Music Theory/Composition 2015–16

For Music Theory and Composition jobs that begin in Fall 2015.

Last year's page: Music Theory/Composition

See Also: Musicology/Ethnomusicology 2014-15

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Composition Only
Berklee College of Music - (Review begins 10/31)
 * Skype interviews scheduled
 * Offer made
 * Offer accepted (Gabriele Vanoni, Harvard 2013, Lecturer at Dartmouth College)

Eastman School of Music - (senior position, review begins Nov. 21)
 * (1/7) Finalists Chosen

Northeastern University Professor and Chair of the Department of Music

Northwestern University - (senior position)

University of Alabama - Assistant Professor of Composition
 * Posts on Facebook indicate that an offer has been made to an inside candidate.
 * (2/7) How trustworthy is a statement like the one above? In my opinion, this section of this page should be reserved for communication that comes directly from search committees. Has anyone heard directly from the committee?

University of Kansas - (review begins Nov. 10) Assistant Professor


 * Additional materials requested
 * Skype interviews scheduled for week of 12/15
 * Campus interviews scheduled for weeks of 1/26 & 2/2

University of Montana - Assistant Professor of Composition
 * E-mail from SC informing me I am "still in consideration" and that they are hoping deliberations will move quickly. (x2)

Williams College - (inside candidate? There was a VAP position last year...) **see below
 * (12/3) Additional material requested

Theory Only
Appalachian State University (deadline 12/15) Instructor, Assistant Prof., or Associate Prof. of Music Theory
 * (1/16) Additional materials requested
 * (1/28) Campus interviews

Arizona State University (deadline 12/20) Assistant Professor of Music Theory
 * (12/28) Skype interview scheduled

University of Arizona (open until filled) Assistant Professor of Music Theory
 * (12/16) Additional materials requested

Baldwin Wallace University (review begins 10/1) Assistant Professor of Music Theory
 * (1/27) Contact to let me know not all my letters were in

Brigham Young University (deadline 12/1) Assistant Professor of Music Theory Catholic University of America (deadline 2/16) Assistant Professor of Music Theory (sub-specialty in winds/brass)
 * (12/18) Skype interviews
 * Hiring to replace someone who is recently retired


 * No internal candidate

College of Wooster (deadline 1/7) Visiting Assistant Professor of Music Theory (one-year position)
 * (1/26) Skype interviews
 * (2/7) Campus interview scheduled

Duke University (deadline 11/15) Assistant Professor of Music Theory
 * (1/15) Campus interviews

Eastman School of Music (deadline 11/1) Assistant Professor of Music Theory Florida State University (deadline 10/15) Assistant Professor of Music Theory
 * (11/5) 10-minute interview at SMT scheduled (x3)
 * (11/23) Campus interview scheduled
 * (12/27) Job accepted (Zachary Bernstein, CUNY ABD; Instructor at University of Alabama)


 * (10/23) Campus interview scheduled


 * (12/10) Email received stating that the position has been filled.
 * (12/16) Job accepted (Mark Richards, TORONTO 2011, Instructor at U. of Lethbridge)

James Madison University (deadline 11/15) Assistant Professor of Music Theory (inside candidate?  see below)
 * (12/8) Phone interviews
 * (12/19) Campus interview scheduled

Indiana University (review begins 11/15) Post-doctoral resident scholar (two-year, non-TT appointment)

Ohio University Asst./Assoc. Prof. and Chair of Music Theory
 * (12/1) Additional materials requested (x3)
 * (1/13) Skype interview scheduled for the week of 1/19 (x2)

Peabody Conservatory (deadline 10/31) Full-time Continuing Faculty of Ear Training
 * (12/2) Skype interview scheduled for the week of 12/15

Sibelius Academy (University of the Arts Helsinki) (deadline 1/5) Lecturer in Music Theory

Stetson University (review begins 9/15) Assistant Professor of Music Theory
 * (10/18) Skype interviews scheduled for the week of 10/20
 * (10/29) Campus interview scheduled
 * (1/16) Campus interview scheduled

Temple University (review begins 11/3) Assistant Professor of Music Theory

• I emailed Michael Klein to inform him that I have a defense date for my dissertation in hopes that it would help my case. He wrote back (quite nicely) to let me know that they have already settled on 3 finalists. Those of us who have not heard from Temple are probably "out."

