Samantha Heinle is a Visiting Assistant Professor in the Department of Music at Case Western Reserve University's College of Arts and Sciences. Her research focuses on intersections of music and literature (1800–present), with a current book project exploring Kafkaesque themes in modern music. She holds a PhD from Cornell University and an AB from Harvard in Music & Comparative Literature. Education: PhD, Cornell University (Music) AB, Harvard University (Music & Comparative Literature) Research interests include film music, media theory, global song cultures, and critical theory. Her work has been supported by Fulbright, Austrian Cultural Forum, and grants from Notre Dame and Cornell. Published in Musicologica Austriaca and The Journal of Musicology , her scholarship bridges Kafka studies, Brechtian aesthetics, and Adorno's philosophical compositions. Grants & Awards: Fulbright Grant (Vienna Archive) Don M. Randel Fellowship
Professor Richard Langham Smith is a distinguished academic at the Royal College of Music (RCM), holding the title of Professor in Academic Programmes and serving as a Doctoral Supervisor. He specializes in French music, with a focus on 19th- and early 20th-century composers such as Bizet, Debussy, and Poulenc. His research explores opera, musical analysis, and cultural history, culminating in notable works like Bizet's Carmen Uncovered (2021) and co-editing Carmen Abroad (2020), which won an award for outstanding edited collection. Education: Shene Grammar School, University of York, and Amsterdam Conservatoire. Awards include the Chevalier de l'ordre des arts et des lettres (1994) and the RMA/Cambridge Book Prize (2021). He supervises doctoral students researching topics such as masculinity in Belle Époque opera, Fauré's violin works, and Sarasate's legacy. His work bridges historical analysis with performance practice, often engaging interdisciplinary methods. Publications span monographs, edited volumes, and articles in journals like Cambridge Opera Journal and Nineteenth-Century Music Review . He contributes actively to the RCM's research initiatives, fostering academic and creative excellence in musicology.
Tenor Bryan Hymel serves as Associate Professor of Music in Voice at Indiana University's Jacobs School of Music, where he bridges academic pedagogy with an internationally acclaimed operatic career. His performances span premier opera houses globally including the Metropolitan Opera, Royal Opera House, and Opéra National de Paris, specializing in dramatic French and Italian repertoire. His educational credentials include: Master of Music in Vocal Pedagogy from Westminster Choir College, Rider University (2023) Bachelor of Music in Voice Performance from Loyola University New Orleans (2003) Hymel's scholarly focus centers on historical performance practices of 19th-century French grand opera and vocal technique evolution. He is particularly renowned for interpretations of Énée in Berlioz's Les Troyens , Don José in Bizet's Carmen , and Arnold in Rossini's Guillaume Tell , with research emphasizing dramatic tenor roles and vocal characterization in historically significant works. His distinguished honors include: Metropolitan Opera’s Beverly Sills Artist Award (2012) Olivier Award for Outstanding Achievement in Opera (2013) Georges Thill Prize by Académie Nationale du Disque Lyrique ECHO Klassik Newcomer of the Year Award As a faculty mentor at Indiana University, Hymel trains emerging vocalists using insights from his active performance career, integrating stage experience into pedagogical practice. His Warner Classics recordings, particularly the album Héroïque which reached #3 on Billboard Classical charts, serve as scholarly resources for vocal interpretation and repertoire preservation.
Thierry Favier is a Professor at the University of Poitiers , France, since 2010. He holds academic affiliations with the Institut Universitaire de France (2023) and has held visiting positions at prestigious institutions including the University of Zurich , Oxford University , and Heidelberg University . His research focuses on Baroque music , with emphasis on sacred music , French cultural identity , and musical historiography . Doctorate (1997) and Habilitation (2009) from leading French institutions Co-directed major research programs funded by ANR, CNRS, and regional governments Editorial leadership in Eighteenth-Century Music (2017) His scholarly work analyzes the intersection of music and power , musical ethics , and cultural exchange in early modern Europe. Recent publications explore topics like the Italian motet’s influence in France and post-Lullian musical identity . He has received significant recognition for scientific excellence and mobility fellowships. Favier has served as Chair of the Commission of Scientific Expertise (2014–present) and Head of the Music Department (2014-2017) at Poitiers. He has presented at institutions such as the Ecole Normale Supérieure , Gulbenkian Foundation , and Cardiff University , contributing to global discourse on Baroque and Enlightenment-era music.
