Music library

Borrowing and streaming

Almost all music media can be borrowed; we also offer devices for listening, copying or digitalising audio recordings. In addition, we subscribe to 65 current music magazines, and offer access to databases such as "Grove Music Online" or music streaming portals such as freegalmusic, medici.tv and all Naxos Music Libraries.

Unique listening experiences

One of the highlights of our offer is a catalogue of over 78,000 LPs that had been collected in East Berlin (BStB) and West Berlin (AGB) since the 1950s. Since the turn of the millennium, our vinyl catalogue has grown through sample copies provided by Berlin-based labels. Several thousand sheets of printed and handwritten sheet music as well as phonograph cylinders and shellac gramophone records are stored in two cabinets in the historic collections (BStB branch).
 
We also receive national and international enquiries related to our special USA-themed collection of 20th century compositions, which encompasses sheet music as well as records. Another unique feature is our extensive collection of bound sheet music copies of the entire oeuvre of certain composers, which can be borrowed.

Documentation role

As a state library, we are officially charged with documenting everything that is published in Berlin, and therefore receive copies of all audio recordings released by Berlin-based labels. Many of these are kept in our repository and can be ordered in the usual way via the catalogue. For technical reasons, it may not be possible to borrow some of these, although they can be ordered and listened to at the library. Such recordings are labelled "for reading room use only", or their location says "AGB repository / large-scale music collection - collection from the reservations service desk."