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Advanced Search Strategies for Music Graduate Students

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Introduction

A database has two parts: the data set, and an interface for accessing the data. Some vendors, like EBSCO, supply multiple data sets via the same interface while some interfaces, like Nexis Uni, are unique to a data set. Most interfaces share functions which are described below.

Exercise no. 1: Find a link to the A-Z Database list maintained on KSL's homepage. How would you use it to access databases?

Keyword Searching

Most databases use a single box for searching terms as keywords. An advanced search has multiple boxes that let you specify which database index to search.

Exercise no. 2: access these databases: RILM Abstracts of Musical Literature, ProQuest Dissertations, and WorldCat. Note similarities and differences for the three different interfaces.


Three techniques for keyword searching are:
logical connectors (AND, OR, NOT)
term versus phrase searching
special techniques, such as truncation or use of a wildcard

When using multiple keywords you must establish a relationship between the terms, which is done by connecting the terms with a logical connector such as AND, OR, NOT.

Terms connected by AND will retrieve citations containing both terms
Terms connected by OR will retrieve citations containing either term
Terms connected by NOT will retrieve citations containing the first term but exclude citations if the second term is also present

Databases usually treat strings of keywords as if connected by AND, unless you use OR or NOT. You may need to add parentheses, or use multiple search boxes to do the same. For example, if you search for materials on the influence of Haydn on Mozart and Beethoven, most database interfaces will interpret:

Haydn AND influence AND Mozart OR Beethoven as:
(Haydn AND influence AND Mozart) OR Beethoven
and retrieve many citations which contain only “Beethoven”.

You can use logical connectors within a box or between search boxes. But if you want several terms searched only as a phrase, use quotes.

Exercise no. 3: In the database WorldCat search: music education. Then search: music and education. Note the total number of records retrieved. If they are the same number (or very close) then it signifies that WorldCat treats strings of keyword as if they were connected by AND.

Exercise no. 4: In the database ERIC search: music education. Then search: "music education". Note the number of results. It's logical to see fewer results when you use quotes because individual words may appear more frequently apart than together.


Wildcard and truncation symbols can expand a keyword search. A wildcard lets you place an unknown character within a word. For example, searching wom?n will retrieve records with woman or women. The truncation symbol lets you place an unknown character at the end of a word. Searching instrument* will retrieve records with instrument, instruments or instrumentation.

Check the help section within a database to confirm which characters are used.

Exercise no. 5: In ProQuest Dissertations, search in the Document Title index: music*. Then search again on: music. If the search with the asterisk retrieves more records, than it probably found records with the terms musical or musician.


Databases may also use proximity indicators or adjacency terms. These are generally labeled N (near) and W (within). They join two words in an AND relationship but specify a range of words which may be present between the two words.

For example, searching “Dresden N3 Opera” as a title will retrieve records with titles including "Dresden" and "opera" near each other by no more than three words: "Dresden Opera", "opera in Dresden", and "Dresden archives include opera scores". 

The W term works similarly, but restricts the adjacency to the same order in which you entered the terms. “Dresden W3 Opera” would retrieve a record with a title which included: "Dresden archives include opera scores", but not one with the title: "Opera in Dresden".

Proximity indicators can narrow a search on two keywords, but check the help screens within a database to confirm which characters are used.

Most searching should not require these specialized logical operators, but they can be useful if your searches are retrieving large numbers of irrelevant results.

Exercise no. 6: In the database PsycINFO search: children AND creativity. Then search: children N5 creativity. If the second search retrieves fewer results, you've probably found fewer records of greater relevance. Your results should include phrases like 'creativity and children', 'creativity in children', 'children and creativity', but not records with one term in the title and the other in the abstract.


An important search feature is the ability to select a specific index. Most are obvious, such as 'Author'. But what's the difference between Journal Title and Source? The best way to understand these is to look at a database record.

Exercise no. 7: In RILM, look at all the indexes available in the dropdown menu next to a search box. Do a general keyword search on 'music', and look at your results. Source is whatever source the database record describes: a journal, a book, a dissertation, a conference proceeding. Therefore, a keyword search on Source will look through all sources, regardless of type. So, an index called Journal Title is more limited and will only search sources which are journals.

Exercise no. 8: In ProQuest Dissertations and Theses try a general keyword search on music. Pick any record retrieved and choose Abstract/Details. How detailed is the abstract? How specific is the subject indexing? This database has a long, detailed abstract, but superficial subject indexing.


The default keyword index used in a database is the one that appears when you go to the advanced search. It may be labeled Select a Field (RILM) or Keyword (WorldCat), or Anywhere (Proquest Dissertations). The best way to know which fields it's covering is to look in the help section.

Exercise No. 9: In International Bibliography of Theatre & Dance click the help button (top right). In the popup window, scroll to the bottom for database help. You'll find your answer to what general (unqualified) searching covers. This helps you know when to use specific keyword indexes and when to use the general keyword index.

