Editorial policy

Sources

Every date, number, rule and attribution carries a numbered note linking to the page it came from. We prefer, in order: university diction and phonetics material, reference works, the opera companies and publishers themselves, public-domain libretto editions, then the press. Forums, video comments and anonymous blogs are never a source.

Checking

Before a page is published, every sentence with a note is read against the passage it cites. If the source does not say it, the sentence goes. The date at the top of each page is the last time it was checked.

Libretti and translations

We quote original-language libretto lines only from public-domain texts and name the edition we used. English translations of those lines are written by us. We do not reproduce copyrighted translations or scores.

IPA

IPA transcriptions follow the conventions of the sources cited on each page; where singers' practice differs from everyday speech, the page says which one it shows.

Money

Some pages carry a clearly labelled "Where to buy" box with links to score and book sellers. We may earn a commission from them; it never decides what a page says. See the affiliate disclosure.

Corrections

Errors are fixed and logged on the corrections page. Write through the contact page.