The 29th annual meeting of the Midwest Graduate Music Consortium (MGMC) will be hosted at the University of Michigan on April 18th and 19th, 2025. MGMC is a collaborative organization composed of the graduate students in music from the University of Chicago, the University of Iowa, Northwestern University, and the University of Michigan. This conference will include paper presentations, lecture recitals, a new music concert, and a keynote address from Dr. Frederick Reece, Assistant Professor of Music History at the University of Washington, School of Music.
The theme of this year’s conference is Musical Authenticity. This is a broad and ill-defined term, often associated with nature, genuineness, and reality. What does authenticity mean in the context of music? What constitutes an authentic performance? How does technology influence our perception of authenticity?
We welcome submissions from current graduate students in any discipline of music research, but we especially encourage submissions related to:
Archival/Historical Studies
Performance Studies
Technology, Mediation, and Music*
Identity and Music*
Musical Appropriation
Music as Memory/Nostalgia
Musical Inauthenticity/Forgery*
Authenticity and Genre*
*We also encourage submissions related to these topics in honor of the research of Dr. Richard Crawford, Dr. Charles Hiroshi Garrett, and Dr. William P. Malm.
Submissions for paper presentations should include the title of the presentation and an abstract of no more than 300 words. Proposals should be anonymized, leaving out the applicant’s name and any other identifying information. Proposals may include a single supplemental page of musical examples, figures, tables, etc., as long as these do not appreciably add to the word count or content of the proposal. Paper presentations will be 20 minutes in length with 10 additional minutes for questions and comments.
Submissions for lecture recitals should include an abstract of no more than 300 words, a program for the performance, and a list of any technical or instrumental requirements. Proposals should be anonymized, leaving out the applicant’s name and any other identifying information. Ensembles may apply jointly. Lecture recitals will be 30 minutes in length.
The deadline to submit applications is January 17th, 2025. Proposals will be evaluated anonymously, and successful applicants will be notified by February 14th if their paper has been chosen. Any questions or inquiries can be directed to midwestgraduatemusicconsortium@gmail.com.