Limiters

Limiters are an important facet of precise database searching, and can usually be done before or after a search. Limiters based on physical format or dates will give more predictable results. Subject limiters may represent only some of the subject headings associated with results.

Exercise no. 10: In Business Source Complete search on: copyright and music. Note number of results. Add the post-limit search of Full Text. Note the number of results. Limit again by Peer Review. Note the number of results. This is an excellent way to begin to understand the content of a database.


One of the most effective forms of post-search limiting is adding terms to your original search and re-executing the search.

Exercise no. 11: In MEDLINE with Full Text search musicians and injuries in one box. Execute the search and note number of records retrieved. In another search box add: repetitive. Re-execute the search and note the number of results. You've refined your results of articles on musician's injuries by limiting it to those of a repetitive nature.

Browse Indexes

Another skill is learning to use the interface browse indexes. There are two types: term and phrase.

Term indexes are based on individual keywords, such as keywords extracted from subject headings.
Phrase indexes are often phrases based on standardized entries such as author names or journal titles.

Browse index searching is more precise than keyword searching because browse indexes show if the terms, phrases or names you want to search are actually in the database.

Exercise No. 12: In WorldCat enter the search: Hefling, Stephen using the Author Phrase index. Then reenter the search using the Author index instead. Note the difference -- one is a (single) term index and the other is a phrase index.

 

The browse indexes in RILM are simply called "Indexes". You must choose the logical operator (AND or OR) when you've chosen terms from the list and add them to the search box. The interface adds abbreviations to the terms, which you don't need to use, but produces the same outcome.


Exercise no. 13: in RILM, find the browse indexes in the top blue banner, and select Major Topic. Search: abc. This will get you into the start of the index. Browse forward using 'next' until you get to: Performance practice and notation -- performance practice, ca. 1800-1900. Click the box in front of this heading and then click ADD. Your choice will appear in the search box at the top. Inside the box, add: AND violin. Execute the search. If successful, you have effectively searched for violin performance practice during the 19th century in RILM.

Thesauri

A thesaurus clarifies relationships between subject headings by showing those that are broader or narrower. It also helps you find precise terminology for searches and understand how indexers (real live people) apply the terms when indexing citations. Using a thesaurus is crucial when searching in a field where you might not know the standard vocabulary.

A thesaurus usually provides different choices for searching a term, such as focus, search, expand. Check the help screen to understand what these actions do. Using the 'explode' mechanism will search the main term plus all narrower terms listed under that term. The idea is that items are indexed at the most specific level. A book on animated film music is indexed under "Animated film music" but not under "Motion picture music".

Exercise no. 14: In Art Full Text find the thesaurus. Search in the thesaurus for: Term contains music. Once you get results click on the heading Art & music. Examine the thesaurus record for Art & music. Click the boxes for Art & music as well as Music in art. Click on ADD (retaining OR as the logical connector). Once the search appears in the search box, execute the search. Examine your results to see if they were what you expected.

Search Histories and Set

Most interfaces store your searches during your session in the interface. You can use these searches to refine different facets of your search, maximizing the results, then bring them together in a final search.

Cited Reference Searching

Scholars cite the works of other scholars in footnotes, endnotes, and bibliographies to support their work. Some databases, such as Academic Search Complete, help you discover who is citing an author or specific work by linking citations in a cited references function.

Exercise no.15: In Academic Search Complete navigate to the Cited References function (top blue banner). In the Cited Author box, enter "Duffin, Ross" and search. From the results, scroll down to "How Equal Temperament Ruined Harmony" and check the box in front of it. Scroll up and click 'Find Citing Articles'. Click on the result that appears. Examine the article and see if you can locate the footnote where the cited author appears.

Some databases will also lead you to “related records”. Generally "related records" are items sharing a reference with the work you've read -- in other words, they cite the same sources as the author you're interested in. Related records results will generally give you many more citations, and may be less relevant, but will take you further into the web of scholarship.

Multi-database Searching

Vendors that provide multiple databases may let you search more than one database simultaneously. By clicking on "Choose Databases" you can select other EBSCO databases and search them together. The drawback to this procedure is the loss of indexes not shared by multiple databases.

EBSCO offsets the loss of indexes by listing separately the pre-search limiters for each databases being searched. Look below the regular workspace and you'll see pre-search limits tailored to each database.

If you wanted to search all CWRU holdings at the same time, you would use our multi-database search engine, Discovery. It searches all the resources for which the library has subscriptions, including databases, e-journals, and streaming audio databases such as Naxos Music Library. The single search box is located on the library homepage and has three indices: keyword, title, and author. Make sure to use post-search limits to manage the large amount of data you will retrieve.

Additional Tools

Databases offer additional tools to make the most of your searching:

  • Help screens for a specific database (covering content or indexes available) differ from the help screens for the interface (how different search functionalities operate)
  • Citation generators export citations using different style guidelines

Databases may time out, so save your work often!

Consider using a citation manager, which you can learn more about on the library's citation management guide

CWRU Libraries Discovery