Music is a vast, all encompassing subject that often times requires specific materials from those studying it. The Music Library at EC can help in providing those materials to students.
The Music Library, which is located in Room 126 in the Music and Fine Arts Building, is a resource on campus where all EC students, staff and faculty can check out and utilize music specific tools and materials.
Bruce Russell, the librarian in the Music Library, describes what the music library is and how it’s used.
“It’s a nice collection of music scores and sound recordings, and textbooks, we have lots of music textbooks, and reference books on music,” Russell said.
The Music Library is useful for more than just book checkouts.
“The students come and use it quite heavily to check out all of the above, and to check out keys to the practice rooms that we have for them to practice their instruments or their voice,” Russell said.
The difference between the books in the Music Library and the books from the Schauerman Library are that the books in the Music Library are more specialized towards music majors.
Adriann Smith, a library desk student worker at the Music Library, described some of the wide variety of music-specific literature that is available to students for checking out.
“We have world music, we have classical, we have gospels, we have hymnals, we have African, we have some Latin books, like we have a giant book of Latin music, we have all kind of cultural music,” Smith said.
Along with a large assortment of musical genres, the library also holds books on a variety of different music-related topics and masters.
“We also have the books that are (related to) jazz and for teaching improv, and teaching scales and technique for guitar, we have books for every instrument,” Smith said. “Though there are books in the main library like on Mozart, Beethoven they’re (biographical.) They might have a few sheets of music, but this is purely sheet music or biography, or it’ll tell me about the piece that I’m looking for.”
The Music Library also acts as a music study center for students. Complete with music tutors and computers, the Music Library fulfills various roles at one time, and Russell would agree.
“It has multiple functions. There (are) tutors that use the tables to tutor students in music, just like tutors tutor in math,” Russell said. “We have machines for burning CDs and photocopying, and computers, quite a few computers for students to do research on music and do database searching.”
Alex Pensamiento, 19, music major, uses the Music Library everyday because he is currently apart of a music program and thinks it’s crucial to have the Music Library.
“I’m in the applied music program so this is where we rent the practice rooms to practice,” Pensamiento said. “It’s pretty important I think to the program that I’m in (because) without it we wouldn’t be able to practice.”
Pat Thomas, a library information science technician at the Music Library, thinks the Music Library is important because it allows students to socialize over music and she encourages all EC students to utilize it.
“It allows the students to fellowship about music,” Thomas said. “Anybody that’s interested in music or has an appreciation to music can come in here and use the library.”
