معرفی
Dr. Candace Bailey is a Professor of Music at North Carolina Central University (NCCU), a historically black university in Durham, North Carolina. Originally from North Carolina, she currently resides on her ancestral farm in the Coastal Plains region. She has held progressively senior positions at NCCU since 1998, advancing from Assistant Professor to her current position as full Professor since 2011. She has also held visiting appointments at Duke University, including as a Humanities Unbounded Fellow during the 2020-2021 academic year.
Her educational background includes a PhD in Musicology from Duke University (1992), an AM in Musicology from Duke University (1986), and a BM in Piano Performance (magna cum laude) from UNC-Greensboro (1985). Her academic journey began with a focus on 17th-century British keyboard music, particularly her dissertation on "English Keyboard Music, c. 1625-1680," before expanding to include women and music in the 19th-century United States, with special emphasis on the American South.
Dr. Bailey's research interests center on women's musical practices in the 19th-century American South, examining how music functioned within social structures, particularly regarding race, class, and gender. She has pioneered the study of "binder's volumes" - bound collections of music that provide crucial evidence of historical musical practices, especially for women whose contributions might otherwise be lost to history. Her work bridges musicology, women's studies, and southern history, revealing how musical practices reflected and shaped cultural identities. She approaches her research through both macro-level analysis of cultural patterns and microhistorical examination of individual women's musical lives.
Her scholarly output demonstrates consistent focus on recovering women's musical histories, particularly in the American South. Her publications reveal a trajectory from early work on 17th-century British keyboard music to her current expertise in 19th-century American women's musical practices. She has developed sophisticated methodologies for analyzing binder's volumes as cultural artifacts that reveal social codes, racial dynamics, and gender performances. Her recent work increasingly addresses race and Black musical practices in the South, showing evolution in her scholarship toward more inclusive historical narratives. She frequently employs interdisciplinary approaches, connecting musicology with cultural studies, gender theory, and material culture analysis.
- Humanities Unbounded Fellow, Duke University (2020-21)
- Library of Congress / American Musicological Society Lecture (2021)
- Fulbright Specialist in American Studies (2019-24)
- National Humanities Center Fellow (2019-20)
- Kate Van Winkle Keller Fellowship for Research in Early American Music and Dance (2019-20)
- Publication subvention for Unbinding Gentility supported by multiple prestigious funds
- Distinguished Alumna, UNC-Greensboro (2016)
- National Endowment for the Humanities Award for Faculty at HBCU's (2015)
- Multiple NCCU College of Arts and Sciences Teaching/Research Awards
As an active scholar, Dr. Bailey has served on numerous professional committees including the National Council of the American Musicological Society (2017-2020) and as President of the North American British Music Studies Association (2013-2015). She has received substantial grant support for her research, including from the National Endowment for the Humanities, the American Council of Learned Societies, and the Fulbright Program. Her work has been supported by major institutions including Duke University's Humanities Unbounded program and the National Humanities Center. Beyond her research, she contributes to the academic community through editorial work, peer review, and professional service.
Dr. Bailey maintains a digital presence focused on her research interests, particularly her work on binder's volumes. She has developed online resources documenting these musical collections, making her research accessible to other scholars. Her approach combines traditional musicological methods with digital humanities techniques, reflecting contemporary scholarly trends while maintaining rigorous historical analysis. She frequently collaborates with scholars across institutions and disciplines, particularly on projects related to women's musical histories in the Americas.
