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Writing about Music
A Style Sheet
By D. Kern Holoman UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA PRESS
Copyright © 2014 D. Kern Holoman and The Regents of the University of California
All rights reserved.
ISBN: 978-0-520-95881-4
CHAPTER 1
Music Terminology
Titles of Works
1.1Classical Titles. The formal title of a work from the classical repertoire includes the key, index identifier, and sometimes its familiar or traditional name.
Beethoven, Symphony No. 3 in E? Major, op. 55 ("Eroica")
or
Beethoven, Symphony No. 3 in E-flat Major, op. 55 ("Eroica")
Either solution is correct. (The use of lowercase b and the number symbol in place of the flat and sharp symbols, respectively, is not.) For most applications the spelled-out version ends up posing fewer challenges to design and layout.
1.2Other Titles. Examples of titles from the countless other repertoires of music, and the many sources that preserve them (manuscripts, prints, albums, digital media), appear in the appropriate locations throughout this book; see especially "Songs," 1.8. Here are some samples for consideration.
the Song of Moses
Metallica (the Black Album)/The Black Album (Prince)
Ch'unhyangga (Song of Ch'unhyang, [TEXT NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII])
"Witchi-Tai-To" (Comanche peyote chant)
"Jesus Shall Reign" (DUKE STREET 8.8.8.8.)
"Oklahoma!" the title song from Oklahoma!
1.3Generic Titles. Generic titles are those, in English, that use such describers as symphony, concerto, fantasia, and the like, often with an identifying opus number or index number appended. These titles are given in roman type. Consider the forms below.
Bach, Toccata and Fugue in D Minor, BWV 565
Haydn, Baryton Trio No. 71 in A Major, Hob. XI:71
Beethoven, String Quartet No. 1 in F Major, op. 18, no. 1
Beethoven, Violin Concerto in D Major, op. 61
Beethoven's Fifth Symphony
Schubert, Mass No. 6 in E? Major, D. 950
Schumann, Variations for Piano, op. 9
the Schumann Variations, op. 9
Beach, Piano Concerto, op. 45
Rakowski, Etude No. 37, "Taking the Fifths"
(See, for more samples, 1.16, and, for catalogs, 1.30.)
Capitalization styles vary but should be consistent throughout a work. CMS (8.190), for instance, prefers Symphony no. 3. The style strongly preferred in the profession, from performing artists to record producers, uses the uppercase No. for the title—and lowercase no. for a constituent of the opus number, as in the case of the Beethoven string quartet above.
1.4Composers' Titles. Titles assigned by the composer (usually in their original language) are given in italics. (For capitalization of foreign titles, see 1.20, 2.42–49.)
Bach, Das wohltemperierte Clavier (or The Well-Tempered Clavier)
Mozart, Vesperae solennes de confessore
Beethoven, Missa solemnis
Rossini, La gazza ladra
Berlioz, Symphonie fantastique
Debussy, La Mer
Stravinsky, Le Sacre du printemps (or The Rite of Spring)
Boulez, Le Marteau sans maître
Takemitsu, Rain Tree Sketch II: In Memoriam Olivier Messiaen
Radiohead, In Rainbows
1.5Common Names. Many works are referred to by widely recognized popular names. These are generally put in quotation marks.
Mozart, Symphony No. 41 in C Major ("Jupiter")
Beethoven, Piano Sonata No. 23 in F Minor, op. 57 ("Appassionata")
Beethoven, Piano Trio in B? Major, op. 97 ("Archduke")
Schubert, Symphony No. 8 in B Minor ("Unfinished")
the "Archduke" Trio
the "Emperor" Concerto
To refer to Schubert's "Unfinished" Symphony may in a subtle way suggest that it really isn't unfinished at all, that the quotes are a sort of conspiratorial wink of the eye. There are, however, any number of unfinished symphonies of Schubert, but only one called the "Unfinished."
1.6 The rule of thumb, then, is to italicize titles given to works by composers themselves and put common titles within quotation marks. These principles collide with vexing frequency; nicknames and true subtitles are often difficult to keep separate, and the matter of foreign languages complicates things still further. Neither Beethoven nor Tchaikovsky, it turns out, approved of the subtitle "Pathétique." When in doubt, use quotation marks for common names.
"From the New World"
the "New World" Symphony
the "Pathétique"
the Pastoral Symphony
the "Italian" Symphony
1.7Operas, Musicals. Use roman type within quotation marks for arias drawn from operas (and, likewise, songs—and even titled sections of ballets and suites—drawn from other theatricals).
"Where'er You Walk," from Handel's Semele
"Porgi amor"
"Addio, fiorito asil," from Madama Butterfly
"Somewhere," from West Side Story
"Chorus of Exiled Palestinians," from The Death of Klinghoffer
1.8Songs. Song is the common denominator of music, reaching us from every time and place. Since the iPod and its promise of putting "1,000 songs in your pocket" (2001), the word has come to describe, too loosely, single movements in general. (And see 3.30.) Here we mean a short, self-contained work with lyrics and accompaniment.
