Opera News: Journal of Music and Performing Arts welcomes original scholarly and creative submissions addressing music, opera, theatre, dance, performance studies, vocal and instrumental performance, stage production, and related cultural practices.

The journal publishes monthly, follows a single-blind peer-review process, and operates under a diamond open-access model. Authors are not required to pay submission fees, article processing charges, peer-review fees, or publication fees. Accepted articles are published under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International Licence (CC BY 4.0).

Manuscripts must be submitted by email to:

submission@operanews.org

The journal does not currently require authors to submit through an online manuscript-management system.

The subject line of the submission email should follow this format:

Manuscript Submission – [Article Type] – [Short Article Title]

Example:

Manuscript Submission – Original Research Article – Contemporary Opera and Digital Performance

Authors should send the manuscript from the corresponding author’s official or regularly monitored email address.

The journal considers submissions including:

• Original research articles; 
• Review articles; 
• Scholarly essays; 
• Interdisciplinary studies; 
• Practice-based and artistic research; 
• Case studies; 
• Performance and production reviews; 
• Book, recording, and media reviews; 
• Interviews and scholarly conversations; 
• Perspectives and commentaries; and 
• Special-issue contributions. 

The manuscript type should be clearly identified in the submission email and cover letter.

A complete submission should normally include:

1. Cover Letter
   A brief letter introducing the manuscript and confirming compliance with the journal’s submission requirements. 
2. Main Manuscript
   The complete manuscript should preferably be submitted in Microsoft Word .docx format. 
3. PDF Copy, Where Necessary
   A PDF version should also be included when the manuscript contains musical notation, specialist symbols, unusual scripts, complex tables, or formatting that may not display correctly in Word. 
4. Figures and Musical Examples
   Figures, photographs, illustrations, scores, and musical examples should be provided as separate high-resolution files. 
5. Tables
   Tables must be editable and should not be submitted only as images. 
6. Supplementary Material
   Audio recordings, video recordings, interview transcripts, datasets, appendices, scripts, production documentation, or other supporting files should be included where relevant. 
7. Permission Documents
   Written permission must be provided for copyrighted third-party materials when permission is required. 
8. Ethics and Consent Documents
   Evidence of ethics approval, informed consent, or consent for publication may be requested for studies involving participants or identifiable individuals. 

Large supplementary files may be shared through a secure and accessible file-transfer or repository link included in the submission email.

Before submission, authors should ensure that the manuscript:

• Falls within the journal’s aims and scope; 
• Is original and has not been published in substantially the same form; 
• Is not under consideration by another journal; 
• Has been approved by all listed authors; 
• Is written in clear and consistent academic English; 
• Includes an informative title, abstract, and keywords where required; 
• Uses a clear heading structure; 
• Follows MLA citation and reference style; 
• Includes a complete Works Cited section; 
• Contains accurate and verified references; 
• Numbers all figures, tables, and musical examples consecutively; 
• Includes captions and appropriate source acknowledgments; 
• Contains all required declarations; and 
• Complies with the journal’s ethical, copyright, and generative-AI policies. 

The journal uses single-blind peer review. Authors are therefore not normally required to remove their names, affiliations, or other identifying information from the manuscript.

The submission email should state:

• The full title of the manuscript; 
• The manuscript type; 
• The full names of all authors; 
• The corresponding author’s name and contact details; 
• The institutional affiliations of the authors; 
• A brief explanation of the manuscript’s relevance to the journal; 
• Confirmation that the manuscript is original; 
• Confirmation that the manuscript is not under consideration elsewhere; 
• Confirmation that all authors approved the submission; 
• Details of any preprint, thesis, conference paper, report, or related version; 
• Any relevant competing interests; 
• Whether generative artificial intelligence was substantively used; 
• Details of supplementary or multimedia files; and 
• A complete list of the files attached or linked. 

Cover Letter Requirements

The cover letter should include:

• The manuscript title; 
• The selected article type; 
• A concise summary of the manuscript’s principal contribution; 
• An explanation of its relevance to music or the performing arts; 
• A statement confirming originality; 
• A statement confirming that the manuscript is not simultaneously submitted elsewhere; 
• Confirmation that all authors approved the manuscript; 
• Disclosure of related publications or earlier versions; 
• Disclosure of funding and conflicts of interest; 
• Information about ethical approval and informed consent, where applicable; 
• Information about copyright permissions; 
• Disclosure of substantive generative-AI use; and 
• The corresponding author’s full contact details. 

Authors may suggest qualified reviewers in the cover letter. Suggested reviewers should have appropriate expertise and should not have close personal, institutional, supervisory, financial, or recent collaborative relationships with the authors. The editors are not required to invite suggested reviewers.

