

When researching a topic, it is important to look at both primary and second sources of information.

Primary sources are first-hand accounts of an event, topic, or person.  These could be letters, diaries, speeches, laws etc. that were written by your research subject or by someone who was "in the room where it happened."  An example of this in a Hamilton context would be the Federalist Papers, written by Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay.

Secondary sources are second-hand accounts of an event, topic, or person.  These could be biographies about your hero or analyses/interpretations of their work.  An example of this would be the book One united people: the Federalist Papers and the national idea by Edward Millican, which studies and analyses the importance of the Federalist Papers to the spirit of nationalism in the United States.