Complete Works Editions, Musical Monuments and Historical Sets, Anthologies, and Their Indexes
Collected Editions (also known as Complete Works Editions) set out to present an edition of all the musical works by an individual composer. (Depending on the language of publication, you may see titles such as Sämtliche Werke, OEuvres complètes, or Opera omnia.) These editions, overseen by teams of music scholars, are intended to be comprehensive and scholarly, informed by the most current research, and typically accompanied by scholarly commentary. While they can be used for performance, their primary purpose is for study and research.
Our library collection has dozens of these editions, most being located in stacks 10-13 of the Schneider Music Library.
These editions usually consist of many volumes which are published one at a time over the span of many years (sometimes decades). So, if the edition has not been fully completed, you may discover that the particular piece you're looking for simply hasn't been published in that series yet. (Below, in the list of editions, we indicate which editions are complete and which are still ongoing.) For some composers, more than one collected edition exists; you'd be best advised to consult the newer edition whenever possible.
It can be very challenging to find the piece you're looking for within an edition comprising dozens of volumes. The sets themselves tend to lack a detailed index or comprehensive tables of contents. Further, you'll find that most sets are not searchable in the library catalog on a piece-by-piece or volume-by-volume basis; there will only be a listing for the edition as a whole (as is also the case with other serial publications such as journals).
If you find yourself in this predicament, the best solution is usually to consult The Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, whether in print form (located in the Reference section of the Music Library) or online. You will want to go to the article about the relevant composer and find the "Works" section. At the beginning of that Works list, you will see a key to the abbreviations of the composer's complete works editions as well as any other important information that might help you interpret the listings.
Complete Works Editions: Selected Resources
Bach, J.S.
Neue Ausgabe sämtlicher Werke (1954-2007)
M3 .B1133: Music Library, Collected Editions
Also see commemorative volume: ML 410 .B1 N37 2007: Music Library, Collected Editions
Beethoven
Werke [New ed.] (1961-ongoing)
M3 .B44: Music Library, Collected Editions
Berlioz
New Edition of the Complete Works (1967-ongoing)
M3 .B52: Music Library, Collected Editions
Billings
The Complete Works of William Billings (1977)
M3 .B56 1977: Music Library, Collected Editions
Brahms
Neue Ausgabe sämtlicher Werke (1996-ongoing)
M3 .B835: Music Library, Collected Editions
Bruckner
Sämtliche Werke (1951-ongoing)
M3 .B882: Music Library, Collected Editions
Byrd
The Byrd Edition (1976-2004)
M3 .B992: Music Library, Collected Editions
Debussy
Œvres complètes de Claude Debussy (1985-ongoing)
M3 .D33 1985: Music Library, Collected Editions
Fauré
Œvres complètes (2010-ongoing)
M3 .F38 2010: Music Library, Collected Editions
Handel
Hallische Händel-Ausgabe/Halle Handel Edition (1955-ongoing)
M3 .H26: Music Library, Collected Editions
Haydn
Werke (1958-ongoing)
M3 .H46: Music Library, Collected Editions
Josquin
New Josquin Edition (1987-2016)
M3 .J68 1987: Music Library, Collected Editions
Machaut (Guillaume, de)
Musikalische Werke (1926-54)
M3 .G95: Music Library, Collected Editions
Mozart
Neue Ausgabe sämtlicher Werke (1955-91)
M3 .M896: Music Library, Collected Editions
Schoenberg
Sämtliche Werke (1966-ongoing)
M3 .S36: Music Library, Collected Editions
Schubert
Neue Ausgabe sämtlicher Werke (1964-ongoing)
M3 .S38: Music Library, Collected Editions
Schumann
Sämtliche Werke/Complete Works [New ed.] (1991-ongoing)
M3 .S39 S36 1991: Music Library, Collected Editions
Verdi
The Works of Giuseppe Verdi (1983-ongoing)
M3 .V48 1983: Music Library, Collected Editions
Wagner
Sämtliche Werke (1970-ongoing)
M3 .W23: Music Library, Collected Editions
Anthologies: Selected Resources
Contemporary Anthology of Music by Women (Briscoe, 1997)
M2 .C77 1997: Music Library
Accompanying CD set: MCD 4634: Music Library
Indexes of Complete Works Editions, Musical Monuments, Historical Sets, and Anthologies: Selected Resources
Index to Printed Music (by RILM)
(online)
Collected Editions, Historical Series & Sets & Monuments of Music (Hill/Stephens, 1997)
ML 113 .H55 1997: Music Library, Reference
An Index to Music in Historical Anthologies of Western Art Music (Parker, 2019)
ML 128 .A7 P28 2019 (v.1-2): Music Library, Reference
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