Die Musik in Geschichte und Gegenwart is the largest and most comprehensive German encyclopedic dictionary, and among Western music reference sources, only The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians is comparable to it in size and scope. It is published by Bärenreiter-Verlag in collaboration with J. B. Metzler'sche Verlagsbuchhandlung. The first edition comprises 17 volumes, of which two are supplement volumes, and one is an index or register. The current second edition was edited by Ludwig Finscher. It consists of a subject encyclopedia in 10 volumes and a biographical encyclopedia in 17 volumes, and an index or register volume, which are continuously updated. An additional supplement volume, addressing both music subjects and biograhies, was published in May 2008. A CD-Rom version of the second edition is also available in a few libraries, mainly in Germany. The second edition pursued a distinction between musical topics and biographies, and a view at connections and context. The layout is clear, with distinct titles and subtitles. The second edition has fewer illustrations, but of high quality. While the first edition had an entry America which handled only North America, the equivalent entry in the second edition covers Latin American music, which the U.S. and Canady are new entries.
Editions
Friedrich Blume : Die Musik in Geschichte und Gegenwart: allgemeine Enzyklopädie der Musik.Unter Mitarbeit zahlreicher Musikforscher des In- und Auslandes., 17 vol., Bärenreiter / Metzler, Kassel / Basel / London / New York / Prague / Stuttgart / Weimar 1949–1986.
Friedrich Blume : Die Musik in Geschichte und Gegenwart: allgemeine Enzyklopädie der Musikdtv, Munich / Bärenreiter 1989, / .
Ludwig Finscher : Die Musik in Geschichte und Gegenwart. 26 vol. in two parts, second, revised edition, Bärenreiter / Metzler 2003, / .
Friedrich Blume : Musik in Geschichte und Gegenwart – Allgemeine Enzyklopädie der Musik, vol. 60, CD–ROM, Directmedia Publishing Berlin 2016,.
