About the Journal

Svensk tidskrift för musikforskning / Swedish Journal of Music Research (STM–SJM) is a peer-reviewed journal issued by Svenska samfundet för musikforskning (Swedish Society for Music Research). STM–SJM is published both online and in print. In the online version, articles and other contributions are published successively as they are ready for publication. The printed volume (published annually) is distributed exclusively among the members of the Society and the subscribers. 

Aim and scope

STM–SJM addresses a readership of scholars, musicians, teachers and students within different musical disciplines, first and foremost in Sweden and the Nordic countries but also in other countries; a significant portion of the journal’s content is in English.

STM–SJM publishes articles in various fields of music research (music history, music theory and analysis, organology, ethnomusicology, sociomusicology, music aesthetics, music criticism, music education, artistic research in music, etc.). Music-related contributions from researchers in other disciplines, particularly in the humanities and social sciences, are also welcome. The journal’s main mission is to present research concerned with music in Sweden and the other Nordic countries (Finland, Denmark, Norway, Iceland), but contributions on other musical topics by Nordic researchers are also welcome.

Besides scholarly articles in the above-mentioned fields of research, STM–SJM publishes other kinds of texts, in particular book reviews but also reports, debate articles and obituaries.

Historical background

Svensk tidskrift för musikforskning (STM), the first Swedish scholarly music journal, saw the light in 1919, then as now published by Svenska samfundet för musikforskning (The Swedish Society for Music Research), founded in the same year. The focus of the journal was originally Swedish music history, but in later years it has developed a more Nordic profile in terms of subject matter as well as contributing authors. Beginning in the 1960s, an increasing number of articles have been published in English, and from 1962 the journal was given a parallel English name, Swedish Journal of Musicology. In 2014, the English name of the journal was changed to Swedish Journal of Music Research, which, apart from being a more faithful translation of the Swedish name, reflects the aim of the journal to encompass a broader multidisciplinary spectrum of music-related research. Besides musicology with its subdisciplines this includes, for instance, music education and artistic research in music. The 2013 issue was entirely dedicated to the latter discipline.

Online publication and digitization

In 1998, a parallel electronic journal, STM-Online, was introduced, also published by Svenska samfundet för musikforskning but with content independent of the printed journal and with a different editorial staff. The initial impetus behind the creation of this second journal was the development of electronic publishing. Since then, the trend towards Open Access as a general principle for scholarly publishing has made the distinction between printed media and electronic media less clear, thereby making the regime with two journals primarily distinguished on technical grounds obsolete. Consequently, in 2014 the two journals merged, under the name of Svensk tidskrift för musikforskning/Swedish Journal of Music Research (STM–SJM). The bilingual name reflects the increasingly international character of the journal, which nevertheless has research on music and musical life in Sweden and the Nordic countries as its core content. The journal is published in both electronic and printed format, with identical content. However, if an article includes audio or video, these parts are only accessible online.

 

A process of digitization of previous volumes, initiated around 2005, was completed in September 2021. The content of all printed volumes from the beginning in 1919 until 2013 is accessible via an online database. Previous volumes published online (STM–SJM, 2014–2022, and STM–Online, 1998–2013) can be accessed here.

Publication frequecy

Articles are posted online in the annual volume immediately following final proofreading. When posted online, articles are assigned a DOI number (Digital Object Identifier) whereby it becomes possible to search and cite them without delay.

Publication fees

STM–SJM does not charge any publication fees.

Financial support

The journal receives financial support from Kungl. Vitterhetsakademien (the Royal Academy of Letters, History and Antiquities) and the Royal Swedish Academy of Music.