Małgorzata Gamrat

Dr hab. Małgorzata Gamrat is an Associate Professor at the Department of Religious Monody and Polyphony Research, Institute of Art Sciences, Faculty of Humanities, John Paul II Catholic University of Lublin (KUL), Poland. She is an internationally recognised scholar specialising in the interrelations between music and literature, with particular emphasis on the works of Franz Liszt, Hector Berlioz and Honoré de Balzac. Her habilitation (2017, University of Warsaw) and joint Ph.D. (2012, Jagiellonian University & École Pratique des Hautes Études, Paris) underpin a prolific research portfolio that spans Romantic music history, semiotics of music, and interdisciplinary studies.

Education & Affiliations

• Ph.D. co-tutelle, Jagiellonian University & École Pratique des Hautes Études, Paris (2012)
• Habilitation, University of Warsaw (2017)
• M.A., Université Toulouse II Le Mirail (2007)
• M.A., Academy of Music in Bydgoszcz (2008)

Research Focus

Dr Gamrat’s work is situated at the intersection of musicology, literary studies and semiotics. She explores how nineteenth-century composers engaged with contemporary poetry and how literary figures reflected on music, creating a rich intermedial dialogue. Key topics include:

• Piano and vocal music of Franz Liszt, including genre hybridization and transcriptions
• Hector Berlioz’s dramatic symphonies and their literary subtexts
• Honoré de Balzac’s musical aesthetics and collaborative networks
• Polish composers in the interwar Parisian milieu (e.g., Tansman, Paderewski)
• Methodologies of musical semiotics and intertextual analysis

Recent Publication Trends

Since 2020, her articles have increasingly integrated semiotic theory with close analytical readings, addressing questions of meaning, intertextuality and translation between artistic media. Contributions appear in leading journals such as Annee Balzacienne, Czas Kultury, Nottingham French Studies and World Futures, reflecting a trajectory from archival/documentary work toward philosophical and methodological reflection.

Scientific Awards & Honours

• Elected Fellow, International Communicology Institute, Washington, DC (2023)
• University Laurel “Father Idzi Radziszewski Award” – 1st Degree, KUL (2024)
• University of Warsaw “Clio” III Degree Award (2017)
• Prize of the Polish Composers’ Union for the monograph on Liszt’s piano music (2015)

Research Grants & Leadership

• Principal Investigator, NCN FUGA: “Franz Liszt's Songs for Voice and Piano...” (2013–2016)
• Co-investigator, NCN OPUS: “Presence of Polish Music in Interwar Paris” (2017–2020)
• Vice-coordinator, Czech-Polish Forum Grant: “Joseph von Eichendorff...” (2018)
• Member, Scientific Committee, 16th World Congress of Semiotics, Warsaw (2023)

Editorial & Scholarly Service

Dr Gamrat sits on the editorial boards of Musicology Papers and Roczniki Humanistyczne, and is a peer reviewer for Muzyka, Teoria Muzyki, Studia Chopinowskie, Res Facta Nova, among others. She co-organised the international conferences “40 Years of Musical Semiotics” (2023) and “Zola’s Legacies” (2021).