Richard K. Wolf

Richard K. Wolf is the G. Gordon Watts Professor of Music and Professor of South Asian Studies at Harvard University, where he has taught since 1999. His work bridges ethnomusicology, anthropology, and South/Central Asian studies.

Research interests include musico-poetic traditions across South, Central, and West Asia; social-cultural style in Karnatak music; ritual practices of the Kota people; and Islamic music in public contexts. He integrates ethnographic filmmaking with scholarly research.

His recent publications focus on cross-border Wakhi poet-singers and interdisciplinary musical theory. Awards include the 2023 ICTMD Article Prize, a Humboldt Bessel Award, and a Pforzheimer Fellowship. He is affiliated with Harvard's Committees on Folklore and Mythology, Inner Asian Studies, Special Concentrations, and Critical Media Practice.

• 2023 ICTMD Article Prize
• Friedrich Wilhelm Bessel Research Award (2012-2018)
• Pforzheimer Foundation Fellow (2018-2019)