Our mission

The Stanford University Music Library and Archive of Recorded Sound promote research, teaching, and learning in music by providing library services that allow users to find and obtain the resources they need easily and effectively; by developing and maintaining strong collections; by permanently preserving research materials; and by improving methods of access to music materials in all forms for the Stanford University community. 

Our vision

The Stanford University Music Library and Archive of Recorded Sound will be the first resource the Stanford University community consults for music materials and for information about music for its research, teaching, and study. To this end, the Library and Archive will:

• offer proactive, personalized library services and develop ongoing professional relationships with faculty and students by answering their information needs related to music in person or through electronic networks;
• promote the knowledge and use of collections and services through publications, teaching, bibliographic control, and personal contacts;
• acquire, develop, and manage strong research collections within the Library and Archive, while also selecting and providing access to remote and global resources that support scholarship in music;
• provide access to our collections through modes of bibliographical control that will maximize relevant retrieval, that is best suited to the material, and that best meets the needs of users;
• create an inviting and intellectually stimulating physical and virtual presence that enhances the study and learning experience, and protects and preserves library materials through proper environmental conditions and controls;
• cultivate an environment which the staff, in consultation with library users, continually seek out and promote improved methods of library service;
• encourage cooperation, collaboration, communication, and career development among all of the staff, allowing them to keep current in their own work and to develop new fields of expertise useful to the organization.