Roger Moseley

Roger Moseley is an Associate Professor in the Department of Music at Cornell University, where he also serves as director of the Cornell Center for Historical Keyboards. His work bridges keyboard music, digital games, and theories of play through research, teaching, and performance.

His research investigates intersections of materiality, media archaeology, and 19th-century music via historical instruments like the 1799 Broadwood and 1878 Blüthner. He co-founded the field of ludomusicology and received critical acclaim for his 2016 book Keys to Play.

• Focus areas: Keyboard interface design
• Media archaeology applications
• Historically informed performance
• Gameplay mechanics in music

His Keys to Play monograph (UC Press) analyzes Mozart, Beethoven, and Nintendo systems together. Recent projects include the Romantic Artifacts book examining 1799-1878 keyboard instruments.

• 2023 Individual Innovation Award (Cornell)
• 2017-24 Media Studies Fellow (Cornell)
• 2008 Jerome Roche Prize (Royal Musical Association)

As performer, he plays fortepiano on historical instruments at Cornell’s Salon Project and Chamber Music Collective. His 2016 Mozart concerto performance with Cornell Chamber Orchestra is publicly archived.