Research
NOA supports various scholarly and creative activities in the field of opera:
The Opera Journal
The refereed online scholarly journal published by the National Opera Association. Issues are published biannually, one each in Spring/Summer and Autumn/Winter, with respective submission deadlines on 1 April and 1 October. (Members-only link to published issues.)
Articles are at a fully professional, scholarly level when published in the Journal. They go through a blind peer-review process, followed by a rigorous editorial process with the Executive Editors, which involves receiving and addressing detailed substantive feedback from the Editors and the Editorial Board on revisions, followed by rounds of fact checking and copyediting prior to publication.
Scholarly Paper Competition
The winner will be invited to read their paper during the Scholarly Papers Session at NOA’s annual National Conference. The Leland Fox Scholarly Paper Stipend of $500 will be awarded to the reader of a winner paper at the national conference. The winning paper will be published in The Opera Journal after going through the standard editorial process with the Executive Editors. Next deadline: October 15, 2024
Scholarly papers should contribute new knowledge to existing scholarship, and should focus on historical or contextual considerations, theoretical or analytical approaches, or applied research for teaching and producing opera (or a combination thereof). Writing should be academic in tone rather than conversational, and should therefore feature a clear, concise thesis statement, logical rhetorical flow, a minimal use of first person (I/me/my) and passive voice, and proper citations in accordance with the Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition), accessible here. In order to ensure anonymity in the blind peer-review process, submissions must redact or omit the author’s name, institutional affiliation, and other personal identifiers.
Biennial Dissertation Competition
The author of the winning dissertation will be recognized at NOA’s annual National Conference. Winners are invited to submit an article emanating from the dissertation for consideration and inclusion in The Opera Journal (see submission guidelines for further information). Next deadline: October 15, 2024
Eligible dissertations must have been completed with degree conferred during the established two-year time frame and are admissible with the accompanying approval of the dissertation supervisor. In order to ensure anonymity in the blind peer-review process, submissions must redact or omit the author’s name, cover page, and acknowledgements, as well as any information identifying university affiliation.
Poster Session of the National Conference
Accepted poster presentations highlight original research related to opera performance, pedagogy, composition, and production. Next deadline: October 15, 2024
Topics may be of either scholarly or more practical focus. Potential areas of focus include, for example: research, repertoire, performance practice, composers, issues relating to program development, etc. This is an excellent place to highlight new research related to building a successful opera program or repertoire suitable for undergraduate opera study, as well as to disseminate new areas of research-in-progress presented in a more concise format.
Sacred in Opera Newsletter
The online newsletter featuring articles, reviews, and news contributed by members and relevant to the mission and vision of the Sacred in Opera Initiative. The newsletter digest is released biannually by email and articles can be read in the SIO blog. Articles to be considered for publication are accepted year-round.