Required Declarations

The following statements should be included in the manuscript where applicable:

Author Contributions

A brief statement describing each author’s contribution to the work.

Example:

Author Contributions: N.A. developed the study concept, conducted the analysis, and prepared the original manuscript. S.K. contributed to the methodology, interpretation, and critical revision. All authors reviewed and approved the final manuscript.

Funding

Example where no external funding was received:

Funding: This research received no external funding.

Example where funding was received:

Funding: This research was supported by [name of funding organization] under Grant No. [number].

Data Availability

Example:

Data Availability: The data supporting the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.

For articles that did not create or analyse new data:

Data Availability: No new data were created or analysed in this study.

Conflicts of Interest

Example:

Conflicts of Interest: The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

Ethics Approval

Where applicable, identify the approving institution, committee, approval number, and relevant date.

Informed Consent

Example:

Informed Consent: Informed consent was obtained from all participants involved in the study.

Generative Artificial Intelligence

Where substantive AI use occurred, include:

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

File-Naming Format

Authors are encouraged to use clear file names, such as:

• CorrespondingAuthor_ShortTitle_Manuscript.docx  
• CorrespondingAuthor_ShortTitle_Manuscript.pdf  
• CorrespondingAuthor_ShortTitle_CoverLetter.docx  
• Figure_1.tif  
• Figure_2.jpg  
• Musical_Example_1.pdf  
• Table_1.docx  
• Supplementary_Audio_1.mp3  
• Supplementary_Video_1.mp4  
• Copyright_Permissions.pdf  

File names should not contain unclear abbreviations or unrelated numbering.

After receiving a complete submission, the editorial office conducts an administrative and technical check. The manuscript is then evaluated for:

• Relevance to the journal’s scope; 
• Originality and scholarly contribution; 
• Quality of presentation; 
• Methodological or interpretive adequacy; 
• Ethical compliance; 
• Copyright and permission requirements; 
• Reference accuracy; 
• Similarity or inappropriate text reuse; and 
• Readiness for peer review. 

A manuscript may be:

• Sent for external peer review; 
• Returned for technical corrections; 
• Returned for preliminary revision; 
• Reassigned to an appropriate editor; 
• Placed on hold while an ethical or copyright matter is examined; or 
• Rejected without external peer review. 

Manuscripts approved for external review are normally evaluated by at least two independent reviewers under the journal’s single-blind peer-review model.

When submitting a revised manuscript, authors should email:

submission@operanews.org

The email subject should follow this format:

Revised Manuscript Submission – [Manuscript ID] – [Short Article Title]

The revision package should include:

• A clean revised manuscript; 
• A tracked-changes or highlighted version; 
• A detailed point-by-point response to the editor and reviewers; 
• Revised figures, tables, or musical examples; 
• Updated supplementary files; 
• Updated declarations; and 
• Any requested permissions, ethics documents, or supporting evidence. 

Each reviewer comment should be reproduced in the response document and followed by a clear explanation of how it was addressed.

Submission Checklist

Before sending the manuscript, confirm that:

• The manuscript fits the journal’s aims and scope. 
• The selected article type is clearly stated. 
• The work is original and not under consideration elsewhere. 
• All authors have approved the submission. 
• Author names and affiliations are complete and accurate. 
• The corresponding author’s email address is included. 
• The manuscript contains an abstract and keywords where required. 
• MLA citation style has been applied consistently. 
• Every in-text citation appears in the Works Cited section. 
• Every Works Cited entry is cited in the manuscript. 
• References, DOIs, page numbers, and URLs have been verified. 
• Figures and musical examples are provided in suitable resolution. 
• Tables are editable. 
• All figures, tables, and supplementary materials are cited in the text. 
• Copyright permissions have been obtained where necessary. 
• Ethics and consent information has been included where applicable. 
• Funding, data availability, author contributions, and conflicts of interest are declared. 
• Substantive use of generative artificial intelligence has been disclosed. 
• The cover letter and all required files are attached. 
• The submission is addressed to submission@operanews.org. 

Submission Charges and Licence

Opera News: Journal of Music and Performing Arts is a diamond open-access journal.

Submission fee: None
Article processing charge: None
Peer-review fee: None
Publication fee: None
Colour figure charge: None

Accepted articles are published under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International Licence (CC BY 4.0). Authors retain copyright and grant the journal the right of first publication.

Submission Contact

All new manuscripts, revised manuscripts, supplementary files, review-status enquiries, proof corrections, and publication-status enquiries should be sent to:

submission@operanews.org

To avoid duplicate processing, authors should not send the same manuscript separately to multiple journal email addresses.