Editorial Guidelines
The University of Texas system has published a style guide that all units are required to use for publications. We consult that manual for abbreviations, capitalizations, and academic titles. We have also developed our own nomenclature and guidelines for programs that are specific to music, for which the UT guide is insufficient. In developing our guide, we consulted sources such as the New York Philharmonic, The Metropolitan Opera, and the Chicago Manual of Style.
Use these guidelines for creating your program. When the school is providing your program, it will adhere to this style manual.
Academic Degrees and Majors
Spell out and use the lowercase: bachelor’s degree, master’s degree, doctor’s degree or doctorate. You can receive a doctorate OR your doctor’s degree, but NOT your doctoral degree. To abbreviate degrees, use periods after all the letters: B.A., M.S., Ph.D., M.S.I.A., B.F.A. (with the exception of MBA). This is an archaic standard that unfortunately the University dictates.
Right: He received a master’s degree in engineering.
Right: She received her master of science degree in engineering.
Right: She has an M.S. degree in technical writing.
Use lowercase for majors with the exception of languages, which are proper nouns.
Right: Her major is physics.
Right: He’s an English major.
The University of Texas at Austin
The correct reference is to use “The University of Texas at Austin” the first time you refer to the title of the university in text. Note that ‘The’ should be capitalized. Upon second reference and thereafter, use “the university,” lowercase.
Academic Departments
Capitalize the names of departments except when used in a person’s title.
Right: She is a senior in the Department of Mechanical Engineering.
Use lowercase for the word “department” when it stands alone.
Right: She’s been with the department for three years.
Capitalize the field when it is used to mean the department. Use lowercase for the field when it is used in a general sense.
Right: She’s a professor in the Department of Physics.
Right: She’s a professor in the Physics Department.
Right: She’s a physics professor.
Italicization & Use of Quotation Marks
The rules for italicization and use of quotes in classical music are often somewhat arbitrary and obtuse, and can be especially confusing with newer works that blur lines between generic titles and more specific titles. With the advent of modern desktop publishing many styling rules are helpful for body text, but are not necessary in a program list, and so we have abandoned them to simplify things.
IN PROGRAM LISTINGS
Do not place any title or part of a title inside of quotation marks.
Do not italicize any titles, except in specific cases:
1. Italicize any programmatic title or nickname that is added to a generic title.
Right: Ludwig van Beethoven Piano Concerto No. 5 in E Flat Major, Op. 73, Emperor
Wrong: Ludwig van Beethoven Piano Concerto No. 3 in C Minor, Op. 37
2. Italicize any large work when a single selection from the large work is being performed. Do not place the selection in quotes.
Right: Gioachino Rossini Largo al factotum from Il barbiere di Siviglia
Right: Johannes Brahms Auf dem Flusse from Winterreise
Wrong: Johannes Brahms “Auf dem Flusse” from Winterreise
All other titles should not be italicized, and nothing should be marked in quotations marks on program listings.
Right: Johannes Brahms Winterreise
Wrong: Johannes Brahms Winterreise
Wrong: Johannes Brahms “Winterreise”
Wrong: Ludwig van Beethoven Piano Concerto No. 5 in E Flat Major, Op. 73, “Emperor”
IN BODY/PARAGRAPH TEXT
The rules vary slightly when using titles of pieces inside of body text, such as inside a program note:
1. Do Italicize titles of specific larger works that are not programatic. Do not use quotation marks.
Right: Our New Day Begun by Omar Thomas
Right: Johannes Brahms’ Winterreise
Wrong: “Our New Day Begun” By Omar Thomas
2. Do not italicize any generic titles.
Right: Symphony No. 5 in C minor, Op. 67
Wrong: Symphony No. 5 in C minor, Op. 67
3. Do italicize any programmatic titles or nicknames in larger works and overture titles.
Right: Mahler’s Symphony No. 2, Resurrection
Right: Ravel’s Boléro
Right: Brahms’ Tragic Overture, Op. 81
Right: Overture to Coriolan, Op. 62
4. Do italicize titles in different languages, but do not italicize names or characters.
Right: La Bohème
Right: She played Mimì and Musetta in Puccini’s La Bohème
5. Do Put titles of opera scenes, and individual pieces that are parts of larger works in quotations.
Right: “Largo al factotum” from Il barbiere di Siviglia
Right: “Auf dem Flusse” from Johannes Brahms’ Winterreise
Capitalization
English (headline style capitalization): Capitalize the first word and all subsequent words except articles, conjunctions and prepositions (unless they begin or end a title or subtitle).
