Your San Francisco Public Library card gives you access to a
wide range of educational, informative and entertaining databases. With very
few exceptions, the databases can be accessed from any computer with your
Library card number and PIN.
To view the list of databases go to the Library’s homepage
at www.sfpl.org. Select the eLibrary tab and click on eMusic.
The Library subscribes to five Alexander Street Press music databases. To search them all at once
select Music Online. A basic keyword search can be conducted by
entering terms in the box near the top of the screen. A pull down menu allows
users to specify that the search is by genre, instrument or track title.
To discover something new select the Browse tab near the top left of the screen. A few of the options are Time Periods, Historical
Events and Cultural Groups. The
time periods extend from Medieval to the 21 century. The songs about historical
events range from those addressing well-known issues and conflicts, such as the
American Revolution, to those focusing on more recent issues. The list of
cultural groups is extensive, although some groups have only one piece of music
to represent their contributions. In some cases a Genre search will yield more specific results. Indian music is a
good example of this. Indian Music
and a few sub-headings can be found under Genre,
however under the World Music menu
Indian music is broken into 20 different categories.
Creating an account on any of the Alexander Street Press databases enables users to create playlists
of the music they have selected. The lists can be shared with anyone who wishes
to view them or limited to people within a specified group or institution. They
can also be made viewable only by the creator of the list. Individual songs and
entire lists can be sent to mobile devices. To add a song to a playlist click
on the plus icon. From here one can add the song to an
existing list or create a new list. To transfer a song, or playlist, to a
mobile device click on the cell phone icon. A window will open showing
the three options for transferring the music, including simply entering a
mobile phone number and clicking Send.
In addition to audio files, the Alexander Street Press databases contain album liner notes and
other reference material.
Have fun!
