Generative artificial intelligence includes systems capable of producing or substantially modifying content such as:

• Written text; 
• Translations and summaries; 
• Computer code; 
• Research questions or outlines; 
• Images, illustrations, and designs; 
• Musical compositions or arrangements; 
• Audio and voice recordings; 
• Video and performance simulations; 
• Transcriptions and subtitles; 
• Data, tables, or analytical outputs; and 
• References or bibliographic information. 

The policy applies whether the artificial intelligence system is publicly available, commercially licensed, institutionally provided, or incorporated into another software application.

Basic spelling checkers, grammar checkers, formatting tools, reference managers, and conventional search tools are not normally considered generative artificial intelligence unless they create or substantially alter scholarly or creative content.

Authors remain fully responsible for every part of a submitted manuscript and its supporting material, regardless of whether generative artificial intelligence was used.

Authors must personally verify:

• The accuracy of all statements and interpretations; 
• The authenticity of quotations and references; 
• The validity of data, calculations, and analytical results; 
• The originality of arguments and creative work; 
• The accuracy of translations and transcriptions; 
• The legality of images, recordings, scores, scripts, and other material; 
• Compliance with copyright, privacy, consent, and confidentiality requirements; and 
• The absence of fabricated, misleading, discriminatory, or defamatory content. 

Use of an artificial intelligence system does not transfer responsibility from the authors to the tool, its developer, its operator, or the journal.

Generative artificial intelligence systems cannot be listed as authors, co-authors, contributors, or copyright holders.

Authorship requires the ability to:

• Accept responsibility for the work; 
• Approve the submitted and published versions; 
• Respond to questions about accuracy and integrity; 
• Disclose conflicts of interest; 
• enter into publishing and licensing agreements; and 
• Take responsibility for corrections or retractions. 

Artificial intelligence systems cannot fulfil these responsibilities. Any person listed as an author must meet the journal’s authorship requirements and must be accountable for the final work.

Authors may use generative artificial intelligence tools for limited and responsible purposes, including:

• Improving grammar, spelling, readability, or language; 
• Assisting with translation, provided the translation is checked by a qualified author; 
• Developing preliminary outlines or organizational structures; 
• Supporting coding or computational analysis; 
• Assisting with transcription or captioning; 
• Generating preliminary search terms; 
• Exploring creative possibilities during practice-based research; 
• Producing or modifying artistic material when such use forms part of the declared research method; and 
• Assisting with the preparation of non-substantive administrative materials. 

Any generated content must be critically reviewed, corrected, and approved by the authors before submission.

The use of artificial intelligence must not replace the authors’ intellectual contribution, critical analysis, interpretation, creative responsibility, or scholarly judgment.

Generative artificial intelligence must not be used to:

• Write an entire manuscript without meaningful human intellectual contribution; 
• Fabricate research findings, data, interviews, performances, observations, or evidence; 
• Invent quotations, references, page numbers, DOI records, archival sources, or bibliographic information; 
• Misrepresent artificial intelligence-generated content as entirely human-created; 
• Produce false participant statements or interview responses; 
• Create deceptive images, audio, video, voices, or performance records; 
• Alter research materials in a way that misrepresents the original evidence; 
• Conceal plagiarism, duplicate publication, or inappropriate text reuse; 
• imitate the work, voice, image, likeness, or performance of another person without appropriate permission; 
• Process confidential, copyrighted, culturally restricted, or personally identifiable information without authorization; 
• Generate discriminatory, harmful, defamatory, or unlawfully reproduced content; or 
• Circumvent ethical review, copyright requirements, informed consent, or scholarly accountability. 

Submitting fabricated or deceptively generated material may result in rejection, withdrawal, correction, retraction, or notification of the relevant institution.

Authors must disclose substantive use of generative artificial intelligence when the tool has contributed to:

• Drafting or substantially rewriting text; 
• Translating substantial parts of the manuscript; 
• Developing arguments or interpretations; 
• Generating or modifying images; 
• Creating musical, audio, video, theatrical, or choreographic material; 
• Producing computer code; 
• Conducting data analysis; 
• Generating research instruments; 
• Transcribing or summarizing interviews; 
• Creating tables or datasets; or 
• Making other meaningful contributions to the scholarly or creative content. 

The disclosure should identify:

1. The name and version of the tool, where known; 
2. The developer or provider; 
3. The purpose for which it was used; 
4. The part of the manuscript or project affected; 
5. The extent of human review and verification; and 
6. Any limitations relevant to interpretation or reproducibility. 

Routine use of spelling, grammar, formatting, or reference-management software does not normally require disclosure when it does not generate substantive content.

Where disclosure is required, authors should include an Artificial Intelligence Use Statement before the Works Cited section.

A suitable statement is:

Artificial Intelligence Use Statement: During the preparation of this manuscript, the authors used [name and version of tool] for [specific purpose]. The generated material was critically reviewed, edited, and verified by the authors. The authors accept full responsibility for the accuracy, originality, integrity, and final content of the manuscript.

