FAQs

Yes. All translations / transcriptions found on this site are our own unique editions and are not copied from other sources. Only source works that are in the public domain or works for which we have permission from the copyright holder are presented on these pages. We are the authors, editors, and publishers and hold all copyrights to the IPA transcriptions and literal translations. For more information, please see our Legal Notice.

We are the authors, editors, and publishers and hold all copyrights to the IPA transcriptions and literal translations. For more information, please see our Legal Notice.

You may not freely distribute our texts, nor may you create derivative works from them. While the source material may be in the public domain, the word for word translation and IPA translation is copyright Bard Suverkrop. Our individual texts are intended for the sole, personal use of a single user. 

You may not share logins. You may not distribute electronic copies of files. Usage and access is monitored. Unusual or unauthorized usage will result in the loss of access to the account.

Currently you will find 15,803 titles of musical settings on the site. The text to each title is professionally translated word-for-word and provided with the IPA transcription. Our offerings are continually growing and hundreds of pages are added each year.

Although phoneticians follow certain conventions in creating transcriptions they don’t always agree–especially when dealing with transcriptions intended for singing. It is not unusual when comparing transcriptions from two sources that they differ slightly. In order to avoid the question of the individual preference of one phonetician over another, the transcriptions found on IPA Source conform to the accepted transcription practices of the most highly respected dictionaries of each language. For more discussion on this issue, please see our Diction Help pages.

The primary aim of IPA Source is to provide IPA transcriptions and literal translations of songs and arias of foreign language texts. Often, an idiomatic translation of a line is given if the meaning is not clear from the literal translation. It is our belief that only when a singer understands the precise meaning of each word will he or she be able to interpret the true meaning of the poem and imbue each syllable with its correct emotional content. Poetic translations do not specifically link meaning with the sound of the syllable. Since poetic translation can easily be found elsewhere on the web, they are not included on this site. For an extensive collection of translations suitable for recital programs, visit The Lied and Art Song Texts Page at www.lieder.net.

Our Legal Notice page (https://www.ipasource.com/legal-notice/) gives permission to use IPA Source translations in recital programs at any time without asking permission. In all cases, we simply ask that credit be given.

Specifically, please use our web address (https:// www.ipasource.com) the name IPA Source LLC, credit the author, Bard J. Suverkrop, indicate our Library of Congress ISSN and note the copyright (noted at the bottom of each work) of the text, when the material is used at public venues.

Citation styles vary, so please consult your university’s or venue’s citation requirements or guidelines. A sample citation:

Suverkrop, Bard J. IPA Source LLC, July 27, 2021. https://www.ipasource.com.

Library of Congress ISSN 2771-876X

IPA Source was developed to benefit singers, teachers, and all those interested in the correct and knowledgeable performance of vocal literature. To further the comprehension and correct pronunciation of foreign language texts, IPA Source provides IPA transcriptions and literal translations for purchase and immediate download. For more information on who we are, read the About Us page.

IPA Source was founded in 2003 by a professional singer and educator. For more information on who we are, read the About Us page.

Your privacy and the protection of your confidential information is very important to IPA Source. Rest assured, we will never divulge any personal information to a third party. See our Privacy Policy page for more information.

After locating one of the thousands of unique transcriptions / translations by its title, you will have the opportunity to view a sample file to make sure you have the correct text. If you would like to purchase the file, add it to your shopping cart and proceed to the checkout. After completing the purchase process, your documents can be downloaded directly from the site for up to ninety (90) days. Those customers who have purchased a subscription have complete access to all files on this site for the duration of their subscription. For step-by-step instructions on using our site, please see the Using IPA Source page.

The IPA font used in our transcriptions is the SILSophia (IPA93) font available for free download from SIL International. Since the IPA font is embedded in all Adobe PDF files, you will not need the font installed on your computer to view or print our documents.

All transcriptions / translations pages are presented in the Adobe PDF file format with the special IPA font embedded in each document. Use of this site requires a PDF viewer such as the free Adobe Acrobat Reader (version 6.0 or higher). Download instructions can be found on our Adobe Help page.

Some browser types may do not show PDF files in the browser window and they must be downloaded. Also, be sure that a PDF viewer such as the Adobe Reader (version 6.0 or higher) is installed on your computer. See our Adobe Help page for more information.

It is possible you are using an older version of the Adobe Reader program. Although all PDF files are set to open with the Adobe Reader 6.0 and higher, you can download the newest version of the Reader directly from Adobe. Please see our Adobe Help page for more information.

