IMSLP: Free (and legal) Online Scores

I want to introduce you to an amazing online resource called IMSLP (or the Petrucci Music Library, named after Ottaviano Petrucci, the first significant music publisher). IMSLP stands for the International Music Score Library Project and calls itself the “free public domain sheet music library.” Essentially, IMSLP is a collection of digitized scores that are in the public domain. The scores range from the medieval to the 20th century, although there is much more in the middle.

While there isn’t very much available after 1922 (nearly all scores printed before 1923 are in the public domain in the US), there is still a ridiculous amount of music available. As of this writing, IMSLP hosts 28,580 scores, which even includes some manuscripts (such as Bach’s St. Matthew Passion). Just like Wikipedia, this resource is quickly growing, as it had 26,000 scores just a few months ago. That is certainly much faster than we can purchase and process physical scores here at the library.

While there are many other websites that provide access to digitized scores and manuscripts (see our Scores Online page for more), IMSLP has quickly risen to the top of the list. Much like Wikipedia, it is user-generated (but moderated, in this case), allowing for the growth that only a community of dedicated scanners, uploaders, and editors could provide. So, if you can’t find a piece in the library, you aren’t out of luck yet. Give IMSLP a try!

NOTE: Although IMSLP is based in Canada and thus follows Canadian copyright law, they do an excellent job of blocking US and EU users from content that is not in the public domain in those areas. However, if you plan to use works found on IMSLP for performance purposes, it is still your responsibility to be absolutely certain that they are legal copies. If you have any questions, feel free to consult me.