The International Inventory of Musical Sources—Répertoire International des Sources Musicales (RISM)—is an international, non-profit organization which aims for comprehensive documentation of extant musical sources worldwide. These primary sources are manuscripts or printed music, writings on music theory, and libretti. They are housed in libraries, archives, churches, schools, and private collections.
The organization, founded in Paris in 1952, is the largest and only global operation that documents written musical sources. RISM records what exists and where it can be found. As a result, musical traditions are protected through cataloging in a comprehensive inventory while also being made available to musicologists and musicians. Such work is thus not an end in itself, but leads directly to practical applications.
RISM is sponsored under the auspices of the International Musicological Society (IMS) and the International Association of Music Libraries, Archives and Documentation Centres (IAML). Together with the board of the RISM association, the commission mixte determines the strategic goals of the organization. The commission mixte consists of ten members, five each from the IMS and IAML.
Commission Mixte IMS Members (2023–27)
Rebekah Ahrendt (NL), Drew Edward Davies (US), Dinko Fabris (IT), Markus Grassl (AT), Thomas Schmidt (UK)
