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Search Tips
Searching in Library Databases
When searching for articles (like from magazines or newspapers) in databases, you're going to get a lot of results if you use a single, broad keyword like "sugar" or "climate change." One way to filter your results to get closer to what will help you, is to combine search terms using AND, OR, and NOT. These terms help you focus or broaden your search results. Look at the picture below. The yellow areas reflect the results that would be returned if you'd searched for "puppy" and "kitten" using different combinations.
Select the most important 2-3 terms or phrases (keywords) related to your topic. Put the word AND between each new term; this tells the database to look for resources with ALL your terms.
U2 AND religion
Use quotation marks ( " " ) around phrases (two or more words); this tells the database to look for the words in that specific order.
"civil war" AND music
Use an asterisk ( * ) to find multiple endings of one word. Using censor* as a search term will include results that refer to censor, censors, censored, censoring, and censorship.
censor* AND Shostakovich
Article Databases
Where to Search for Newspaper, Magazine, & Journal Articles
Some of these databases are included in the Library Catalog "Everything" search, but not the ProQuest news ones. By using the individual databases you will get more powerful search options. Newspaper databases, especially ones with historical coverage, are great for finding primary sources.
- Academic Search Complete (EBSCO) This link opens in a new windowA multi-disciplinary database which offers information in many areas of academic study. This database supports high-level research in the key areas of academic study by providing access to journals, periodicals, reports, books and more. (VIVA)
- Fine Arts (Gale OneFile) This link opens in a new window(Formerly Gale Fine Arts & Music Collection) covers 150 full-text journals that supports research in areas such as drama, music, art history, and filmmaking. (NVCC)
- JSTOR This link opens in a new windowScholarly journals; does not include the most recent few years. (NVCC)
Primary Sources
Use the following to find primary sources.
- Academic Video Online This link opens in a new windowAcademic videos from many disciplines, including history, health, psychology, music, business, art, science, law, literature and education. (VIVA)
- Films on Demand This link opens in a new windowEducational videos on a variety of topics including humanities, social sciences, business, economics, science, mathematics, health, medicine, technical education, family and consumer sciences, careers and job search, guidance and counseling and archival films and newsreels. (NVCC, VCCS)
- Music & Performing Arts (Alexander Street) This link opens in a new windowMusic Online. Streaming jazz, world and classical music. (NVCC)
- ProQuest Historical Newspapers: The New York Times with Index (1851-2014) This link opens in a new windowProvides first-hand accounts and unparalleled coverage of the politics, society and events of the time with searchable full text, full page, and article-level images. (NVCC)
- ProQuest Historical Newspapers: The Washington Post (1877-2001) This link opens in a new windowProvides first-hand accounts and unparalleled coverage of the politics, society and events of the time. (NVCC)
- ProQuest Research Library & Global Newsstream This link opens in a new windowLarge collection of magazines, journals, and newspapers, including the Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, New York Times, and many regional newspapers. (NVCC)
- Music History in Primary Sources - Library of CongressThe Moldenhauer Archives at the Library of Congress contain approximately 3,500 items documenting the history of Western music from the medieval period through the modern era and is the richest composite gift of musical documents ever received by the Library. Before his death, Hans Moldenhauer (1906-1987) established a directive and provided funds for the Library of Congress to publish The Rosaleen Moldenhauer Memorial: Music History from Primary Sources: a Guide to the Moldenhauer Archives(2000). The book features a series of essays by musicologists discussing individual items from the Archives and contains a comprehensive inventory of the Moldenhauer Archives that are held in ten institutions worldwide.
Find Journal by Title
To find out what journals NOVA subscribes to, and where to find them, search for a journal title (e.g., Journal of Musicology) using the link below:
- Journal of MusicologyNOVA Libraries has access to the full text of the Journal of Musicology through two databases, depending on when the article in question was published. This page takes you to landing page for the journal, allowing you to access a searchable database of the Journal's articles.
- The Musical QuarterlyNOVA Libraries has access to the full text of the Musical Quarterly through three databases, depending on when the article in question was published. This page takes you to landing page for the journal, allowing you to access a searchable database of the journal's articles.
Reference Articles
Reference Articles
These are links to reference sources, including some listed in your research paper guidelines. An encyclopedia or dictionary is a type of reference book. Reference books are used to:
- Define important vocabulary words related to your topic
- Find a basic overview and main issues related to your topic
- Find references to additional resources
- Discover important background information related to your topic.
- Biography (Gale In Context) This link opens in a new windowBiographical information on over 380,000 people from throughout world history; from encyclopedias and news articles. (NVCC)
- Credo Reference This link opens in a new windowA collection of over 500 reference books on a variety of topics. (NVCC)
- Oxford Reference Online This link opens in a new windowMore than 100 Oxford University Press dictionaries and reference books. (VIVA)