University of Central Florida (review begins 1/23/15) Assistant Professor of Music Theory

Why was the "review begins" date changed? The ad at this link still lists Jan. 9 as the "review begins" date.

Not sure why, but the posting appeared on Chronicle.com with the new date, and the chair confirmed that it is now the correct date.

University of Lethbridge (deadline 1/31/15) Assistant Professor of Music Theory

University of Massachusetts Amherst (deadline 11/14) Assistant Professor of Music Theory
 * (12/15) ShortList Made
 * (12/19) Skype interviews
 * (1/29) Campus interviews

University of Michigan (deadline 10/15) Assistant Professor of Music Theory University of North Carolina at Greensboro (review begins 2/15) Lecturer in Music Theory and Ethnomusicology
 * (11/26) Additional Materials
 * (1/15) Campus interview scheduled

University of Oregon (deadline 10/15) Assistant Professor of Music Theory
 * (10/31) Interview at SMT scheduled (outside of the posted Friday afternoon time slots, for which I was on a waitlist)
 * (11/12) Additional materials requested
 * (12/3) Skype interviews scheduled
 * (12/12) Campus interviews

West Virginia University (review begins 12/1) Assistant Professor of Music Theory
 * (1/22) Phone Interviews Scheduled with School of Music Director
 * (1/23) Phone Interviews with the search committee scheduled for 27 January

William Paterson Univeristy (open until filled) Assistant Professor of Music Theory
 * Application acknowledged via email. Said review would begin with start of semester.

Williams College (deadline 2/9) Visiting Assistant Professor in Music Theory (one-year appointment) (teaching includes music history courses for the general student)

Composition, Theory, Etc.
Brown University (review begins 10/03) Assistant Professor of Composition-Theory College of Idaho (review begins late November) Assistant Professor in Music Theory (includes teaching composition and technology) Gordon College Assistant/Associate Professor in Theory/Composition OR Piano
 * Additional material (x2)
 * (2/5) Campus interviews scheduled
 * Phone interviews
 * Campus interviews
 * (1/5) Request for Additional Materials/Letters of Recommendation (x2)
 * (2/7) Video interviews scheduled

Houghton College (review begins immediately) TT Assistant Professor of Music Theory and Composition; Coordinator of Music Theory and Composition

Illinois State University (review begins Nov. 1) TT Assistant or Associate Professor of Music Theory and Composition
 * (11/20) Phone interviews
 * Campus visits scheduled

Ithaca College Lecturers in Music History/Theory/Composition

Laramie County Community College (Cheyenne, WY) (review begins 01/19/2015) Instructor, Music (full time)

Muhlenberg College Assoc. Prof. and Chair (teaching duties are in theory area)
 * (1/27) Rejection Letter received

Murray State University (due 11/10) Assistant Prof. of Music Theory (but duties include teaching electronic composition)
 * (1/12) Phone Interviews being scheduled
 * (1/21) Campus interviews

Occidental College (review begins Nov. 10) TT Asst. Professor in Composition and Instrumental Music


 * Phone Interviews being scheduled
 * Campus visits being scheduled

Queens University of Charlotte (deadline 11/3) TT Assistant Prof. of Music (specialty open but teaching expertise in theory, aural skills, and analysis required)
 * (2/3) Request for phone interviews

Southern Illinois University Carbondale  (deadline 11/17)  TT Assistant Prof of Music Theory and Composition
 * (12/6) Additional material requested
 * (2/9) Campus interviews scheduled for late February

University of California, Irvine (review begins 11/1) Assistant Professor (Composition and Improvisation)
 * (12/1) Additional material requested (x2)
 * (1/15) Campus visit scheduled

University of Georgia (review begins 12/15) TT Assistant Professor (Composition plus Theory and/or Electro-Acoustic Composition) **See added details below


 * (1/20) Additional material (x4)

University of Iowa Lecturer in Composition/Theory

University of Notre Dame (review begins 11/15) Assistant Professor of Music Theory University of Pittsburgh at Bradford (review begins 11/10) Assistant Professor, Music
 * (9/14) Application acknowledged via snail mail
 * (1/2/15) Any word on the progress of this search?
 * (1/15/15) I just got an email about additional material
 * (12/15) Phone interviews being scheduled for early January
 * (2/4) Campus visits scheduled for late February.

