Music Multi-Search

Introducing Music Multi-Search:  an exciting new tool to help you pinpoint the resources you need most from the library’s holdings and our music databases.

Music Multi-Search is a customized discovery tool that simultaneously searches African American Music Reference, Classical Music Library, Classical Music Reference Library, Classical Scores Library, Garland Encyclopedia of World Music, Grove Music, Naxos Jazz, Naxos Music and the Samford Libraries Catalog, including all print scores and CDs in our collection.

By beginning your search using Music Multi-Search, you narrow your focus to these specific music resources, as opposed to the entire collection of Samford Library.  Currently Music Multi-Search only finds resources to which we have full access, as well.

Some full-text music score search results.

Short descriptions of each of the databases included in Music Multi-Search can be found on the library’s Music Research Guide, here: http://samford.libguides.com/music .  This guide was developed specifically for Samford’s Music Department by our Music Librarian.

We encourage you to try out the new Music Multi-Search, and let us know what you think.

Declaring Alabama's Right to Libraries

Librarians from all over Alabama flocked to Montgomery yesterday for Alabama Library Legislative Day.  Library Legislative day happens every year, but yesterday was special-- not just because Governor Bentley proclaimed it Alabama Library Legislative Day, but because librarians and legislators gathered to sign the Declaration for Alabama's Right to Libraries.

The Declaration for the Right to Libraries (ala.org)

Samford Library's own Lori Northrup helped to organize the event, which was one of a series of events like it that took place in state capitols and libraries across the country.  The Declaration for the Right to Libraries is an American Library Association initiative to highlight the critical importance of libraries of all kinds in our communities.
 

In the spirit of the United States Declaration of Independence and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, we believe that libraries are essential to a democratic society.  Every day, in countless communities across our nation and the world, millions of children, students and adults use libraries to learn, grow, and achieve their dreams.  In addition to a vast array of books, computers and other resources, library users benefit from the expert teaching and guidance of librarians and library staff to help expand their minds and open new worlds.

-Declaration for the Right to Libraries, 2014. ala.org

Lori Northrup signing the Declaration

In addition to the Declaration signing ceremony, librarians and library supporters visited the Alabama State House while the legislature was in session, where they (hopefully) located their local representatives and presented them with goody bags to remind them of the importance of libraries in their home districts.

Lori and Jane in the Alabama State House.

You can show your support for libraries by signing the Declaration for the Right to Libraries here:  http://www.ilovelibraries.org/declaration/sign

Step Sing, in the Beginning

It’s that time of year again. It’s time for Step Sing! Like the rest of the campus, the University Library is excited. To celebrate, we pulled out some early mentions of Step Sing from past Crimsons to share.

1951 Crimson announcement of Step Sing

The first Step Sing was announced as a “Singspiration” in the October 12, 1951 issue of The Crimson. It was planned by the Baptist Student Union and held on the steps of Renfroe Hall, a women’s dormitory on the East Lake campus.

The event must have been a popular activity for the student body because a second Step Sing was planned for the spring semester that same academic year. Step Sing has been one of the university’s most beloved traditions ever since.

In the beginning, the “Singspirations” lasted about 30 minutes and included both sacred and secular music. As far as we can tell, Step Sing did not become a competition until the following year. Although the Crimson did not record  winners in 1953, an April issue of the paper that year noted “the bang-up affair” would have them. Apparently, they were the same winners as the following year because the 1954 issue of the school paper proclaimed, “Pi Kappa Alpha and Young Women’s Auxiliary win again.”

What will the story be this year? Who is going to win? We look forward to finding out, and, rest assured, this year’s story will live on in the memories of all involved and will be preserved for years to come in the University Archives found in the University Library.  

Contributed by Jennifer Taylor, Chair, Special Collections and University Archives

LexisNexis Academic

Did you know that with your Samford user ID and password, you have access to thousands of case files, news and television broadcast transcripts, company profiles, and law reviews, some dating back to the 1700's?

You may have heard of LexisNexis and just assumed that it was a tool for law professionals with little outside research value.  Not so!

If you're looking for updated, real-time information on items in the news or coverage of current events, LexisNexis is the best database for that purpose.  For instance, you can search "Broadcast Transcripts" for popular terms and find transcripts of news reports about that subject from as recently as this week.

Here, I searched Birmingham Snow:

And found over 900 news items from around the world:

Like this one from NPR:

This would be great for comparing the evolution of coverage of a particular topic, especially since the LexisNexis database is so extensive, containing news items going back decades.

You can also use it to look up company information for business projects, including profiles and SWOT reports from various reputable sources.

Still not sure about how to incorporate LexisNexis into your research strategy?  Don't hesitate to Ask Us!-- http://samford.libanswers.com/