RISM: International Inventory of Musical Sources

An international project to catalog music manuscripts, printed editions, and treatises through ca. 1825, listing library locations.

RISM Series and Subseries Overview
Online Series
CD-ROM Series
Print Series
Microform Series

ONLINE

• RISM Online Catalogue of Musical Sources:
  • all of series A/I, A/II, and years 1500-1550 and 1601-1610 of B/I (RISM's description)
  • Indexes individual works within collections
  • Gives musical incipits
  • Can search by musical theme
  • Composer Information
  • Library Directory 
  • Bibliographic Citations 
• RISM Library Sigla
  • Search on the library abbreviations used in RISM, Grove, and other sources.
• RISM-US Libretto Database
  • 13,000+ citations for libretti in the Schatz Collection at the Library of Congress
  • Available through the University of Virginia Library's online catalogue, Virgo
  • Click on "Guest" at the login screen
  • Include keywords such as "operas," "librettos," or "micfilm 1182" to find records
  • Note the reel number
  • The Schatz Collection microfilm is held at the Yale Music Library, Microforms, Reel 1904 (400 reels)
  • Request microfilm from staff; read in the SML Microtext Room

Titles of RISM Series and Subseries that have appeared to date

• A/I: Einzeldrucke vor 1800 (9 volumes, 4 supplements, and Index)
• A/II: Music Manuscripts After 1600
• B/I: Recueils imprimés: XVIe-XVIIe siecles
• B/II:  Recueils imprimés, XVIIIe siecle.
• B/III:  The Theory of music.
• B/IV:  Manuscripts of polyphonic music; 11th century - 1400.
• B/V:  Tropen- und Sequenzenhandschriften.
• B/VI:  Écrits imprimés concernant la musique.
• B/VII:  Handschriftlich uberlieferte Lauten- und Gitarrentabulaturen des 15. bis 18. Jahrhunderts : beschreibender Katalog.
• B/VIII: Das deutsche Kirchenlied (DKL): kritische Gesamtausgabe der Melodien.
• B/IX:  Hebrew writings concerning music, in manuscripts and printed books from Geonic times up to 1800.
• B/X: The theory of music in Arabic writings (c. 900-1900) : descriptive catalogue of manuscripts in libraries of Europe and the U.S.A.
• B/XI:  Ancient Greek music theory : a catalogue raisonné of  manuscripts.
• B/XII: Manuscrits persans concernant la musique.
• B/XIV: Les manuscrits du processionnal.
• B/XV: Polyphonic music in Ibero-American sources.
• B/XVI: Catalogue raisonné of the Balinese Palm-Leaf Manuscripts with Music Notation
• B/XVII: Die Triosonate: Catalogue Raisonné der gedruckten Quellen (2 volumes)
• C:  Directory of Music Research Libraries
• Special Volumes (RISM Library Sigla)
• Supplementary Publications
• Libretto and Library Catalogs
• RISM-US Libretto Database
• For more information see RISM.

CD-ROM

• RISM A/I (2011) Music Library, Circulation, CDRM 263
• RISM A/II: Music Manuscripts after 1600 (1995-2010) Music Library, CD-ROM
  • For a manual to the CD-ROM, please see the Assistant Music Librarian for Public Services, Room ML112 [moved; superseded by online]

PRINT Volumes in the RISM Series

• RISM A/I, B/I-XIV, Library Sigla: Music Library, Reference (ML101M) ML113 I61
• RISM C: Music Library, Reference (ML101M) ML12 B478 1983

MICROFORM

• RISM A/II: Music manuscripts 1600-1800, database index (1986), Music Library, Microforms (ask in Office, ML106M) Microfiche 60