Robert Henke is a Professor of Drama and Comparative Literature at Washington University, serving as Director of Graduate Studies for the M.A. in Performance Studies. He holds a PhD from the University of California, Berkeley. His research focuses on Ancient and Renaissance Theater, Comparative Literature, and Dramatic Theory, with a particular emphasis on early modern theatrical networks, commedia dell’arte, and the interplay between performance and literature. Current projects include studies on Shakespearean-Italian dramatic connections, transnational theater networks, and a performance-centered sourcebook on commedia dell’arte. Henke has authored three monographs: *Pastoral Transformations: Italian Tragicomedy and Shakespeare’s Late Plays* (1997), *Performance and Literature in the Commedia dell’Arte* (2002), and *Poverty and Charity in Early Modern Theater and Performance* (2015). He co-edited volumes such as *Transnational Exchange in Early Modern Theater* (2008) and *Transnational Mobilities in Early Modern Theater* (2014), and has contributed extensively to journals and edited collections. His work explores themes like orality in performance, genre hybridity, and the cultural mobility of theatrical forms. Henke’s research highlights the interconnectedness of early modern European theater traditions, examining how performance practices, texts, and ideas circulated across borders. His recent articles analyze topics ranging from commedia dell’arte’s influence on Shakespeare to the material and spatial dimensions of Renaissance theater spaces. He is also editing the early modern volume of *A Cultural History of Western Theatre* (Bloomsbury Academic). His publications reflect a commitment to interdisciplinary approaches, blending literary analysis with performance studies, cultural history, and material culture. While no specific grants or awards are listed, his extensive editorial and monographic output underscores his leadership in early modern theater scholarship. His academic advising and institutional roles at Washington University further highlight his contributions to training the next generation of performance studies scholars.
Ditlev Rindom is a Visiting Research Fellow at King's College London's Department of Music within the Faculty of Arts & Humanities. He previously held a British Academy Postdoctoral Fellowship (2019–2023). His education includes a BA in English Literature from Oxford University, piano studies at the Royal College of Music and RNCM, and a PhD in Musicology from Cambridge University with a visiting fellowship at Yale University. His research focuses on 19th–20th century opera, modern Italian studies, film music, and voice studies. Key projects include his monograph Singing in the City: Opera, Italianità and Transatlantic Exchange (1870–1918) , a critical edition of Puccini's La rondine premiered at La Scala, and a co-edited Cambridge Opera Journal special issue on Italian operetta. Current work explores material cultures of 19th-century Italian opera and transnational opera-cinema links. Teaching expertise covers 19th–20th century music history and musicological methodologies. He contributes to institutions like the Royal Opera House and Wigmore Hall through programme notes and talks. His publications span peer-reviewed journals ( 19th-Century Music , Journal of the Royal Musical Association ) and edited volumes on Puccini and Italian opera contexts. Research projects include the British Academy-funded 'Staging Italy: The Theatrical Imagination in the Italian Peninsula, 1837–1871' (2019–2023). He actively engages in public scholarship through reviews in Opera magazine and Times Literary Supplement , maintaining interdisciplinary connections between music, performance studies, and cultural history.
Pierpaolo Polzonetti is a Professor of Music at the University of California, Davis , with a PhD in Musicology from Cornell University . His research bridges opera, eighteenth-century music, and interdisciplinary themes like food, social justice, and transcultural exchange. Research Interests include operatic gastromusicology, the intersection of music and cuisine, eighteenth-century social and gender dynamics in opera, Cuban popular music, and prison music education. He pioneers the study of gastronomic symbolism in operatic works, as seen in his 2021 book Feasting and Fasting in Opera . His publications reveal a focus on gastronomic codes in opera, political themes in Mozart and Haydn, and cultural identity in Italian opera. Awards include the Lockwood Book Award , Slim Award , and Latina International Prize . He has secured grants from the NEH , ACLS , and Earhart Foundation . Scientific Awards: Lockwood Book Award Slim Award Einstein Article Award Latina International Prize in Music Studies Grants: National Endowment for the Humanities American Council for Learned Societies Earhart Foundation Cuban Research Institute Kimberly Green Latin American and Caribbean Center Global Affairs UC Davis Seed Grant Polzonetti's teaching philosophy emphasizes social engagement, notably through programs like Don Giovanni Goes to Prison . His documentary El Sabroso (2024) explores Son music in Havana, aligning with his interests in marginalized cultural expressions.