University of South Florida (review begins 12/1), TT Assistant Prof. of Contemporary Critical Theory/Musicology
 * (1/20) Phone interview scheduled
 * (1/28) Additional Materials Requested

University of Tulsa Assistant Professor of Composition and Theory

Webster University (review begins 10/15) Assistant Professor of Music (Music Theory & Composition)
 * (10/30) Phone interviews
 * (11/29) Rejection letter received including announcement that the job was accepted by Dr. David Werfelmann (USC Thornton School)

Composition/Technology
Art Institute of CA-San Diego Part-time audio faculty

Colorado College (review begins 10/10) Assistant Professor of Music Technology (tenure-track)
 * (11/26) Extra materials requested
 * (12/16) Email received from Banagale, stating what we knew: they have contacted those that they are interested in.
 * (1/19) Email requesting to schedule a Skype interview
 * (1/23) Campus visit scheduled

Indiana University Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI)  (deadline: January 15th, 2015) Assistant Professor in Music Technology
 * (1/28) Extra materials requested

Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT ) (deadline: November 1, 2014), Music and Theater Arts Section, Assistant Professor of Music (tenure track), Music Technology specialization


 * (12/15) Short list made
 * (2/3) Campus visit scheduled

Oberlin College (deadline: October 31, 2014) Assistant Director of Audio Services

Prairie State College Assistant Professor of Music Production


 * (12/17) Received email from human resources stating that the position has been filled.

San Francisco State University Tenure-track faculty in composition/technology

Texas Christian University (review begins 10/15) Assistant Professor of Music Technology (in the division of Theory/Composition)
 * (10/27) First short-list made; e-mailed for permission to contact references.
 * (1/3/15) Anybody have any updated info on this?
 * (1/17) Campus interviews have occured.

University of California, San Diego (deadline: November 15, 2014) Assistant Professor of Composition/Computer Muisc
 * (1/7/15) Additional materials requested
 * (1/15/15) Skype interviews scheduled

University of the Incarnate Word Part-time instructor in music theory and/or Electroacoustic music

University of Michigan Assistant Professor in Performing Arts Technology

Yale University   Assistant Professor (Adjunct) of Composition, Technology, and Media (3-year contract - expires Jan 18 - another search opened for less than a month... apply guys/gals!)

DISCUSSION
NB: Many schools are in need of updates. Please do not hesitate to post if you have been asked for more materials, been asked to campus, or even if you know second-hand the goings-on in some of these searches. (For instance, several of the November-deadline schools remain uncommented upon; at least some of them must have updates.) If you know something, say something! Scratch the wiki's back– it will scratch yours.

12/23: that sounds freighteningly like the NYPD's "if you see something, say something" (sorry, couldn't resist)

1/6: Yes this still needs some serious updating. Also, I've seen some jobs have been posted on or before the deadline for submission of materials... We all have access to the same sources (Chronicle, CMS, etc.) but it's a shame to see this Wikia become less reliable than it has been before.

1/8: Could it be that there is simply no movement on most of these searches? Twice I have been notified that I have advanced to the second round, and both times the position status was immediately updated on this site by someone else.

1/11: Yes, it could be that. We should all remember that search committees are made up of full-time faculty members, and it's entirely possible that those faculty members may have had their plates full in December. If they didn't have time to meet before the end of the fall semester, it's unlikely that they would meet over winter break (and many schools have not started back yet).

1/15: Yes, it's a busy time. In addition to getting ready for classes and working on conference proposals (many of which are due today), faculty at schools with graduate programs are also reading MA and PhD applications.