After you purchase is completed, you will receive a confirmation message with a link to download the documents directly from the site. You can also download your order from the “Downloads” page found linked from your Account Page. You will be able to download your purchased files for 90 days after the original transaction. If you have problems with your order, Contact Us with your Order/Receipt Number and the date of your purchase and we will work with you to resolve the issue. For a complete overview of our policies, see the Shopping Policies page. Click here for instructions on how to add IPA Source to your safe contact list.

The files are indeed protected from copying and pasting and have been since IPA Source went public in the mid 2000’s. We, unlike other companies, allow download of the PDF product and printing. This allows you to create a study document both electronically and in paper form.

Unfortunately,  piracy is a big problem. Every month we search and remove illegal copies of our work from the web. Between illegal postings and direct file sharing, our financial loss is not insignificant.

We restrict cutting and pasting – a step fully endorsed by teachers. Future versions of IPA Source will employ additional document security practices.

One last point, all our files use a non-True Type IPA font which would most likely read as gibberish when placed in another document.

You have two options. You may purchase a subscription and have unlimited access to the entire collection for the duration of your subscription or pay for each file separately. Purchasing individual files makes sense for those who only need a few translations now and are not sure what they may need later in the year. If you need several copies at once, purchasing credits for a set price per text will save you money. If you find yourself coming back to IPA Source several times a month, then a subscription is right for you.

IPA Source uses Stripe and PayPal for all payments. You may pay directly by using all major credit/debit cards: (VISA, MC, AMERICAN EXPRESS, and DISCOVER as well as Apple Pay and Google Pay) or by using your personal PayPal account which allows you to pay by credit card or bank transfer.

For institutions, we accept the following payment types:

• ACH (preferred)
• Credit card
• International bank transfer ($25 USD administrative fee applies)
• PayPal
• Paymerang
• Paymode-X
• WT Cox
• Harrassowitz
• EBSCO
• HELIN Consortium

Contact us to sign up for payment via ACH or international bank transfer.

IPA Source currently utilizes Paypal to process all credit/debit card transactions.

IPA Source transmits credit/debit card using Secure Socket Layer (SSL) to encrypt and decrypt user page requests, as well as the pages that are returned by the web server. Today, SSL uses a 128-bit RSA key length for the RC4 stream encryption algorithm. This system is widely considered to provide more than adequate security for commercial purposes and is the de facto standard for transactional websites.

Additionally, we never retain credit card information at any time.

In common with all online service suppliers, all sales of PDF files are final. However, a refund to customers who report irresolvable problems may be issued if the issue cannot be resolved within 48 hours. For a complete overview of our Refund Policy, see the Shopping Policies page.

Since we sell only digital products for internet delivery, no shipping charges are necessary. You buy, receive, and print your files in a matter of minutes! In accordance with tax law, IPA Source does not collect state sales tax on purchases originating in states where we do not have Economic Nexus and / or remote seller Notice and Reporting requirements. If sales tax has not been added at the time of purchase, you may still be liable for state sales tax in the form of a Use Tax to be reported on your personal state income tax form; please consult your state tax laws for further information. Since IPA Source provides a purely digital product to be accessed directly from our website, the purchaser’s state of origin is their billing address.

Download our W9 here.

IPA Source provides complete customer support for using our site. Please understand that some technical issues may be specific to the configuration of your own computer and beyond our control.

If you are a student or faculty at a university, contact your librarian. If you are an individual subscriber, credit pack purchaser, or individual text purchaser, click on the Contact Us link on every page of the IPA Source website to send an email requesting support.

If you have purchased a subscription, files are available for immediate download on the product page. For non-subscription users, once you have completed the purchase process the files will be available both from a link provided in your email order confirmation and on your “Downloads” page for ninety (90) days from the time of the purchase. If you encounter any problems, Contact Us and we will work with you to solve the problem. Please include your order number and the date of purchase with your inquiry.

IPA Source guarantees that its PDF files will provide a high-quality print. Although all effort is taken proofreading the texts, no warranty on the complete accuracy of every single character is expressed or given. If for some reason the files do not live up to your expectations, Contact Us and we will work with you to resolve the issue or refund your purchase price. For a complete overview of our Refund policy, see the Shopping Policies page.

If you have purchased a subscription, our complete library will continue to be available to you for as long as your subscription is active, just download the file again. For files that have been purchased individually, go to your Downloads page where you will be able to download the files again for up to ninety (90) days.

IPA Source no longer provides a printed version of the complete catalog. With 15,803 titles in our database, the paper version of our catalog had grown to over 250 pages and had outlived its purpose. The newly revised Catalog section of the site allows the customer to search the entire catalog filtering by language and genre. We believe that this in conjunction with the composer and poets pages, will better serve our customers’ needs.

