Citing Audio and Visual

1. Recordings on a physical medium like CDs, DVDs, etc.

Recordings are often listed in a separate discography rather than in a bibliography (see CMS 14.262). If the conductor or performer is the focus of the recording rather than the composer, then they may be listed in a bibliography, as appropriate.

(See CMS 14.263)

Footnote/Endnote:

Format: 

• ¹ First Name Last Name of Composer/Ensemble, Title in Italics, with performers (instruments), Recording Date or platform, Date of publication, Format. 

Example:

• ¹Richard Strauss, Don Quixote, with Emanuel Feuermann (violoncello) and the Philadelphia Orchestra, conducted by Eugene Ormandy, recorded February 24, 1940, Biddulph LAB 042, 1991, compact disc. 

Bibliography:

Format:

• Last Name, First Name of Composer/Musician/Band. Title in Italics. Performing Ensemble. Conductor. With Select Performers. Date of Recording. Publisher Matrix Number, Year Published. 

Examples:

• Mozart, Wolfgang Amadeus. Don Giovanni. Orchestra and Chorus of the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden. Sir Colin Davis. With Ingvar Wixell, Luigi Roni, Martina Arroyo, Stuart Burrows, Kiri Te Kanawa, et al. Recorded May 1973. Philips 422 541-2, 1991, 3 compact discs. 

Citations for videos will vary according to the nature of the material and should include any facts relevant to identifying the item. Note that indexed scenes are treated as chapters and cited by title or by number. (See CMS 14.265)

Example:

• Handel, George Frideric. Admeto: re di tessaglia. Händelfestspielorchester Halle. Howard Arman. With Matthias Rexroth, et al. Leipzig: Arthaus Musik, 2006. 2 DVDs, 196 min.

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2. Liner notes that accompany a physical medium like CDs, LPs, etc.

CDs and LPs often have liner notes in or on their containers, providing information such as lyrics, biographies, or analyses of the relevant works. These should be cited as seen below. The author of the liner notes should be cited appropriately, whether it be the recording artist, a scholar, etc.

Footnote/Endnote:  

Format: 

• ¹ Author First Name Last Name, “Title of essay in liner notes,” Liner notes to recording of [performer or composer], Recording Title in Italics (Name of publisher, Matrix number, Year published), Page of liner notes. 

Examples: 

• ¹ Peter Wollny, liner notes to recording of Johann Sebastian Bach, Actus Tragicus: Cantatas / Kantaten BWV 4, 12, 106 & 196 (Harmonia Mundi, HMC 901694), 11. 
• ² Peter Wollny, “J.S. Bach Early Cantatas,” liner notes to recording of Johann Sebastian Bach, Actus Tragicus: Cantatas / Kantaten BWV 4, 12, 106 & 196 (Harmonia Mundi, HMC 901694), 11.    

Bibliography:

Format: 

• Author Last Name, First Name. “Title of essay in liner notes.” Liner notes to recording of [performer or composer], Recording Title in Italics, Section pages. Name of publisher, matrix Number, Year Published 

Examples: 

• Wollny, Peter. Liner notes to recording of Johann Sebastian Bach, Actus Tragicus: Cantatas / Kantaten BWV 4, 12, 106 & 196, pp.9-11. Harmonia Mundi, HMC 901694, 2000. 
• Wollny, Peter. “J.S. Bach Early Cantatas.” Liner notes to recording of Johann Sebastian Bach, Actus Tragicus: Cantatas / Kantaten BWV 4, 12, 106 & 196, pp.9-11. Harmonia Mundi, HMC 901694, 2000.

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3. Online audio and video

Citations of online streaming media that duplicates content of previously recorded material should include documentation of that performance as outlined above. If no date is available, include the date you accessed the material. For material that is posted directly to the Internet, gather the creator, title, and other information directly from the material. In both cases, include information about the source type and length. It is never enough to only include a URL or file name. (See CMS 14.267)

Footnote/Endnote:

Format: 

• ¹ Author/Creator First Name Last Name, “Title,” Source type, Length, Date of Publication, URL. 

Example: 

• ¹ Taylor Swift, "Anti-Hero," Youtube video, 5:09, October 21, 2022, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b1kbLwvqugk. 

Bibliography:

Format: 

• Author/Creator Last Name, First Name. “Title.” Source type/Performers/Ensemble. Date of Recording. Publisher. Length. URL. 

Example:

• Swift, Taylor. "Anti-Hero." Youtube video. October 21, 2022. 5:09. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b1kbLwvqugk.