Rachel Vandagriff

Rachel Vandagriff is a Professor in Music History and Literature at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music. She holds a PhD and MA from UC Berkeley, specializing in twentieth-century music history (both classical and popular), and a BA in Music from Princeton University magna cum laude. Her research focuses on private foundation funding of American classical music from 1950s-1970s.

Educational Background:

• PhD, University of California, Berkeley
• MA, University of California, Berkeley
• BA, Princeton University magna cum laude

Dr. Vandagriff's scholarly work intersects music history with political, class, and cultural analyses. Her teaching emphasizes how music reflects literary traditions, cultural values, and social dynamics, particularly through American sacred choral traditions like Appalachian folk, African-American spirituals, and colonial Massachusetts music.

Recent publications analyze the Perspectives of New Music journal's historiography and patron-foundation relationships in postwar American classical music. These works demonstrate expertise in twentieth-century musicology, academic writing, and cultural context studies.

Scientific Awards & Distinctions:

• Outstanding Graduate Student Instructor
• Nicholas C. Christophilis Prize
• Finalist - Wiley Housewright Dissertation Prize

She teaches undergraduate music history courses and advises students on performance-focused research questions. Her unrealized projects include biographical studies and expanded analyses of music foundations.