These titles include musical forms such as Concertos, Symphonies, Quartets, etc. The basic order of the uniform title is:
A. Form title (most often found in the plural, but can be singular if the composer has written only one work in this form, e.g., concertos vs concerto)
B. Medium (i.e., instrumentation)
C. Distinctive number if one exists (e.g., opus no. or thematic catalog no.)
D. Key
E. Any indication that the piece is part of a larger work or an arrangement
Example 1II. DISTINCTIVE TITLES
Haydn, Joseph, 1732-1809.
[Quartets, strings, H. III, 63, G major]
(A) (B) (C) (D)Example 2
Brahms, Johannes, 1833-1897.
[Symphonies, no. 3, op. 90, F major]
(A) (C) (D)Note that the medium is not included (B) when the form implies the instrumentation, e.g., symphonies implies an orchestra.
As a general rule, these appear in the language of
the composer's original title.
Example 1III. COLLECTIONS
Stravinsky, Igor, 1882-1971.
[Vesna sviashchennaia]This is Stravinsky's Rite of Spring
Example 2
Mozart, Wolfgang Amadeus, 1756-1791.
[Zauberflöte]This is Mozart's Magic Flute.
Collections of all of a composer's works or all works
in one category are treated as follows:
Example 1PARTS AND ARRANGEMENTS OF MUSIC
Mozart, Wolfgang Amadeus, 1756-1791.
[Works]This is the complete works of Mozart.
Example 2
Mozart, Wolfgang Amadeus, 1756-1791.
[Piano music]This is all of the piano music written by Mozart.
Example 3
Mozart, Wolfgang Amadeus, 1756-1791.
[Quartets, strings]This is all of Mozart’s string quartets.
Often scores or recordings of
particular works include
only part of the complete composition,
e.g., one aria or one movement.
The piece can also be an arrangement
of the original piece, e.g., arranged
for different instrumentation,
a reduction of the original work, a translation
of the text of the
original work. The indication that it is not the entire
work or is
an arrangement of the work appears at the end of the uniform
title.
Example 1
Bach, Johann Sebastian, 1685-1750.
[Jagdkantate. Schafe können sicher weiden]This is one aria from the Hunt cantata.
Example 2
Mozart, Wolfgang Amadeus, 1756-1791.
[Zauberflöte. Vocal score]This is not a full score, but an arrangment for voices and piano.
Example 3
Haydn, Joseph, 1732-1809.
[Schöpfung. Selections ; arr.]They have taken parts from this work, originally for orchestra, and arranged it for different instrumentation (i.e., arr.)
Example 4
Mozart, Wolfgang Amadeus, 1756-1791.
[Zauberflote. English]This is the complete Magic Flute with the text translated into English.
