Research Guides: Music: Citing the Music Literature

Citing the Music Literature

Citing the Literature: Citation information for Music and related areas

Citation Styles
Resources to help you follow the APA, MLA or CSE style guidelines for formatting and citing information sources.
Chicago Manual of Style Online
The Chicago Manual of Style presents two basic documentation systems, the humanities style (notes and bibliography) and the author-date system. Choosing between the two often depends on subject matter and nature of sources cited, as each system is favored by different groups of scholars. The humanities style is preferred by many in literature, history, and the arts. This style presents bibliographic information in notes and, often, a bibliography. It accommodates a variety of sources, including esoteric ones less appropriate to the author-date system. The more concise author-date system has long been used by those in the physical, natural, and social sciences. In this system, sources are briefly cited in the text, usually in parentheses, by author's last name and date of publication. The short citations are amplified in a list of references, where full bibliographic information is provided.
Using MLA Format (Modern Language Association) Includes example citations, an interactive practice template and sample papers formatted in MLA style.

Citation Basics

What is a Citation?

A citation is the basic information required to identify and locate a specific source, e.g. book, book chapter, article, website, video, etc.

What is a Citation Style?

Different academic disciplines have specific guidelines for organizing material and citing sources. These rules are published as style manuals. While each citation system is distinct, the underlying rationale is the same–to facilitate written communication among members in a scholarly community.

Parts of a Citation*

Book: Author Name. Title. Publisher, Year.

Example: Macfarlane, Bruce. Researching with Integrity: The Ethics of Academic Enquiry. Routledge, 2009.

Book Chapter: Author Name. “Chapter Title.” Book Title. Editor, Publisher, Year, Chapter Page Numbers.

Example: Tan, Amy. “Yes and No.” The Genius of Language: Fifteen Writers Reflect on Their Mother Tongues, edited by Wendy Lesser, Pantheon Books, 2004, pp. 25-34.

Journal Article: Author Name. “Article Title.” Journal Title, Volume Number, Issue Number, Year, Article Page Numbers.

Example: Hess, Mickey. “Was Foucault A Plagiarist? Hip-Hop Sampling And Academic Citation.” Computers & Composition, vol. 23, no. 3, 2006, pp. 280-295.

Website: Author Name. “Title of Page/Work.” Title of Website, Date of Publication, Location.

Example: Calonia, Jennifer. “How to Avoid Plagiarism.” Grammarly Blog, 21 Aug 2019, https://www.grammarly.com/blog/5-most-effective-methods-for-avoiding-plagiarism.

*The order and punctuation of the citation components are dictated by the style you use (above are formatted in MLA).

What is a DOI?

Digital Object Identifiers (DOIs) are unique identifiers that may be assigned to published articles and other works. Their purpose is ensure persistent access to online content. If a DOI is available, you should include it in your citation.

Examples:

APA: Clark, D. A., & Murphy, W. (2021). The efficacy of a classroom game for teaching APA style citation. Teaching of Psychology, 48(3), 209–214. https://doi.org/10.1177/0098628320977263

MLA: Clark, Daniel A., and Walter Murphy. “The Efficacy of a Classroom Game for Teaching APA Style Citation.” Teaching of Psychology, vol. 48, no. 3, July 2021, pp. 209–14. Sage Journals, https://doi.org/10.1177/0098628320977263.