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Library

The Library's primary purpose is to support the work of the College in teaching, learning, performance and research through the timely provision to students and staff of appropriate resources in printed, audio, video and online formats.

Latest news (April 2010) 

The Fuller Maitland Collection is now on long-term temporary deposit at the RNCM. The collection was bequeathed to Lancaster Library but has been moved to the RNCM while the former undergoes refurbishment work. The collection contains the personal library (books, scores, complete & collected editions, periodicals, manuscripts) of the eminent editor, critic and music journalist John Alexander Fuller Maitland (1856-1936).
The collection is available for consultation in the Library only; anyone who wishes to view items from the collection is encouraged to make an appointment in advance of a visit. For technical reasons the items in the collection are not included in the RNCM Library catalogue but there is a catalogue in database format – for further information contact the Librarian.

The Library offers:

  • 20 listening stations, with facilities for recording to CD and DVD
  • a viewing room for watching a large collection of DVDs and videos
  • 24 student IT workstations which provide facilities for word processing,
    access to the Internet, e-mail and Sibelius software
  • 5 workstations with dedicated access to the Library's online catalogue
  • remote online access to the Library catalogue
  • self-service photocopying, printing and binding
  • a scanner, colour laser printer and digital microform reader

The RNCM Library is housed in purpose-built premises which opened in September 1997. It is situated on the ground floor of the College building, to the left of the main entrance on Booth Street West.

The Library co-operates with other libraries, particularly in the Manchester area. It is a member of the Manchester and Salford Music Librarians' Group and The North West Academic Libraries (NoWAL). The Library is also a member of the International Association of Music Libraries, Archives and Documentation Centres (IAML) and staff actively participate in IAML(UK & Irl).

The Library provides a number of ways of accessing information in addition to this site. The RNCM Library Facebook page has news and links to our online resources. The RNCM Library Netvibes page has blogs and podcasts gathered from across the internet and the RNCM Library Stumbleupon page gathers together details of relevant web sites.

If you have a problem with any of the links on the Library web pages and find that they are incorrect or out of date please contact This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it

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