It is the official journal of the Society for Music Theory, and is published by Oxford University Press.

The journal was first published in 1979 as the official organ of the Society for Music Theory, which had been founded in 1977 and had its first conference in 1978.

[1] Published twice annually, Music Theory Spectrum includes research articles and book reviews.

[3] In Spring 2014, Oxford University Press began publishing Music Theory Spectrum, beginning with Volume 36, Issue 1.

Its first editor was Bryan Simms, and other past editors have included Peter Smith, Marianne Wheeldon, Severine Neff, Joel Lester, Philip Lambert, Daniel Harrison, and Henry Klumpenhouwer.