Aims and scope

Contemporary Music Review is an interdisciplinary forum for research in and about music now. Our six issues per year feature articles and essays across a broad spectrum of global contemporary music research as well as reports, bibliographic studies, interviews, scores and translations. Interested guest editors may submit proposals for themed issues addressing any topic in contemporary music studies, including analytical, cultural, environmental, historical, scientific, social, and technological approaches. Individual authors may contact the Editor to inquire about their article’s fit in an upcoming themed issue.

Since Contemporary Music Review first appeared in 1984, its editors have fostered an open and pragmatic view of the journal’s scope. We seek ambitious, critical and rigorous work on the culture, history, psychology, sociology, politics and aesthetics of contemporary music wherever it occurs and however it may be identified when it is occurring. We also seek to cultivate reflection on musical and musicological responses toward “the contemporary” as a multiple and shifting cultural, ecological, epistemic, historical, sociological and technological condition. Therefore, we especially invite proposals for themed issues that both: 1) contest the globality/locality of and propose alternatives to generic concepts of contemporary music such as “Western Art Music since 1945”; and 2) explore alternative contemporaries in different technological, social, geohistorical, environmental, cultural, biological and aesthetic landscapes. Please get in touch if you are unsure about your topic’s relevance.

All articles and essays are subject to rigorous peer review prior to publication.

Authors can choose to publish gold open access in this journal.

Read the Instructions for Authors for information on how to submit your article.