Digitizing musical scores : challenges and opportunities for libraries

Abstract

Musical scores and manuscripts are essential resources for music theory research. Although many libraries are such documents from their collections, these online resources are dispersed and the functionalities for exploiting their content remain limited. In this paper, we present a qualitative study based on interviews with librarians on the challenges libraries of all types face when they wish to digitize musical scores. In the light of a literature review on the role libraries can play in supporting digital humanities research, we conclude by briefly discussing the opportunities new technologies for optical music recognition and computer-aided music analysis could create for libraries.