Bands Library

The UI Bands Library maintains one of the world's largest repositories of printed band music for performance.

The UI Bands library is a performance library and is charged specifically with serving the rehearsal and performance needs of all UI Bands.  Due to the amazing volume and history of the collection, it also serves as a resource for research.  With the incorporation of a new digital library, many of the oldest and most historic titles within the collection have been scanned to insure longevity and usability of the entire collection.  In addition to performance materials, the UI Bands Library maintains reference materials, wind band recordings, and performance history catalogues in support of band faculty and students.  The UI Bands Library is managed by Lucinda Lawrence and supported by a small number of outstanding student workers.  

The UI Bands Library space consists of the main library room (open to the public), the work room, and four rooms of collection stacks.  

Visiting the UI Band Library

The UI Bands Library Collections database is only available in-house. If you plan to visit or view specific music titles, please send your request by e-mail to Lucinda Lawrence to schedule your visit and to insure we can serve your request.  The primary research facility in the Band Building is the Sousa Collection and Center for American Music.  The UI Bands performance collection, however, has a wealth of historic and contemporary performance materials and creates a perfect compliment to the true research facility located on the second floor of the Harding Band Building.  As a performance library for such a large band program, the UI Bands library is not a loaning library, nor is it a preservation library.  It is a working performance library and is constantly active throughout the entire year.  Guests will be able to make academic research copies of select materials within the library workroom for a nominal per-page fee as time and copier use allows. Those that wish to make select copies will sign a document of academic research that will be electronically filed providing support for copyright laws and responsibilities.