Gilbert Reaney (11 January 1924 – 22 March 2008) was an English musicologist who specialized in medieval and Renaissance music, theory and literature.

Described as "one of the most prolific and influential musicologists of the past century",[1] Reaney made significant contributions to his fields of expertise, particularly on the life and works of Guillaume de Machaut, as well as medieval music theory.

[2] He halted his studies after only a year, enlisting in the British army and often performing at "camp concerts" with pieces such as Richard Addinsell's Warsaw Concerto.

[11] Knighton noted that during the mid 20th-century many English scholars of early music were closely associated with organizations in the United States, as they were the most prominent and developed in the field.

[2] A prolific, influential and frequently cited scholar, Reaney wrote books, catalogues, articles and editions.

[8] Musicologist Ursula Günther characterizes his output as having a "characteristic objectivity, clarity of argument, a concise style and thorough knowledge of widely varying subjects".

This included studies on Machaut's formes fixes,[13][14][15][16] lais, performance, and numerous articles in encyclopedias such as Encyclopédie de la musique and Encyclopaedia Britannica.

[17] A prominent scholar on medieval music theory, by 1966 Reaney was the general editor for AIM's Corpus scriptorum de musica (CSM), which involved research on at least ten modern editions of medieval manuscripts, including new publications of music theory works by Franco of Cologne and Philippe de Vitry.

[18] Also in 1966, Reaney became the editor for the Répertoire International des Sources Musicales's series of early music manuscripts.