Community College Jobs

1/22: I hear rumors that PhD's have a really hard time competing for community college level appointments... Can someone comment on that? I understand there are different, often generalized, teaching responsibilities, and perhaps there is a tendency to avoid "specialists," but when I think back to when I reached the Master's level of my education.. I know I'm better poised now for a generalist position... Is there something to this rumor that I am missing? 1/22(2): I've been a finalist for many 4-yr jobs and CC jobs, and from my experience, I don't believe that's true. It depends on the candidate's background: where and what you taught, not necessarily which degree you have. Just because you have a doctorate, doesn't mean they'll view you as a specialist. Many small departments (1-5 full time) avoid "specialists"--not just CC, but 4-year schools too--and community colleges typically have small music departments. In fact, many times there are humanities or arts departments with a music "area." Some CC job descriptions will say they prefer the terminal degree. Another thing to consider why there may seem like a small percentage of interview requests is that CC jobs often do not pay for the candiates' travel costs (or if they do, it's $200-$700 max), so some times they won't look on a national market.

1/30: I've gotten to semifinalist (14x) and finalist (4x) at state schools, liberal arts colleges, large universities, and conservatories. But I've never made even the second round with CC jobs (or jobs in rural areas). I'm an interdisciplinary scholar, so I suspect it is because my PhD is from a large research university.

General Music Jobs

1/13: Some jobs listed here are for music generalists -- places that want people with degrees in any field of music who can teach liberal arts courses including theory, history, popular music, choral conducting, etc. Is there a separate wiki for these? Perhaps there should be. Not simply to make this wiki more specific (many people looking for jobs here could probably fill such a position), but moreso so as not to exclude positions like the one described above from people looking for liberal arts jobs.

Brown University

 * (1/31) Does anyone have any updates?

University of Tulsa

 * (1/20) Has anybody heard anything?

University of Southern Illinois Carbondale

 * (11/11) The link has changed to an Assistant Professor of Chinese position... Anyone have the correct link?
 * http://cola.siu.edu/music/Job.php
 * (11/12) Looks like a music theory job to me.  Maybe they fixed the link in the time since you last checked?

Baldwin Wallace

 * (11/3) Does anyone have any updates on their search process?
 * (11/24) It's been almost two months since applications were due--does anyone have any updates?

Eastman School of Music
Florida State University
 * (11/10) Does the 10-minute SMT interview constitute a round of "cuts" in this search process?  In other words, if I wasn't invited to one of those short interviews, should I cross this position off my list?
 * (01/19) Yes.
 * 10/23 Wow, that was fast. I'm mostly just curious--was there any intermediate stage (phone interview, etc.) before moving right to campus interviews?
 * 10/29 Just a fast search. *Nothing* pro forma about this one; very, very legitimate.

James Madison University

 * 10/13 There might be an inside candidate here.  One of the theory instructors was ABD, graduating this Fall.  (John Peterson) http://www.jmu.edu/music/faculty_areas/theory_composition/index.html  No guarantees on anything, just a heads up.
 * (10/19) I don't understand the intent of this comment. First of all, it is conjecture, whether well-founded or not. Second, should prospective applicants NOT apply because there might be an inside candidate? Of course, we all want as much information as possible, but I'm not sure how helpful this is.
 * (10/21) I appreciate the 10/13 comment. I think the 10/19 comment is much more presumptuous. As for the topic of inside candidates, which is labored every year on this wiki, ...we shall see who the new hire at JMU is in due course.
 * (10/21 [2]) I think it's more than fair for applicants to know of an inside candidate. My first year on the market, I was naive enough not even to suspect that I'd be invited for a pro forma interview while an insider waited in the wings for the gig. Don't get me wrong: the "insiders" were highly qualified and did nothing untoward; they deserved the jobs. Still, I went in with inflated hopes and they were dashed accordingly; I wish I'd known better.
 * (11/10)  I agree, it is nice to know if there is a current part-time (or NTT, or VAP, or whatever) faculty member in the running, but it doesn't affect whether or not anyone else should apply.  There is no guarantee that the "inside candidate" is a shoe-in for the job, or even wants the job, or won't have already accepted a job at another school by the time JMU makes a decision.  Too many variables to throw in the towel before the application deadline.

Parkland College
Stetson University
 * (1/31) Has anyone heard anything about the music tt job there?  It closed on January 19th.

