معرفی
Emanuela Vai is a Senior Research Fellow and Head of Research (Humanities) at Worcester College, University of Oxford, and Head of Collections at the Bate Collections of Musical Instruments and Archives. Her roles include leading conservation, research, and curatorial efforts, and she serves as Principal Investigator (PI) for multiple EU and UK-funded grants, including projects on Renaissance musical instruments and sensory heritage. She holds affiliations with the Oxford Centre for European History and the Digital Humanities and Sensory Heritage Network at TORCH.
Educational background includes fellowships at Harvard’s Villa I Tatti (Hanna Kiel Fellow), the University of Cambridge (Newton Trust grantee), and institutions in York, Tours, and Oxford. Her research focuses on Renaissance Italy and Europe, intersecting music, material culture, architecture, and digital humanities. She employs 3D modeling, GIS, and acoustic analysis to explore sensory dimensions of historical spaces and objects.
Key projects include investigating Early Modern Venetian confraternity rituals and a monograph on grotesque carvings on stringed instruments. Awards include the Italian Embassy’s Innovative Research Prize. She mentors early-career researchers and chairs interdisciplinary networks like the Digital Humanities and Sensory Heritage initiative. Teaching includes graduate courses on British History methods and Early Modern material culture.
Her leadership roles include Research Representative for Oxford’s Humanities Division and Director in Humanities at AISUK, fostering UK-Italian academic collaborations. She advises cultural heritage institutions globally and contributes to public engagement through media appearances and policy advocacy.
