Fontes Artis Musicae

Fontes Artis Musicae is the scholarly journal of the International Association of Music Libraries, Archives and Documentation Centres (IAML), an international professional body founded in Paris in 1951. The journal is the association's flagship publication and serves as a principal forum for research and professional communication in music librarianship, music bibliography, music documentation, archives, and music information science. It publishes articles, reports, book reviews, and association news, and it is distributed to IAML members as well as to institutional subscribers. The journal is published on behalf of IAML by A-R Editions, a specialist music publisher. It appears in both print and online formats, with the print edition carrying ISSN 0015-6191 and the online edition carrying ISSN 2471-156X. IAML members can access the electronic edition, eFontes, through the association's website, while current and back issues are also available through subscription channels. The editorial operation is international: the editor-in-chief, assistant editor, book review editors, and an editorial board are drawn from music libraries, universities, and cultural institutions in several countries. As a brand, Fontes Artis Musicae is closely tied to IAML's wider programme of publications, awards, congresses, and projects. The journal has documented the association's own history, including anniversary issues such as the special Fontes Artis Musicae issue marking IAML at 75 in 2026, and it has published material relating to landmark events such as the first World Congress of Music Libraries held in Florence in 1949. Its content reflects the association's mission to encourage and promote the activities of music libraries, archives, and documentation centres at national and international levels. Because it is a scholarly journal rather than a commercial consumer product, Fontes Artis Musicae occupies a specialised niche. Its readership consists primarily of music librarians, archivists, musicologists, and information professionals. Its authority derives from its association with IAML and from the peer-reviewed quality of its contributions, and it remains a reference point for the field of music documentation.

Fontes Artis Musicae is the journal of the International Association of Music Libraries, Archives and Documentation Centres (IAML). IAML was founded in Paris in 1951, and the journal became one of the association's central instruments for communicating professional and scholarly work in music libraries, archives, and documentation centres. The journal's name, Latin for 'sources of the art of music', signals its focus on musical sources and documentation. From its early decades the journal has carried articles, reports, and reviews reflecting the international scope of IAML's membership. It has also served as a record of the association's own institutional history. IAML's published chronology covers 1949 to 2024, and the association's history has been recounted in works such as Harald Heckmann's 'Ein halbes Jahrhundert' (Half a Century), Roger Flury's 'Sixteen Years On: IAML 2001-2016', and anniversary reflections such as 'IAML at 70' (2021). A special Fontes Artis Musicae anniversary issue marked IAML at 75 in 2026. The journal has documented landmark moments in the field, including the first World Congress of Music Libraries held in Florence in 1949; the medal struck to mark that congress was published in Fontes Artis Musicae, vol. 73 no. 2 (2026). Over time the journal has also reflected IAML's engagement with projects related to the history of musical performance, including collection description projects, digitisation projects, and performance databases maintained by institutions in Europe and North America. In its modern form, Fontes Artis Musicae is published by A-R Editions on behalf of IAML. It appears in print (ISSN 0015-6191) and online (ISSN 2471-156X). IAML members can access the electronic edition, eFontes, by logging in to the association's website. The journal maintains an editorial committee with an editor-in-chief, an assistant editor, book review editors, and an editorial board drawn from institutions in several countries, and it publishes guidelines for contributors, a style sheet, an institutional repository policy, and advertising guidelines. Current and back issues are available through the association and its publishing arrangements.

• 2026

  Special Fontes Artis Musicae anniversary issue marks IAML at 75.

• 2021

  IAML at 70 reflections published, part of the association's historical record.

• 1951

  IAML founded in Paris; the association later establishes Fontes Artis Musicae as its journal.

• 1949

  First World Congress of Music Libraries held in Florence; a medal struck for the congress was later published in Fontes Artis Musicae vol. 73 no. 2 (2026).

The peer-reviewed journal of IAML and a leading international forum for music librarianship, music bibliography, and music documentation.

• Fontes Artis Musicae (print)

• Fontes Artis Musicae (online)

• eFontes

1. 1Fontes Artis Musicae - IAMLiaml.info
2. 2History & Archives - IAMLiaml.info
3. 3Projects related to the history of musical performance - IAMLiaml.info
4. 4About IAML - IAMLiaml.info
5. 5Fontes artis musicae - Wikidatawikidata.org