Williams College
 * (10/17) Does anyone have any updates on their search process?
 * (10/18) Skype interviews scheduled
 * (1/16) Campus interviews scheduled


 * (9/13) To the 9/9 poster, yes there was a search and hire for VAP last year, but that doesn't mean there will be an inside candidate. Sometimes VAPs don't get past the first round, they aren't interested in staying, and/or they get an offer elsewhere. Also, a top choice in a VAP search may have accepted a VAP or TT position elsewhere, so they might be the top choice for the TT search the next year. Besides, candidates for a TT search are typically much stronger than the candidates for a VAP position.
 * The current VAP at Williams is pretty impressive, however, having just returned from a year at the American Academy in Rome and being a current Guggenheim fellow.  Still, stranger things have happened...
 * Yes, the issue of inside candidates is a tough one. Everybody says that inside candidates don't always have an advantage, but it's hard to believe that when you see them getting the job again and again. Last year it seemed as if every inside candidate got the job (Tufts, NYU, UNC-Greensboro, UT-San Antonio, UNT, Florida Gulf Coast, ...). But I suppose the best we can do as job seekers is to try not to think about inside candidates and apply the same as we would anyway.
 * (9/16) Word on the street has been that Williams would like to keep their VAP and that the VAP would accept if an offer is made. This isn't to say that there is no point in applying, situations often change, but the deck seems to be stacked against outside candidates in this case. Which brings about the possibility of a perhaps more productive question: Has the VAP become a sort of audition for TT?
 * (9/16) (2) Situations do change.  And unless "word on the street" comes directly from a majority of search committee members at Williams, I'm not sure how much it means.  Search committees can be fickle, candidates can be too if they get offers elsewhere.  I've seen both happen.  I personally know an "inside candidate" a few years back who appeared to be qualified and well-loved by almost everyone in the department (and students too!), was warmly encouraged to apply by faculty members on and off the search the committee, and didn't even get an interview.  Departmental and administrative politics can also interfere with hiring what appears to be an "obvious" inside candidate.
 * (11/10) To 9/16 (1), I wouldn't go so far as to call a VAP position a TT audition, at least not in all cases.  In many situations, a VAP position is opened when funding for a TT search is not available. For example, if a faculty member announces her intent to leave late in the academic year, it is likely that the Provost will approve a one-year position rather than a full TT search.  This could be for any number of reasons, but the two I've heard most frequently are (1) to save money, and (2) to guarantee a "better crop of candidates" next year (the assumption here is that, if you start to advertise a search in March or April, all the "best" candidates will have been hired.  Of course, this isn't necessarily the case, but it is not an uncommon belief.).
 * Anything is possible.  However, many VAPs do get hired for the TT gig.  That said, last year Williams hired two people instead of one, and one was not brought in for an interview.  So yes, anything is possible.

MIT

 * I heard rumors from different sources about this job, according to which the job is not so "technology-based" as it looks on the job description. It is the Theater Arts Department, not Media Lab, so I was also wondering what kind of tech person they are looking for. Is there anyone willing to share some details about this job?
 * It's in the Music and Theater Arts department - I think it is similar to a music technology job at an undergraduate college and less like a Media Lab kind of research gig.
 * Wondering if the person who posted about the short list can clarify: have the finalists for the short list already been contacted?
 * I don't know. The language of the communication was as follows: "The search committee has met and read over 130 impressive applications and selected a small number for further review. At this time, yours is not one of the applications under active consideration. The committee may expand the active list at a later date and in that case may want to contact you for further information."
 * Thanks. I think it is the long-short list, as the further materials were not due until 12/22. Sorry to hear you didn't make it.
 * Campus visit scheduled

University of Michigan

 * (11/4) Any updates to report on their search?
 * (11/4 [2]) Given that they’re holding interviews at AMS/SMT, I wouldn't expect to hear anything until after the conference.
 * (1/26) Any updates on this one? For that matter, whose position is this one replacing?
 * (1/26) They are holding campus inteviews this week (sorry..). They are replacing Alan Gosman who left for the University of Arkansas.