In almost every case, render a song title in quotation marks, and its container—the series, publication, or album from which it comes—in italic.
"Joshua Fit the Battle of Jericho"
"Greensleeves"
"Der Leiermann," from Winterreise
"La Flûte de Pan," from Chansons de Bilitis
"East St. Louis Toodle-Oo" (but see 1.12)
Grateful Dead's "Candyman" (American Beauty, 1970)
"Takeda Lullaby" (Takeda no komoriuta)
Hey Jude was essentially another of Capitol's cobblings together for the U.S. market of U.K. singles. The salient track was, of course, "Hey Jude."
1.9Song Title Translations. Provide translations and transliterations as appropriate to your argument. See 2.50.
Bartók, "Síppal, dobbal" (With Drums and Pipes, lit. "with a whistle, with a drum"), from Szabadban (Out of Doors)
Neil Hannon, "Les Jours tristes" (Sad Days; also known as "Perfect Lovesong"), from Amélie
1.10Named Movements. These levels—quotation marks and italics—work for named movements in general.
"Arlequin," from Carnaval
"Ondine," from Gaspard de la nuit
"The Open Prairie," from Billy the Kid
1.11Albums. Various ways of citing albums and tracks are suggested in 3.28–31. Album titles, however, can be highly nuanced. Consider:
A Love Supreme, John Coltrane's masterpiece
Part 1, "Acknowledgment," from A Love Supreme (contains the "Love Supreme" mantra)
"Love Supreme" Suite, live performance 26 July 1965, Antibes Jazz Festival
"Acknowledgment," alternate takes 1 and 2 (takes 90246-1 and 90246-2), 10 December 1964
Max Steiner, music for Gone with the Wind (Gone with the Wind: Original MGM Soundtrack, 1939; re-engineered CBS/Sony, 1990). Note additionally Steiner's 30-minute suite (RCA, 1954), Muir Matheson's version (Warner Brothers, 1961), and Charles Gerhardt's re-edition and re-recording for Classic Film Scores (1974).
1.12Italics for Song Titles. It may sometimes be preferable to use italic font for song titles and other short works.
Her rendition of An die Musik, like that of Gretchen am Spinnrade earlier in the program, drew a chorus of approving murmurs and not a few tears.
His favorite Debussy preludes were Le Vent dans la plaine (The Wind in the Plain) and La Cathédrale engloutie (The Submerged Cathedral).
The first important Ellington-Miley collaboration, East St. Louis Toodle-Oo, is impressive, but Miley's anguished wa-wa horn dominates it, as it does the second important joint work, Black and Tan Fantasy.
1.13Latin Liturgical Works. Capitalize such titles as Mass, Requiem, and Te Deum, as well as their constituent movements; leave them in roman type.
Kyrie Sanctus
Gloria Agnus Dei
Credo Benedictus
In view of the symbolic and structural function of these high sonorities in the Credo and Benedictus of the Mass, it is not surprising that Beethoven resorted to this framework again, in those parts of the choral finale of the Ninth Symphony with an explicitly religious text.
Kyrie Cunctipotens genitor
Alleluia Angelus domini
the motet In seculum/In nova fert/Garrit gallus
1.14Movement Titles. Tempo indications as movement titles are capitalized and, in most cases, given in roman type.
We expect a string quartet to commence with a sonata-allegro movement, but to this point the Allegro has all the earmarks of an interjection within an Adagio movement.
1.15 Listings in concert programs and related publications require full formal titles. (See chapter 6.)
Beethoven, Piano Concerto No. 4 in G Major, op. 58
or
Beethoven, Concerto No. 4 for Piano and Orchestra in G Major, op. 58
or even (in high Boston Symphony Orchestra style)
Beethoven, Concerto No. 4 for Piano and Orchestra, in G Major, opus 58
but not
Beethoven, Fourth Piano Concerto
1.16Numbering of Symphonies by Schubert, Mendelssohn, and Dvorák. These are especially difficult because more than one numbering system is or has been in wide use. Use the following, which reflect contemporary knowledge and practice and are in each case the systems adopted by The New Grove.
SCHUBERT
Symphony No. 6 in C Major, D. 589 ("Little C-Major")
Symphony No. 7 in E Minor, D. 729 (a sketch, also called E Major and E Major/Minor)
Symphony No. 8 in B Minor, D. 759 ("Unfinished")
Symphony No. 9 in C Major, D. 944 ("Great C-Major")
MENDELSSOHN
Symphony No. 3 in A Minor, op. 56 ("Scotch" or "Scottish")
Symphony No. 4 in A Major, op. 90 ("Italian")
Symphony No. 5 in D Major, op. 107 ("Reformation")
DVORÁK
Symphony No. 7 in D Minor, op. 70
Symphony No. 8 in G Major, op. 88
Symphony No. 9 in E Minor, op. 95 ("From the New World")
1.17Opus Number as Identifier. When an opus or catalog number is used as sole identification of the work, it does not have to be preceded by a comma.
Adagio K. 411
In the Trio op. 97, Beethoven achieves ...
