What to Do With Old Sheet Music & Hymnals

Most old sheet music and hymnals are common and worth little, but early illustrated song sheets and rare hymnals can be genuinely collectible, and playable music is one of the most reusable donations there is. In Albuquerque, donate all of it to me: I accept sheet music, songbooks, and hymnals of any kind and condition with free pickup or at the 24/7 drop box, resell playable music to musicians who will use it, and set aside the vintage pieces. Elsewhere, piano teachers, school and church music directors, and community choirs are the likeliest takers, so ask before you drop off a box. If you're clearing a piano bench, a music teacher's studio, or a closed church's library, here's what to do.

Published June 2026 · By Josh Eldred, New Mexico Literacy Project · Free pickup: 505-250-3804

Fastest way to clear them: the 24/7 drop box at 5445 Edith Blvd NE, a covered box outside the gate, by the road, takes whatever fits, any hour, any condition. Too much for the box? Come 8 a.m. to 3 p.m., when someone is there to help unload, or get on a free pickup route. Directions.

The hard truth about sheet music values

Sheet music was once the dominant form of home entertainment, so it was printed in staggering quantities — which means most of it is extremely common today. The mid-century pop standards, the piano-lesson method books, the photocopied choir folders, the boxes of "100 Best-Loved Songs" — these have little or no resale value. The same is true of most 20th-century hymnals, which were printed by the pew-load for congregations across the country.

Which sheet music and hymnals have value

Early illustrated song sheets. The real collectible field is the cover art. Late-1800s and early-1900s song sheets with lithographed, hand-colored, or notable illustrated covers are collected as graphic art and social history — Tin Pan Alley covers, ragtime, wartime songs, and pieces with famous illustrators or historically charged imagery.

First appearances and signed copies. The first publication of a famous song, or a copy signed by a notable composer or performer, steps into collector territory.

Rare and shape-note hymnals. Early hymnals, denominationally significant editions, and shape-note songbooks (the Sacred Harp tradition) can interest both collectors and active singers. Regional and New Mexico–connected music ties into the broader field documented in the guide to New Mexico folk music and corridos.

The good news: music gets reused

Unlike encyclopedias, playable sheet music and usable hymnals have a real second life. Piano and voice students, school and church music programs, community choirs, and amateur musicians all need affordable music, and a box of standards or a stack of hymnals can directly supply them. This is one of the most genuinely useful donation categories there is — which is exactly why it shouldn't end up in a landfill.

Why it's still hard to give away

Thrift stores rarely know how to handle or price music and often decline it; libraries seldom want donated sheet music. So perfectly playable music becomes oddly hard to re-home — the same gap that affects every "looks like trash but isn't quite" category I take.

I accept every piece

Sheet music, songbooks, method books, choir folders, hymnals, a single piano bench or a whole church library: any condition, free pickup anywhere in the Albuquerque metro. Playable music and usable hymnals are resold to the musicians and singers who use them; collectible illustrated covers and rare editions are set aside; only the truly unusable is recycled. A church library usually holds Bibles and prayer books too, so see what to do with old religious books, and if the piano bench came with a stack of shellac discs, here's what to do with old 78 rpm records.

Frequently asked questions

Is old sheet music worth anything?

Most isn't. Value concentrates in early illustrated song-sheet covers, first appearances of famous songs, and signed copies.

Are old hymnals worth anything?

Most modern hymnals are common; early, rare, denominational, and shape-note hymnals can have value — and usable ones are great for congregations.

Can I recycle old sheet music?

Yes. Loose sheets are ordinary paper, and songbooks and hymnals count as books, which Albuquerque's blue cart accepts; tear off any hard covers first. Before anything goes in the cart, pull the pieces with illustrated covers, signatures or early dates, and set aside anything a musician could still play.

Does sheet music qualify for Media Mail?

Yes. USPS Media Mail covers printed music, whether bound or in sheet form, so a box of sheet music, songbooks or hymnals can go at the Media Mail rate. Postage is donor-paid if you mail it to me; in the Albuquerque metro, use the drop box or a free pickup instead.

Where can I donate old sheet music and hymnals?

In the Albuquerque metro, donate them to me: free pickup scheduled by route, or the 24/7 drop box outside the gate at 5445 Edith Blvd NE, any condition. Elsewhere, ask a piano teacher, a school or church music director, or a community choir before dropping off a box, or offer it in a local Buy Nothing group. Call or text 505-250-3804 with questions.