IPA Source is not a translation service but offers texts we believe will benefit the largest number of singers. Titles submitted to our database for inclusion will be considered according to our preset publishing schedule.

All requests must adhere to the following guidelines.

1. Only texts to standard, solo works will be included. No ensembles.
2. Only original language texts in Latin, French, German, Italian, Spanish, and English from “classical” works will be considered. No “singing” translations.
3. All texts must be in the public domain in the United States; that is, works published before 1923.
4. Contemporary editions of the work must be available to the general public. Rare works or historical editions may be rejected.

Our first criterion is the availability of the musical scores. By comparing the contents of the most popular anthologies we have come up with a list of the texts most readily available to singers around the world. The second criterion for inclusion is popularity. Obscure works that will only be of interest to a very few will be passed over for works considered part of the standard repertoire. IPA Source does not use machine transcriptions/translations. Each word and symbol is checked and rechecked by experts in the field until each page is considered worthy of inclusion.

The world of art song and opera literature is vast and finding qualified translators experienced in the needs of vocalists and well versed in IPA is difficult. Plans are being made to include repertoire in more languages from experts in each field. Stay in touch for future announcements.

Full libretti are beyond the scope of this website. Although we may make individual ensembles available from time to time, there is no plan to add entire opera libretti to the site.

Although solo oratorio arias and occasionally the major works from which they are taken can be found on our site, translations / transcriptions of choral literature texts are beyond the scope of IPA Source.

Review institutional pricing here, then complete our online application.

A sample copy of our agreement is available here. Please complete our brief online application in order for a license agreement to be prepared specifically for your institution.

A 14-day free trial is available for institutional customers only. To apply for the trial, complete our brief online application here.

Yes, individual subscriptions are offered in 6 month, one year, and Studio Teacher formats. Individual subscriptions are  intended for the sole, personal use of a single subscriber.

For voice instructors wishing to distribute printed copies of downloaded files to students within their studio, a Studio Teacher subscription should be purchased. As with individual subscriptions, the Studio Teacher subscription is granted to an individual and is intended for the sole, personal use of a single subscriber.

Learn more about individual subscriptions here.

Review institutional pricing here, then complete our online application.

Complete our online application.

Provide us a copy of your sales tax exemption certificate (or a note indicating your institution is not tax exempt).

We’ll prepare a license agreement for your institution and send you the agreement.

Review, sign, and return a digital copy of the license to us for countersignature.

We’ll return a copy of the countersigned agreement to you for your records.

For institutions, we accept the following payment types:

• ACH (preferred)
• Credit card
• International bank transfer ($25 USD administrative fee applies)
• PayPal
• Paymerang
• Paymode-X
• WT Cox
• Harrassowitz
• EBSCO
• HELIN Consortium

Contact us to sign up for payment via ACH or international bank transfer.

Log into your administrative control panel at https://www.ipasource.com/my-account to review and pay your invoice. Additionally, our system will email you an invoice 6-8 weeks prior to subscription renewal, with reminders issued on the renewal date and 15 days past the renewal date.

No. Our license agreement is not negotiable.

We do not accept edits or redlines directly on our existing license agreement.

We do not accept the conversion of our agreement to Word or importing into another format (such as Jaggaer) for purposes of negotiation.

If there are questions or points of discussion regarding our license agreement, please send those to us in the body of an email.

If there is a specific way your institution needs to be listed on the agreement (some institutions request something like “Board of Trustees of Sample University”) please let make sure you note that on our online application.

Yes, once we have reached agreement, if your university utilizes a service such as DocuSign, you may send it to us for countersignature. Please contact us for the email address to which the agreement should be sent.

No. If your institution requires this, you must request it from us.

Contact us for a VPAT and we’ll be happy to help. Download the W9 here.

Yes. Contact us and we’ll be happy to help.

Since virtually all voice students study some foreign language literature, all students enrolled in voice lessons at your institution should be counted, regardless of major.

We prefer your totals come from the person who makes the studio assignments (your voice division chair, for example) rather than the registrar’s lists as the totals from the chair will be more accurate.

No.

To determine the tier, and since virtually all voice students study some foreign language literature, all students enrolled in voice lessons at your institution should be counted, regardless of major.

We prefer your totals come from the person who makes the studio assignments (your voice division chair, for example) rather than the registrar’s lists as the totals from the chair will be more accurate.

As of January 1, 2024, we no longer accept purchase orders. Libraries may note purchase order information on the invoice and submit it to their internal payment team or accounting office.

IPA Source will leave an an institutional application open for a period of three months from date of application. This period may be extended at the discretion of IPA Source and request of the institution.