Clemens Wöllner

Prof. Dr. Clemens Wöllner is a Professor of Systematic Musicology at the University of Music Freiburg, previously holding the same position at the University of Hamburg (2013–2022). He leads the Freiburg Research and Teaching Center for Music and chairs the Ethics Committee at the Faculty of Humanities. His research focuses on music-related movements, multimodal perception, motor expertise, and the psychological foundations of music education. Key projects include the EU-funded 'SlowMo' initiative (2017–2022), investigating musical time perception and performance. Wöllner is the President of the German Society for Music Psychology and an editorial board member for journals like Musicae Scientiae and Psychology of Music.

Education: Studied musicology, social psychology, and music education at multiple institutions, including a 2003 MA in Music Psychology from the University of Sheffield. Doctorate from Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg (2007), with research stints at the Royal Northern College of Music (2008–2010) and visiting roles at UC San Diego (2018/19).

Research Highlights

• Investigates temporal perception in music, dance, and movement.
• Exploring the role of attention and memory in musical performance and learning.
• Examines sociocultural aspects of conducting and expert motor control.

Awards

• 2006 Young Researcher Award (European Society for the Cognitive Sciences of Music)
• 2023 Elected Member of Academiae Europae

Grants and Leadership

• Principal Investigator for the ERC-funded 'SlowMo' project.
• Chairs doctoral committees and ethics boards at both institutions.