Can i search and replace in the itunes library database file?

Hi --
I need to update the file location in the itunes database for a few thousand songs. These songs are just part of my full collection. A few hundred of these songs are referenced in playlists. Rebuilding the libarary, consolidating the library, adding the new folder to library -- none of these suggested solutions to similar problems will work for me. (My collection is too large for one drive and is spread over several drives, and I have many playlists with hundreds of songs, and the playlists would be ruined with any of these approaches.)
I thought I had an easy solution by doing a search and replace in "itunes library.xml," replacing the old file path with the new one. But then I learned (as you probably already know) that the real information is stored in "itunes library," and the xml file is just a downstream copy of that information. All my edits were overwritten as soon as I opened itunes.
The solution to my problem is completely straight-forward if I can just do a search and replace in "itunes libray." Is it possible to edit that file directly? The only database program I have is MS Access, on windows, and it couldn't open the file.
Thanks very much
- Mark

How to Move Your Music to a New Computer.

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