Below, you will see examples of books cited in the MLA style. For more information on how to read these examples, see the Getting Started page of this LibGuide (see the tabs to the left.)
The Study of Ethnomusicology: Thirty-Three Discussions by TEMPLATE:
Author Last Name, Author First Name. Title of book. Publisher, Date of Publication.
EXAMPLE:
Nettl, Bruno. The Study of Ethnomusicology: Thirty-One Issues and Concepts. University of Illinois Press, 2006.
TEMPLATE:
(Last Name of Author, Pages)
EXAMPLE:
(Nettl, 32-33)
TEMPLATE:
Author Last Name, Author First Name and Author First Name Author Last Name. Title of book. Publisher, Date of Publication.
EXAMPLE:
Hepokoski, James, and Warren Darcy. Elements of Sonata Theory: Norms, Types, and Deformations in the Late-Eighteenth Century Sonata. Oxford University Press, 2006.
TEMPLATE:
(Last Name of First Author and Last Name of Second Author, Pages)
EXAMPLE:
(Hepokoski and Darcy, 101-102)
Musica Privata : die Rolle der Musik im privaten Leben : Festschrift zum 65. Geburtstag von Walter Salmen by TEMPLATE:
Author Last Name, Author First Name, et al. Title of book. Publisher, Date of Publication.
EXAMPLE:
Fink. Monika, et al. Musica Privata : die Rolle der Musik im privaten Leben : Festschrift zum 65. Geburtstag von Walter Salmen. Innsbruck, 1991.
TEMPLATE:
(Last Name of First Author et al., Pages)
EXAMPLE:
(Fink et al. 22)
Sometimes a label must be used to describe the role of the person or persons listed in the Author element. This most often occurs when the person is not the primary creator, such as for editors of collections of essays written by various authors.
The Routledge Film Music Sourcebook by TEMPLATE:
Contributor Last Name, First Name, Contribution. Title of book. Publisher, Date.
EXAMPLE:
Wierzbicki, James, et al., Editors. The Routledge Film Music Sourcebook. Routledge, 2012.
TEMPLATE:
(Last Name of Contributor, Pages)
EXAMPLE:
(Wierzbicki et al., 201)
Theory of Harmony by TEMPLATE:
Author Last Name, Author First Name. Title of book. Translated/Edited/Etc. by First Name Last Name, Publisher, Date of Publication.
EXAMPLE:
Schoenberg, Arnold. Theory of Harmony. Translated by Roy E. Carter, University of California Press, 1978.
TEMPLATE:
(Author Last Name, Pages)
EXAMPLE:
(Schoenberg 18-22)
This example item is the same as the one for 'Book Chapter or Section'. Notice how the citation looks different when referring to the entire book, as opposed to citing a specific chapter or section.
Bach Perspectives, Volume 8 by TEMPLATE:
Contributor Last Name, First Name, Contribution If Needed. Book Title. Publisher, Date.
EXAMPLE:
Melamed, Daniel R., editor. Bach Perspectives. Volume 8, University of Illinois Press, 2011.
TEMPLATE:
(Contributor Last Name, Pages)
EXAMPLE:
(Melamed 69-77)
Music in the Twentieth and Twenty-First Centuries by TEMPLATE:
Author Last Name, Author First Name. "Title of Article." Title of Reference Work. Edited by Names of Editors, volume, Publisher, Date of Publication. Title of the Series.
EXAMPLE:
Auner, Joseph. "Primitivism and the Folk". Music in the Twentieth and Twenty-First Centuries. Edited by Walter Frisch, Volume 6, W.W. Norton and Company, 2013. Western Music in Context: A Norton History.
TEMPLATE:
(Author Last Name, Pages)
EXAMPLE:
(Auner, 64-67)
A History of Western Music by TEMPLATE:
Author Last Name, Author First Name. Title of book. Edition, Publisher, Date of Publication.
EXAMPLE:
Burkholder, J. Peter, et al. A History of Western Music. 9th edition, W.W. Norton & Company, 2014.
TEMPLATE:
(Last Name of First Author et al., Pages)
EXAMPLE:
(Burkholder et al., 46)
This example item is the same as the one for 'Book Volume'. Notice how the citation looks different when referring to a specific section, as opposed to citing the entire book.
Bach Perspectives, Volume 8 by TEMPLATE:
Author Last Name, Author First Name. "Book Section." Title of Book. Translated/Edited/Etc by First Name Last Name, Publisher, Date of Publication, Page Range.
EXAMPLE:
Snyder, Kerala J. "Oratorio on Five Afternoons: From the Lubeck Abendmusiken to Bach's Christmas Oratorio." Bach Perspectives. Volume 8, edited by Daniel R. Melamed, Oxford University Press, 2011, 69-95.
TEMPLATE:
(Last Name of First Author and Last Name of Second Author, Pages)
EXAMPLE:
(Snyder, 71-90)
Electronic books are treated similarly to print books. The only difference is that after the citation you include the URL or DOI used to access the book.
Called upstairs : Moravian Inuit music in Labrador by TEMPLATE:
Author Last Name, Author First Name. Title of book, Publisher. Date of Publication. Database or Website Name, DOI or URL.
EXAMPLE:
Gordon, Tom. Called Upstairs: Moravian Inuit Music in Labrador, McGill-Queen's University Press. 2023. JSTOR E-Books, https://www.jstor.org/stable/jj.5993258.1.
TEMPLATE:
(Last Name of Author, Pages)
EXAMPLE:
(Gordon 52)
