How We Work

The mission of the International Musicological Society (IMS) is to connect every musicologist to the world community of musicology by embracing the study of music in all its diversity and advancing musicological research across the globe in a spirit of cooperation and collaboration.

The IMS is active in four ways:

1. Meeting together: We gather every five years for a week-long international congress with hundreds of presentations from scholars, musicians, and composers from around the world. There are also intercongressional symposia organized jointly with other societies or in conjunction with meetings of the various IMS Regional Associations and IMS Study Groups. Upcoming conferences and other conventions can be found on our events page.
2. Sharing news: Our Spring and Fall IMS Newsletters report on official business and the activities of the IMS organizations, and also act as an official archival documentation of all-things IMS. Important news is also included on our news page and disseminated via our IMS Mailing List, to which all members are automatically subscribed.
3. Showcasing scholarship: Acta Musicologica is the official peer-reviewed journal of the IMS. It provides a channel for the dissemination of research of international importance in different languages and is published semiannually. Musicological Brainfood is a fresh intermittent IMS dish—an “amuse-bouche”—, cooked up by leading musicologists to advance, refresh, or reinvigorate different aspects of our field.
4. Supporting and honoring members: The Guido Adler Prize and Dent Medal honor distinguished scholars who have made an outstanding contribution to musicology. Early-career musicologists who have completed their doctoral dissertation in the field of music are eligible to apply for the IMS Outstanding Dissertation Award. The IMS also provides a Mentoring Program, connecting young members with experienced academics. Our “Sing All About It” page recognizes fellowships, prizes, and other honors conferred on IMS members.

The IMS is governed by three bodies:

1. The General Assembly, which comprises every member of the society, has ultimate authority over the activities of the IMS. The Directorium and Bureau are responsible to it.
2. The Directorium, or governing board, is made up of elected representatives of various countries and regions, providing a vital link to members across the world.
3. The Bureau, or executive board, consists of the president, the immediate past president, two vice presidents, the secretary general, the treasurer, and the executive officer. It manages the business of the society and, along with the Directorium, is responsible to the General Assembly.

The IMS supports over two dozen groups dedicated to musicological research and international collaboration. They fall into the three categories: IMS Regional Associations, IMS Study Groups, and Four R-Projects.

The Regional Associations of the IMS provide platforms for regional knowledge networks, collegial support, and scholarly collaborations. They organize themselves and meet at least once every two years. Some publish musical editions and journals. Their international conferences attract scholars from around the world.

Each regional association is distinct and brings its unique “sound” to the IMS. Together, they represent the fastest growing part of our organization and a new internationality that makes the IMS unique.

The IMS Study Groups are dedicated to exploring specific topics. They form essential hubs for the dissemination of the latest research, generation of new ideas, and collaboration across continents. They convene roundtables, conference sessions, online workshops and seminars, reading groups, and publish musical editions, podcasts, and collective volumes. They organize themselves and meet at least once every two years.

The IMS collaborates with four organizations that provide fundamental resources linked to music research.

• Répertoire International d’Iconographie Musicale (RIdIM)
• Répertoire International de Littérature Musicale (RILM)
• Répertoire International de la Presse Musicale (RIPM)
• Répertoire International des Sources Musicales (RISM)

These four organizations provide the most comprehensive resources linked to music research. These fundamental tools enable our scholarship to grow in depth.