You can access the music collection both in the Library and online, and you can order your own copies through our Copies Direct service. Due to the unique and fragile nature of the collection many items are not available for interlibrary loan.
In the Library
The music collection can be accessed in the Special Collections Reading Room.
You can request music via the online catalogue using your National Library login - if you don’t have a National Library login you can Join Us online. For more information about searching our online catalogue, please see the Searching for music page.
The material you request will be delivered to the reading room according to the collection delivery times.
A keyboard is available for use in the Special Collections Reading Room. To arrange access, please enquire at the Special Collections Reading Room or contact us ahead of your visit.
Online
Over 14,000 scores from the Library's collection have been digitised and made freely available online.
To find the digitised scores, visit our online catalogue, type in your keywords (such as the title of the score) and use the “Format - Music” and “Access - National Library (digitised item)” filters to narrow your results.
Please see the Searching for music page for more information about searching the catalogue.
Copies Direct
You may be able to order copies of items from the Library's music collection copy using our Copies Direct service. Please see the Copies Direct page for more information about costs, delivery methods and copyright restrictions.
Reference Books
A range of music reference books are available in the Main Reading Room, including:
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A Chronological History of Australian Composers and their Compositions (four volumes)
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Baker's Biographical Dictionary of Musicians (six volumes)
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Popular Song Index (five volumes)
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Australian Folk Song (twelve volumes)
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The New Grove Dictionary of Musical Instruments (three volumes)