Martha Feldman is the Ferdinand Schevill Distinguished Service Professor of Music and the College at the University of Chicago. A cultural historian specializing in European vernacular musics (1500-1950) with a focus on Italy, her work interrogates intersections of social, political, and artistic phenomena through opera, cinema, media, and voice studies. Education: PhD in Musicology, University of Pennsylvania (1987) Feldman's research spans Renaissance Venice, 18th-century opera seria, and 20th-century castrato legacies. Current projects include The Castrato Phantom and the co-edited volume A Voice as Something More , both exploring voice studies through interdisciplinary lenses. Her publications analyze: Madrigals in Venetian civic culture Opera as political metaphor Voice ontology across media Fellini's operatic influences Courtesan artistic practices Psychoanalysis of vocal identity Scientific Awards: Dent Medal (2001) Graduate Teaching Award (2009) Gordon J. Laing Award (2010) Otto Kinkeldey Award (2015) Member, American Academy of Arts and Sciences (2012) Feldman has received grants from the National Endowment for the Humanities, Guggenheim Foundation, and Getty Research Institute. She mentors graduate students through collaborative research initiatives and co-edited works. Labs/Teams: Principal Investigator, The Voice Project (2013-2016) Member, Neubauer Collegium for Culture and Society Board Leadership, American Musicological Society
Madeleine Bernstorff is a cultural producer, film curator, author, and lecturer at the Institute for Music and Media at Robert Schumann University Düsseldorf. Her work bridges research-based film curating, feminist film history, and avant-garde cinema, with a focus on resistance movements and political documentary forms. Education : Studied media art at the Academy of Fine Arts Munich, University of Munich, and F+F School of Design Zurich Research : Avant-garde cinema, feminist film movements, migrant representation, and socio-political documentation Teaching : Guest professorships at Berlin University of the Arts, Munich Academy of Fine Arts, and international institutions Collaborations : Co-founded Sputnik cinema (1984) and Blickpilotin feminist film collective (1989) Publications : Edited works on Trinh T. Minh-ha, René Vautier, and Afghan cinema Her filmography includes The Fanaticism of the Suffragettes (2010), Candan (2005), and Zitronenfilm (1997), exploring themes of gender, migration, and historical memory through Super8 and video art. She has curated exhibitions at Tromsø Kunstforening and programmed films at institutions like the Arsenal Cinema Berlin and Oberhausen Short Film Festival.
Peter Volpe serves as Professor of Music in the Voice Department at the Jacobs School of Music, Indiana University, with his studio located in the East Studio Building (JS336). A critically acclaimed bass with a 35+ year international career, Volpe specializes in operatic voice performance and vocal interpretation. His expertise spans over 90 roles across six languages, focusing on bass repertoire in classical works from Baroque to contemporary. Praised by The New York Times for his “stentorian and robust bass” and Opera News for “full-bodied bass and great candor of tone,” he demonstrates exceptional command of dramatic expression and historical context in performance. Volpe maintains an active performance schedule across major global opera houses while contributing to vocal pedagogy through masterclasses and institutional leadership at Indiana University.
Gábor Bodnár is a Professor at the Institute of Arts Communication and Music , Eötvös Loránd University (ELTE) , where he serves as Head of the Department of Music Culture. His work bridges music pedagogy, creative education, and interdisciplinary studies. Academic Focus : Music education, creative teaching methods, and the integration of formal and non-formal education. Research Themes : Application of the Kodály concept in global teacher training, translation theory in musical contexts, and the interplay between text and music in art song repertoires. Publications : Recent works explore Aldous Huxley's musical ideas, Schumann's Dichterliebe revisions, and innovative pedagogical frameworks for music educators. Professional Impact : Bodnár has developed postgraduate programs emphasizing talent care and Kodály principles, influencing music education curricula and assessment systems in Hungary and beyond.
Dr Katherine Fry is a Visiting Fellow in the Department of Music at King’s College London, where she has held previous roles as a Lecturer in Musicology and a postdoctoral fellow in the ERC-funded Music in London 1800–1851 project. She earned her undergraduate degree in Music from the University of Cambridge, followed by an MA and PhD at King’s College London. Her research focuses on 19th-century music history, particularly Wagnerism, Anglo-German cultural exchanges, and the intersection of sound studies with gender and media history. Current projects include investigating British women composers’ networks through media history and urban environments (1820–1930). Her work has been supported by the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Global Fellowship and the European Research Council. She teaches music history, sound studies, and critical voice studies at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels, emphasizing interdisciplinary approaches and student-led exploration. Recent publications include Wagner and Victorian Modernity (in progress) and contributions to volumes such as Sound and Sense in British Romanticism . Research highlights include analyses of Nietzsche’s musical critiques, Victorian sonic cultures, and the material history of Wagner’s reception in London. She has organized events like English Art Song and Black Heritage in Early Twentieth-Century London , reflecting her commitment to underrepresented voices in music history.