University of Georgia

 * (11/11) Note from the search committee chair: UGA has two open faculty positions in composition. One position will be in composition, including electro-acoustic composition; the other will be in composition and theory. One position will hire at the rank of assistant professor (tenure-track) and the other on a one-year (renwable) contract as Limited Term Asisstant Professor (not tenure-track). There is no assumed correspondence between the areas of specialization and the ranks. The online application allows applicants to indicate whether they wish to be conisdered for the temporary position in addition to the tenure-track position. Applicants wishing to use a credentialing service (such as Interfolio) for their references should please direct materials to .
 * 12/12: Is it safe to assume that the fields for references on the application form should be left blank if the letters will be arriving via email from Interfolio and a list of additional references has been uploaded as a pdf?
 * 12/12 (2): The form won't let you leave those fields blank AFAIK. I put the Interfolio email links in the reference field and cancelled the delivery request.
 * 12/13: I left them blank and it seemed to go through, that is, I didn't receive an error message and received an email letting me know that my application had been submitted.
 * 12/13 (from the search committee chair): The administrator for the search is monitoring how letters come in. If you send them via Interfolio, then your references won't be contacted to send them via the site. If you have any problems with the system, please contact .
 * 1/17 Anyone heard of any movement here?
 * 1/20 additional materials requested

University of South Florida

 * 12/21: Just saw the discussion on the musicology wiki about some apparent shenanigans at this school. In case the people watching this site know anything more than what's been reported there (at least two recent, strange tenure denials), can anyone else comment?
 * 12/23: Yes, a theorist was denied tenure.
 * 12/23 (b): And exactly what does this have to do with the current search?  Schools may hire anyone for any reason, and tenure is not guaranteed.  The University of South Florida owes you no explanation on the denial of tenure or hiring process of any of its current, former, or future faculty.
 * 12/23 (c): I might argue that a state-funded university owes tax-payers an explanation, but not on this platform.... More directly, we're all academics, when one of us is denied tenure it affects all of us, is bad for the field of music theory speficially. And no, schools may not hire anyone for any reason, hence, you know, like, searches, deans, affirmative action committees, etc. (x2)
 * 12/25: A visit to the musicology wiki suggests the 12/23 (b) comment is from the same USF adminstrator.
 * 12/29: Anyone who has followed the department at USF for the past 5-10 years knows that the place is a train wreck.
 * 12/30: The jobs wiki isn't here to create a "black list" of bad departments. Through the course of this search people will be interviewed and one will eventually be hired, and this kind of gossip really does a disservice to whomever that eventually successful candidate is. I also think this  does a disservice to the folks who were recently denied tenure who, if nothing else, provide evidence that this department has a history of making good hires. This kind of "discussion" won't reverse their tenure decisions and I really don't see where it actually provides anything to the academic music profession either.
 * 12/31: I don't see how anyone is creating even a metaphorical blacklist of departments--who of us has that power? "Gossip" implies we are discussing this issue not just through word-of-mouth but in bad faith; again I don't think we are. I believe that hiring people who do not eventually succeed in tenure bids shows at the least a faulty process, and, more importantly, speaks to larger concerns within academic hiring practices I'd assumed we all shared. Lastly, as with the Musicology Jobs Wiki, I'm very concerned with the censorious impulses of some of these comments. This is an open forum, we are discussing issues of concern, democratically, and no one is saying anything slanderous.
 * 01/19: I agree completely that the purpose of this wiki (as with any such forum) is to provide education through the sharing of information and in discussion among the participants, and this sharing should be broadly and not narrowly embraced. The tenure process can be laden with traps for the unwary, so it is best for one entering the field to keep one's eyes wide open. Perhaps the environment at any one particular institution is less hospitable to new faculty, perhaps not. Much can depend, of course, on the particular personalities involved, which may change from year to year. That being acknowledged, it is equally true that every institution and department self-creates its own "culture" of sorts, and it would be foolish not to enter into that culture with every piece of possible information about it at one's disposal, not to prejudge the institution, but for self-preservation, if necessary.

Illinois State University

 * 2/1: I see above that there were campus interviews, but yesterday this job was apparently re-listed on Inside Higher Ed.  However, the deadline of November 2014 still remains.  Does anyone know whether they are re-opening this search, or is that just some mistake on the part of Inside Higer Ed?
 * 2/2: Called them and was told that there is no job opening.