Alfred Cramer

Alfred Cramer is an Associate Professor of Music at Pomona College, where he has been teaching since 1995. His interdisciplinary research bridges music theory, cognitive psychology, linguistics, and historical musicology, focusing on how music communicates meaning through cultural and cognitive mechanisms.

• Specializes in early 20th-century modernist music (Schoenberg, Webern, Berg)
• Explores connections between music theory and psychological/linguistic frameworks
• Active performer as violinist and pianist

His current book project applies early 20th-century psychological theories to analyze the emotional expressivity of modernist composers. He has also worked on unifying the Implication-Realization model of music with linguistic intonation theories.

Research Trends: Combines auditory perception, historical context, and cross-disciplinary methodologies. Key publications examine sound structuring in music and language, atonal harmony, and relationships between Romantic-era handwriting practices and musical form.

• Scientific Awards: Society for Music Theory Outstanding Publication Award (2004)

As an accomplished violinist, Cramer has performed with multiple orchestras across the U.S., including numerous period-instrument ensembles. He has taught courses on music theory, sound cognition, and the emotional communication in music.