Dr. Melanie Fritsch is a Junior Professor at Heinrich-Heine-Universität Düsseldorf since October 2020, specializing in Media Cultural Studies with a focus on Game Studies and related fields. Her career spans roles as a PR & Communications Manager in the gaming industry, lecturer at Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, and research assistant at Universität Bayreuth and Leipzig. Education: Theaterwissenschaft, Musikwissenschaft, and Neuere Deutsche Literatur at Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, and Sapienza Università di Roma (2000–2008) Doctorate: 2018 at Universität Bayreuth with dissertation 'Performing Bytes. Musikperformances der Computerspielkultur' Current Research: Ludomusicology, performance theory, fan studies, environmental narratives in games Melanie’s research bridges game studies, digital humanities, and musicology, emphasizing games as performative cultural practices. Her work explores intersections of music and gameplay, fan engagement dynamics, and liveness in digital spaces. Key publication trends include: Game music analysis (e.g., 'The Cambridge Companion to Video Game Music') Performance theory in gaming ('Live Performance Games') Environmental narratives in virtual worlds Historical game music studies (1980s Japanese game music) Interdisciplinary methodologies combining musicology and game design She has contributed to major conferences and symposia, including keynote presentations at Universidad de Chile and Kunstuniversität Graz. Her editorial work includes co-editing the peer-reviewed series 'Studies in Game Sound and Music'.
Dr. Juliana M. Pistorius is a music historian affiliated with the University College London (UCL) Institute of Advanced Studies as a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions Global Postdoctoral Fellow . Her research interrogates the intersections of Western art music, coloniality, and racial politics, particularly in postcolonial contexts. PhD, University of Oxford (2018) Leverhulme Postdoctoral Fellowship, University of Huddersfield (2018-2021) Founding member, Black Opera Research Network (BORN) Reviews Editor, Cambridge Opera Journal Her current project, Beyond Boycott: Musical Internationalism and the Making of Race in Apartheid South Africa , analyzes how classical musicians' participation in apartheid-era South Africa reinforced racial hierarchies. This work builds on her monograph Postcolonial Opera: William Kentridge and the Unbounded Work of Art (forthcoming, 2025), which examines Kentridge's operatic experiments as decolonial narratives. Their research spans interdisciplinary analyses of opera as a colonial tool, cultural resistance in apartheid-era performances, and the ethical paradoxes of music's role in empire-building. Key themes include civic empowerment, racial profiling, and the enduring legacies of colonial soft power in artistic practice. Scientific Awards Leverhulme Postdoctoral Fellowship Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions Global Postdoctoral Fellowship Pistorius is a founding member of the Black Opera Research Network (BORN) , contributes to Cambridge Opera Journal , and collaborates with institutions in South Africa, including the University of the Witwatersrand during her MSCA fellowship's outgoing phase.
Robin Humphreys is a Professor at the Royal Northern College of Music and a senior music coach within the School of Vocal Studies and Opera . He holds a BMus Hons from the University of Birmingham and a prestigious Diploma in Professional Performance (PPRNCM) from the Royal Northern College of Music. Education : BMus Hons, University of Birmingham Diploma in Professional Performance, Royal Northern College of Music Humphreys has had a 40-year career as an accompanist and répétiteur, praised as "world-class" by Louise Flind for "Opera Today". His work spans classical and operatic repertoire, with notable collaborations including the Manchester Camerata , Feelgood Theatre Productions , and Clonter Opera Theatre in Cheshire. As a vocal coach, he specializes in 1-1 coaching , excerpt preparation , and operatic repertoire performance. He served as chief répétiteur for most college opera productions from the late 1990s until 2013 and toured globally with Opera & Concert Productions (Worldwide) Ltd from 1990–2000. His affiliations include the British & International Federation of Festivals , where he was a member for 35 years, and the RNCM , where he studied piano accompaniment under David Lloyd.
