I am currently staying in Saarbrücken for a few days, participating in the annual conference of the Gesellschaft für Musikforschung that has a focus on digital humanities and computer-aided research in music. Yesterday I took part in an interesting panel on the role of music theory in undergraduate musicology programmes. The roundtable was convened by Felix Wörner and featured lightning talks by Carmel Raz, Andreas Feilen, Gregor Herzfeld, and myself.
Remarks on Sustainable Academic Teaching
I wrote a few lines again on the subject of precarious working conditions in professional music education. In a recent article for the NOIES Musikszene NRW magazine, I focus on the situation of adjunct teachers at German music universities. This part of faculty manage 40–60 percent of the overall teaching load, mostly ineligible for social welfare schemes, while taking all the entrepreneurial risks of freelancing. After summarising the origins of this academic grievance, I outline some perspectives and possible solutions to the problem.
GMTH Conference in Freiburg
Off to Hochschule für Musik Freiburg for a weekend full of encounters, discoveries, and exchanges of thoughts at the annual conference of the Gesellschaft für Musiktheorie. With a focus on artistic research in music, the event will connect both scholarly and practical approaches. By combining diverse formats such as lectures, performances, workshops, and panels on digitialisation and teaching methodology, the programme covers the very essence of current music theory as an academic discipline. I am particularly looking forward to both of my presentations, one of which deals with sources of vocal inspiration in the instrumental works of Amy Beach, while the other addresses diversity issues in professional music education and music business.
Music for Young Harpists
Glad to announce that my short composition Song without Words has been selected by the German Harpists Association as a compulsory piece in their 2024 harp competition for participants aged up to 12 years. The piece is dedicated to my children and exists in three alternative versions for solo harp, guitar, and piano. For everybody interested, the music is freely available online.
The Digital Music Theory Classroom
Dear colleagues and everybody involved in academic music education, I would like to share a first draft of my conception for teaching music theory on the basis of digital media, online platforms, and collaborative tools and documents. The strategies outlined here are the product of the past three years, reflecting the attempt to transfer methods and strategies from remote and hybrid teaching to in-person classes wherever convenient, and to develop an integrative model for the benefit of both students and teachers. Please feel free to comment and get in touch if you have any remarks, suggestions, or additions from your own experience.