Rare and Antiquarian Books and Scores

Rare and antiquarian books and scores, facsimile editions of both printed and manuscript music, and other items of special value or requiring special care are located in the Music Library Special Collections. Original materials do not circulate.

These materials are cataloged in the UCLA Library Catalog.

Subject strengths

17th-19th century opera

• Raccolta di Drammi (Venetian opera libretto collection): 1286 published librettos, bound in chronological order, comprehensively representing Venetian opera productions between 1637 and 1769.
• Additional extensive holdings of 18th and 19th century French and Italian opera librettos.
• Early printed editions, including first editions, of full scores and piano vocal scores of 18th and 19th century operas. Composers include Adam, Auber, Beethoven, Bellini, Boieldieu, Destouches, Donizetti, Gluck, Grétry, Halevy, Haydn, Lully, Meyerbeer, Offenbach, Paer, Paisiello, Pergolesi, Philidor, Pinnini, Rossini, Sacchini, Spohr, et. al.

Ballads and songs of the British Isles

• Published 18th and 19th century collections of Irish, Scottish, Welsh and English ballads.

History and theory of western music

• Original editions of early music dictionaries, encyclopedias, essays and histories, including:
  • Jean-Jacques Rousseau. Dictionnaire de musique (1764).
  • Charles Burney. A general history of music (1782-89).
  • Heinrich Christoph Koch. Musikalishes Lexikon (1802).
  • M. de Laborde. Recherches sur l'analogie de la musique avec les arts (1807).
  • Gustav Schilling. Encyclopädie ... oder Universal-Lexicon der Tonkunst (1835).
  • A variety of early printed chant books and 16th century part-books.
• Original editions of theoretical works, critical writings, and pedagogical works, including:
  • Daniel Gottlob Türk. Klavierschule (1802).
  • Louis Adam. Method de piano du Conservatoire (1805).
  • Carl Czerny. Impromptus... (1826).
  • Nicolo Paganini. Variazioni sur Barucaba (1850).
  • Élémens de musique, théorique et pratique suivant les principes de M. Rameau (1759).
• Early printed editions (including first editions) of 18th and 19th century chamber and piano music, including works by J. C. Bach, Beethoven, Boccherini, Cherubini, Chopin, Haydn, Mozart, Pleyel (especially strong holdings), Schubert, et. al.
• Published facsimiles of music manuscripts and imprints from the middle ages through the 20th century. Examples of particularly fine, limited edition facsimiles, from the middle ages include:
  • Squacialupi Codex (early 15th century; 14th century Italian repertoire)
  • St. Katherine Graduale (ca. 1312)
  • Codex Calixtinus (12th century)