About this page
Biographical and 'pedia sources define styles and terms in music, and provide facts about the artist's life, influences, career, and musical output. Encyclopedia sources can be somewhat out of date, so make sure to update with information from other sources. Content from Wikipedia must be verified for accuracy. When using Wikipedia or other online encyclopedias, use the sources cited to dig deeper.
Where to look First
Essential places to start.
- Oxford Music Online This link opens in a new window...is a reliable, academic music encyclopedia. It provides background on musical styles, global music, and pop music artists. Articles are written by a scholar of popular music.
- Oxford African American Studies Center This link opens in a new windowThe Oxford African American Studies Center combines the authority of carefully edited reference works with sophisticated technology to create the most comprehensive collection of scholarship available online to focus on the lives and events which have shaped African American and African history and culture.
- Credo General Reference This link opens in a new windowA search engine covering hundreds of reference works, including dictionaries, encyclopedias, thesauruses, and books of quotations, plus subject-specific titles covering topics such as arts, business, history, law, literature, medicine, music, philosophy, psychology, religion, science, and technology.
- Continuum Encyclopedia of Popular Music of the World (print reference)MUSIC REF ML102.P66 C66 2003. 8 volumes, in Bixler Library Reference Section. Defines the many new social / theoretical concepts of pop music analyses, with global coverage, and references to key sources.
Open Web Sites
- Allmusic.comCommercially oriented, but comprehensive, website covering all types of genres, styples and artists of popular music, with info on their most significant recordings, and linkages to similar artists and styles
- Rock Music Hall of Fame MuseumRECOMMENDED. Learn more about inductees; read their blog, which has great information about rock and pop singers.
- WikipediaYou can't beat it locating information on current pop musicians and sources for further information; HOWEVER, you should verify information found on Wikipedia