For creative or practice-based research, authors may use:

Artificial Intelligence Use Statement: Generative artificial intelligence was used as part of the creative and research process to produce or modify [music, image, audio, video, text, design, or other material]. The tool used was [name and version], and its role was limited to [specific function]. The authors directed, evaluated, revised, and approved the resulting material and accept full responsibility for the final work.

When no generative artificial intelligence was used, the journal may request the following statement:

Artificial Intelligence Use Statement: The authors did not use generative artificial intelligence tools in the preparation of this manuscript.

A disclosure does not automatically affect the editorial decision. Failure to disclose significant use may constitute a breach of publication ethics.

Because the journal publishes research in music and the performing arts, authors must clearly identify any generative artificial intelligence used to create or modify:

• Musical compositions; 
• Arrangements or orchestrations; 
• Vocal performances; 
• Synthetic voices; 
• Sound recordings; 
• Stage designs; 
• Costumes or scenography; 
• Choreography or movement sequences; 
• Dramatic scripts or libretti; 
• Images, photographs, and illustrations; 
• Video or animated performances; and 
• Digital performers, avatars, or simulated productions. 

Authors must explain the relationship between human creative decisions and artificial intelligence-generated output.

Artificial intelligence-generated or modified media must not be presented as authentic documentation of an actual performance, person, venue, historical event, or production unless its synthetic nature is prominently disclosed.

The journal may require authors to provide prompts, processing details, original source material, editing records, or other documentation where necessary to evaluate the work.

Authors are responsible for ensuring that the use of generative artificial intelligence complies with copyright, licensing, privacy, publicity, and informed-consent requirements.

Authors must not submit content that unlawfully reproduces or closely imitates:

• Copyrighted music; 
• Lyrics or libretti; 
• Dramatic scripts; 
• Choreography;  
• Photographs or artworks; 
• Recorded performances; 
• Protected voices or likenesses; 
• Stage or costume designs; or 
• Other third-party intellectual property. 

The use of an artificial intelligence tool does not guarantee that its output is original, free from infringement, or eligible for copyright protection.

Authors must obtain appropriate permission before using artificial intelligence to reproduce or simulate an identifiable person’s voice, image, likeness, performance, or personal characteristics.

Any third-party content not covered by the article’s CC BY 4.0 licence must carry an appropriate copyright notice or credit line.

Authors must not enter confidential or restricted material into external artificial intelligence systems unless they have explicit authorization and adequate data-protection safeguards.

Restricted material may include:

• Unpublished manuscripts; 
• Identifiable participant information; 
• Interview recordings or transcripts; 
• Confidential peer-review material; 
• Proprietary datasets; 
• Restricted archival records; 
• Sensitive community or cultural knowledge; 
• Embargoed research; 
• Copyrighted scores or recordings; and 
• Material covered by contractual or institutional restrictions. 

Where artificial intelligence is used to process research data, authors must explain how privacy, security, consent, and data integrity were protected.

Reviewers and editors must preserve the confidentiality of submitted manuscripts.

They must not upload a manuscript, abstract, figure, musical example, audio file, video, reviewer report, author information, or unpublished research content to a public or unauthorized generative artificial intelligence system.

Generative artificial intelligence must not be used to:

• Produce the substantive peer-review report; 
• Make an editorial decision; 
• Determine manuscript acceptance or rejection; 
• Replace expert evaluation; 
• Identify anonymous or confidential individuals; 
• Generate unsupported allegations; 
• Assess originality without human verification; or 
• disclose confidential manuscript content. 

Reviewers and editors remain personally responsible for the accuracy, fairness, reasoning, and confidentiality of their work.

Limited use of an institutionally approved and secure tool may be permitted for administrative or language-support purposes only when confidentiality, data protection, and human oversight are fully maintained.

The journal does not reject a manuscript solely because generative artificial intelligence was responsibly used and properly disclosed.

Editors will evaluate whether:

• The authors made a genuine intellectual or creative contribution; 
• The use of artificial intelligence was transparent; 
• Generated content was verified; 
• The research remains reproducible or sufficiently documented; 
• Copyright and consent requirements were satisfied; 
• The manuscript contains fabricated or misleading material; 
• The tool’s use affected originality or scholarly integrity; and 
• Readers receive enough information to understand the role of artificial intelligence. 

The journal may request additional information, including prompts, outputs, code, model details, editing history, source files, or methodological explanations.

Artificial intelligence-detection tools may support editorial screening, but their outputs will not be treated as conclusive evidence. Editorial decisions will be based on human assessment and the available evidence.

Authors must notify the journal promptly if they discover that artificial intelligence-generated content in a published article contains a significant error, fabricated reference, copyright problem, privacy breach, misleading media element, or other integrity concern.

Depending on the seriousness of the issue, the journal may:

• Request clarification or supporting documentation; 
• Publish a correction; 
• Add an editorial notice; 
• Issue an expression of concern; 
• Retract the article; 
• Remove unlawful material in exceptional circumstances; or 
• Refer the matter to the authors’ institution or another appropriate authority. 

Undisclosed or irresponsible use of generative artificial intelligence will be evaluated according to the nature, extent, intent, and consequences of the use.