Muscat is the online web-application for cataloguing and publishing descriptions of music sources developed by RISM

History of the project »

Open source technology
Open source technology

Muscat is based on robust, modern and open-source technology that is widely used around the world. Muscat itself is also fully open-source and all the code is available on GitHub.

Integrated discovery interface
Integrated discovery interface

Muscat integrates a full and responsive discovery interface built on the open-source project Blacklight. Search options range from simple single-field search to advanced boolean filtering.

Tailored model and architecture
Tailored model and architecture

The data model in Muscat is tailored to the inventory of music sources. It follows state-of-the art library data modelling practice and is designed to fulfill the needs of the contributing institutions.

Incipit display and searching
Incipit display and searching

Support for incipit display and searching is integrated into Muscat, including the most advanced search algorithms developed by researchers in Music Information Retrieval (MIR).

User management and feedback
User management and feedback

User access can be freely defined, from guest users with no write access to full admin users. Users can send comments and feedback to the community directly from Muscat.

Images and IIIF support
Images and IIIF support

It is possible to upload images directly into Muscat. There is also support for displaying inline images served by libraries via IIIF thanks to the Diva.js high-resolution image viewer.

Data versioning
Data versioning

Muscat keeps track of all changes made to the source inventory. A so-called diff tool makes it possible to see precisely who changed what and to revert the changes if necessary.

Data access and interoperability
Data access and interoperability

Authority data sets are linked to external and larger authority resources, such as VIAF. Muscat also offers a SRU interface and an option to export manuscript descriptions to MEI.

Geo-spatial visualization
Geo-spatial visualization

Muscat provides geo-spatial visualization of the search results. It is integrated directly in the discovery interface, making it possible to dynamically visualize subsets of the data.

RISM

Muscat is a project of the Répertoire International des Sources Musicales (RISM) and is currently maintained and developed by the RISM Digital Center in collaboration with the RISM Editorial Center. The Muscat installation of the RISM is hosted by the Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin - Preußischer Kulturbesitz.

The project has received direct or indirect support from the following grant agencies and institutions:

AHRC
SNF
SAGW
ADWMAINZ