Right: Sonata in E-flat Major, Op. 15, No. 3
French, Italian, and Spanish: Capitalize the first word and all proper nouns.
Right: La Bohème
Right: Il barbiere di Siviglia
Elements in program to describe composer dates, transcriptions and arrangements should be abbreviated and set in lowercase.
Right: b. 1965
Right: arr. John Doe
Right: trans. Jane Roe
Wrong: Arranged John Doe
Composer Names
Composer names in program listings should be spelled out completely, with two exceptions. Bach and Mozart may be shortened to two initials, last names, as it has become a de facto standard.
Right: J.S. Bach
Right: W.A. Mozart
Right: Ludwig van Beethoven
Movements
Do not italicize any movements. Do not number movements if all movements are performed completely and in order.
Symphony No. 5 in C minor, Op. 67
Allegro con brio
Andante con moto
Scherzo. Allegro
Allegro
Number movements if they are (1) not performed completely or (2) not performed in order, number them.
Symphony No. 5 in C minor, Op. 67
I. Allegro con brio
IV. Allegro
Thematic Catalog Abbreviations
Opus numbers should be styled as Op. Most other thematic catalog citations used in the titles of works comprise a capital letter followed by a period, a space, and a number. e.g.: K. 475, D. 950. The exceptions are: BWV (Bach) RV (Vivaldi) TWV (Telemmann) WoO (Werke ohne Opus, numerous composers, including Beethoven and Brahms) e.g., BWV 565, RV 269, TWV 55:C3, WoO 45
Dates
When program notes are not present, the composer should be set in non-bold typeface directly below the composer name and not contain parentheses.
Right: Johannes Brahms
1833 – 1897
Right: Philip Glass
b. 1937
Wrong: Johannes Brahms
(1833-1897)
Wrong: Philip Glass
(1937)
Dates of compositions should appear next to the work, set in regular weight (not bold), with 3 spaces between the title and date. Dates should not be set inside parentheses.
Right: Klavierstücke, Op. 119 1893
Diacritical Marks
All names and non-English words should receive careful attention for the correct placement of diacritical marks (or diacritics): Á à Â ä Å å Æ æ á ç É È é è Í Ì í ì î ñ ó Ò ò ö ø ß Ú ú ù ü
Hyphens and Dashes
Hyphens (-), en dashes (–), and em dashes (—) look similar, but they’re not interchangeable. It’s important to use the proper mark in the proper contexts, and to know the correct key commands to create dashes.
Hyphen (-)
is the smallest mark. It has Three Uses.
1. At the end of a line when a word breaks onto the next line
2. Some multipart words are spelled with a hyphen, but a prefix is not typically followed with a hyphen.
Right: topsy-turvy
Right: cost-effective
Right: nonprofit
Wrong: non-profit
3. A hyphen is used in phrasal adjectives to ensure clarity.
Right: high-school grades
En Dash (–)
to create a proper en dash, use the key command ⌥ + – on a mac or Ctr. + – on a PC. Do not type two hyphens to create an en dash. While some text editors will convert two hyphens into an en dash, it is not universal. using the proper key commands ensures the proper mark remains when text is copied and pasted.
An En Dash indicates a range of values
Right: 1880–1912, pages 330–39, Exhibits A–E
Wrong: 1880-1912, pages 330-1912, Exhibits A-E
If you open with from, pair it with to instead of an en dash
Right: from 1880 to 1912
Wrong: from 1880 – 1912
The Em Dash (—)
to create a proper en dash, use the key command Shift +⌥ + – on a mac or Ctr. + Alt. + – on a PC. Do not type three hyphens.
The em dash is used to make a break between parts of a sentence. Use it when a comma is too weak, but a colon, semicolon, or pair of parentheses is too strong. The em dash puts a nice pause in the text — and it is underused in professional writing. (see what we did there?)
