Mat-Su College: Music

Books are a good source of information for your paper. Even though they are long, you don't always need to read them cover to cover. Use the table of contents and index to direct you to the sections you need. To get a quick overview of your composer, consult a reference source such as an encyclopedia.

The library has many books on musical composers. Here are just a few from the last couple of years that our library owns:

• The lives of the great composers
• George Frideric Handel : a life with friends
• Beethoven : anguish and triumph : a biography

We search for library books using the library catalog. The library catalog is a list of all the items the library owns.

Start by going to the Mat-Su College Library webpage. Do this by clicking the "Library" link at the top of any Mat-Su College page:

Next, enter your search terms in the "Just Mat-Su" search box:

Press enter. In the search results page you will see matching items at the Mat-Su College library:

To find an item in the library, use its call number (listed underneath the Call # heading). If you're not sure how to use a call number, just ask a librarian for help.

In the library catalog, you can switch from searching only the Mat-Su College library to searching most Alaska libraries. Do this by using the drop-down menu next to the search bar. Select "All Collections":

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Now try your search again using your original (or new) search terms. You now see items from other libraries. Click "Place Hold" next to an item to have these sent to Mat-Su College for free.

You will be asked for your University username and password. After logging in, choose which library to have the item delivered to. Make sure to choose Mat-Su College or whatever library you prefer:

Once the item gets here, we'll call to let you know you can pick it up.

Some books are only available as ebooks. You can access tens of thousands of ebooks through the University.

Ebook Central is a good, easy to use ebook collection. We recommend starting here.

UAA's eBooks page lists other options. It has a search box to search all ebook sources at once, as well as links to individual eBook collections that you can browse through.