Bethany McLemore Stewart

Ph.D., Musicology, University of Texas at Austin
M.M., Musicology, University of Texas at Austin
M.S.L.S., University of North Texas 
B.A., Music, Abilene Christian University

Bethany McLemore Stewart holds a Master's in Library Science from the University of North Texas, a doctorate and master’s in musicology from The University of Texas at Austin, and a bachelor’s in music from Abilene Christian University. Her research centers on nineteenth-century song, women and popular music, collection, object-based learning, and material culture. Before joining Baylor Libraries as Music Librarian in 2024, she taught in the schools of music at UT-Austin and Baylor. In her current role, she leads instruction and outreach for music special collections and is the liaison to the School of Music and the Department of Theatre Arts. 

Recent Presentations

“100 Years On the Trail: A Reexamination of Race, Gender, and Region in Dorothy Scarborough’s Songbook through the Archives,” with Heidi Uhey, Elizabeth Rivera, and Laura Semrau. American Folklore Society, Atlanta, GA (2025).

“‘Happy Hunting’: Midcentury Popular Song Collectors and the Birth of a Field,” Society for American Music Conference, Tacoma, WA (2025).

“From Barriers to Breakthroughs: The Role of Libraries in Tackling Textbook Affordability,” with Kenneth Carriveau, Carol Schuetz, and Beth Farwell, Association of College and Research Libraries, Minneapolis, MN (2025).

“What’s the Score?: Developing Accessible Resources on Score Editions,” Texas Music Library Association Conference, Dallas, TX (2024).

Publications

 “Lieder in America: On Stages and In Parlors, by Heather Platt (Music in American Life),” Notes 81, no. 3 (March 2025).

 “‘Women’s Suffrage in Sheet Music’ Digital Collections, Library of Congress,” Journal of the Society for American Music 15, no. 1 (February 2021).

 “The Elocutionists: Women, Music, and the Spoken Word, by Marian Wilson Kimber,” Journal of Musicological Research 37, no. 2 (July 2018).

“Voices that Matter: Hearing the Corseted Body in American Domestic Performance,” PhD Diss, The University of Texas at Austin, 2016.

Affiliations

Music Library Association (Education Committee, Member)
Texas Music Library Association (2025 Program Committee, Member)
Society for American Music (Charosh, Shirley, & Tick Fellowship Committee, Member)
American Library Association
Association of College & Research Libraries