Music Information Seeking Opportunities and Behavior Then and Now

Abstract

This Chapter provides a summary of the challenges faced by music searchers and a chronological overview of how music information seeking capabilities and resulting user behavior in library settings have changed over time as bibliographic control tools have evolved from card catalogs to online discovery systems. It revisits some of the studies reviewed by King in 2005 and also evaluates studies done in the decade since, identifying trends in music information seeking behavior. Finally, it looks briefly at recommendations for music requirements in catalogs and specialized interfaces.