Major and Minor
1.18 The words major and minor are identical in grammatical structure, both of them adjectives. The convention of uppercase Major and lowercase minor is correct only for some styles of chord notation, notably in analysis and figured bass, where such abbreviations as GM (G major) and Gm (G minor), or even G and g, can be useful.
Sonata in A Major
Sonata in A Minor
The words major and minor are capitalized only in titles, however.
The first theme is in C minor; the second, in E-flat major.
1.19 When a key precedes a genre it becomes an adjectival construction and requires a hyphen.
A-Major Sonata
A-Minor Sonata
Capitalization Schemes
1.20 See also 2.42–49. In English capitalize the nouns and other major words as described in CMS 8.157; in German capitalize the nouns; in French capitalize through the first substantive; in Italian, capitalize just the first letter. The following are typical examples:
Ein deutsches Requiem
Le Roi Lear
Il re Lear
Les Vêpres siciliennes
I vespri siciliani
Der Freischütz
Ich hatte viel Bekümmernis
Ariettes oubliées
Prélude à "L'Après-midi d'un faune"
Rhapsody in Blue
Sweeney Todd, the Demon Barber of Fleet Street
Proper Names
1.21Composer and Performer Names. Use transliterated, American English names for composers and performers. Absent reason to the contrary, adopt the most common version. The usual resource is "Biographical Names" at the back of Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary (or at m-w.com using the tab "Encyclo.").
Stravinsky Dussek
Tchaikovsky Josquin des Prez
Scriabin
Fauré
Machaut von Bülow
Yvonne Loriod (Mme Messiaen) or Yvonne Loriod-Messiaen
Yo-Yo Ma but Lang Lang
Ravi Shankar, often with his honorific Pandit
Ali Akbar Khan, often with his honorific Ustad, and sometimes as Khansahib
Pak Cokro (Chokro, Tjokro; the noted master of gamelan, 1909–2007), known variously under the increasingly honorific names K.R.T. Wasitodipuro, K.R.T. Wasitodinigrat, K.P.H. Notoprojo
50 Cent/Curren$y/Eminem/Snoop Dogg (now Snoop Lion)
Sean "Diddy" Combs (formerly "Puff Daddy" and "P. Diddy")
Invisibl Skratch Piklz
and, late-breaking:
Jay-Z, then (after July 2013) Jay Z
The Germanic rendering Tchaikovsky is practically universal in symphony halls and opera houses, as well as at the ballet. But Professor Taruskin's massive oeuvre on Russian music uses Chaikovsky. If you adopt the latter spelling, make certain to put a cross-reference in any alphabetical bibliography or index.
1.22Professional Names. Take care to use true professional names, and do not make assumptions about nicknames.
Beth E. Levy (not Elizabeth)
R. Anderson Sutton (not Andrew)
1.23The Beethoven Problem. According to the standard (Webster's) system, the name is broken "Bee•tho•ven." For those who are aware of the fact that -hoven is a common Dutch suffix, the proper break is "Beet•hoven." It is preferable to avoid the issue entirely, separating the word as "Beetho•ven."
1.24The Mendelssohn Problem. Remember "Mendel's son" in this most frequently misspelled of composers' names.
Mendels•sohn
1.25The Problem of Possessives. There are any number of theories about the proper formation of possessives for names. We recommend that of CMS (7.17): add an apostrophe and an s.
Berlioz's Boulez's
Brahms's Saint-Saëns's
Incidentally, the z's in Berlioz and Boulez, as well as the final s in Saint-Saëns, are pronounced.
1.26The Russian Problem. Transliteration from the Russian alphabet is, at best, troublesome; see 2.50. Generally use the spellings with v, not w or ff, and y at the end, not ii. In the case of Rachmaninov (or Rachmaninoff, as he spelled it in the West; or Rakhmaninov, as some argue), the best advice is to make a reasoned decision and stick to it.
Glazunov
Scriabin
Koussevitzky (note the z) Stravinsky
Prokofiev
Tchaikovsky
Rachmaninov
1.27Umlauts: the Schoenberg Problem. Schönberg dropped the umlaut and added an e when he immigrated to the United States. Charles Münch did, too, but after a very brief period of being Muench he became Charles Munch (no e), a decision jointly made by himself, his agents, the papers, and the Boston Symphony Orchestra. Händel emigrated only so far as England but loses his umlaut anyway (and does not gain an e).
Handel (but the complete edition is Georg Friedrich Händels Werke)
Munch
Schoenberg
1.28Names with "von" and "de." By and large these particles are omitted, except in the full name.
Dittersdorf La Guerre
Gluck
Lassus
Weber
Machaut
but usually
von Bülow
de Gaulle (because "Gaulle" is only one syllable)
1.29Summary. The following is a list of names that pose difficulties of one sort or another, with their hyphenations. Note that in typography words may not break after the first letter or before the last two letters.
(Continues...)
Excerpted from Writing about Music by D. Kern Holoman. Copyright © 2014 D. Kern Holoman and The Regents of the University of California. Excerpted by permission of UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA PRESS.
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