Cataloguing Song Collections

Subject: RE: Cataloguing Song Collections
From: Jim Carroll
Date: 05 Jan 11 - 09:43 AM

"This is personal use only."
Lately I have been digitising hard-copy texts of songs I have accumulted over the last four/five decades, and have unearthed something in the region of five-six hundred songs.
While I agree that many of them have been published elsewhere, many of the publications have been obscure magazines/journals, and many are long out of print.
It seems a shame to let them ride off into the sunset when others might make use of them in the future (I caught the 'pass it on' bug at an early age) , so I have at least tried to include the minimum information - source, tune, author (where appropriate), and anything else that might be relevant.
With folk songs the Roud numbering system is invaaluable in putting them in context.
Jim Carroll

Subject: RE: Cataloguing Song Collections
From: Naemanson
Date: 04 Jan 11 - 07:55 PM

My major categories are LIKE and DON'T LIKE. There are not many of the latter in the collection. I am only looking for suggestions and bright ideas.

Bill, you make a good point about publishing the collection. Let me be perfectly clear. You are right. I am NOT publishing this group. They all have been published many times already.

This is personal use only.

Subject: RE: Cataloguing Song Collections
From: Bill D
Date: 04 Jan 11 - 07:48 PM

Since you are not publishing them for 'others', it is best to make a list of categories YOU think in....then add subcategories when YOU see the need.

If you really want to be clever, get a relational database and make multiple entries for songs that need it.. 'Engine 143' can be in both 'death' and 'railroad'...etc...

Subject: RE: Cataloguing Song Collections
From: Steve Gardham
Date: 04 Jan 11 - 07:26 PM

I find as a good starting point for ballad categories, Malcolm Laws 'American Ballads from British Broadsides. Developed from this are the categories on our website www.yorkshirefolksong.net

Subject: Cataloguing Song Collections
From: Naemanson
Date: 04 Jan 11 - 06:41 PM

As with many of you I have been collecting songs for a long time. Over the holidays I got them all corralled into binders in more or less alphabetical order. There's about 8 inches of them.

I want to break them into easier to manage bundles so I am looking for the categories to use. Some are easy, Love, War, Chanties, etc. but I'm looking for more refinement than that.

Any ideas?