South Central Society for Music Theory Conference
March 23–24, 2018
University of Southern Mississippi
Hattiesburg, Mississippi
All papers, refreshments, and registrations will take place in the Fine Arts building (Marsh Hall).
A PDF of abstracts for the 2018 SCSMT conference is available for download.
2018 SCSMT Keynote
“Different Theory for Diverse Musicians: Towards the Next Curriculum”
Daniel Harrison (Allen Forte Professor of Music Theory, Yale University)
Three musicians walk into a bar, bringing two friends each. So, nine thirsty musicians. They want to jam together, and so they all ask for a shot of harmony.
One’s a college student who loves Taylor Swift, another is an older guy who collects 78s from the 1930s. And then—in no particular order—a day-job investment banker who fronts a speed metal band on the weekends, an organist at the big Episcopal church in town, a steel-pan player from Trinidad, an enthusiastic oboist from Saskatchewan, an opera-loving kid from west Texas who’s never seen it live, a charismatic refugee from Syria who can front any band who dares to hire her, and a professor of music theory at some college up north.
What spirit do we uncork for these musicians? What can we pour that will fortify individual talents while loosening inhibitions about playing in unfamiliar styles? What will keep them at the bar, sipping and savoring? When they’re ready to play, what will they say about the tunes, charts, and forms?