Julia Kursell

Julia Kursell is a Professor of Musicology in the Faculty of Humanities at the University of Amsterdam, where she has established herself as a leading scholar at the intersection of musicology, history of science, and sound studies. Her research program examines the historical relationships between scientific understanding of sound and musical practice, with particular focus on how concepts from auditory physiology have informed compositional techniques from the 19th century to the present.

Her research interests span multiple domains of inquiry:

• History of auditory physiology and its relationship to musical composition
• Sound experimentation in the Russian avant-garde
• Spatial dimensions of musical composition, particularly in John Cage's work
• Epistemological connections between laboratory science and musical practice
• Development of acoustic media technologies and their impact on musical perception

Kursell's recent publications reveal a consistent focus on how physical phenomena of sound perception—such as combination tones—create multiple layers of musical meaning that operate simultaneously at physiological, memorial, and semantic levels. Her work demonstrates how scientific concepts migrate into artistic practice, transforming both domains in the process. Rather than treating science and art as separate spheres, her research reveals their co-constitution through shared material practices and conceptual frameworks.

As a member of the Sound Studies Research Group at the University of Amsterdam, Kursell has organized significant scholarly events including workshops on 'Sounds of Science' that examine the role of sound in configurations among science, technology, and the arts between 1800 and 1930. Her collaborative work with scholars like Myles W. Jackson has helped establish sound studies as a vital interdisciplinary field connecting musicology with history of science, media studies, and sensory anthropology.