The John J. Burns Library of Rare Books and Manuscripts is home to more than 250,000 volumes, some 16,000,000 manuscripts and important collections, and The Irish Music Center which documents the history of Irish traditional music in America, through recordings, manuscripts, sheet music, books, and more. The archives page of the Irish music research guide contains downloadable guides (finding aids) to selected Irish music collections in the Burns Library.
This page lists selected music manuscripts and books related to music. To access these materials, please contact the Burns Library Reference Department by phone 617-552-4861, or by email.
Selected books about music at the Burns Library:
Franciscan antiphoner (sanctorale) with sequences (14th century)
A liturgical manuscript that contains the antiphons (psalms, chants, verses) sung during the Canonical hours, also known as the Divine Office or Breviary. Enclosed are 119 leaves of manuscript on vellum. This work is particularly noteworthy for its apparently unrecorded 14-stanza sequence in honor of St. Francis and an extremely rare example of Franciscan polyphony.
