Harvard University
Faculty of Arts and Sciences
Department of Music
Cambridge, MA
Position Description: The Department of Music seeks to appoint a tenure-track professor in Creative Practice and Critical Inquiry (CPCI), a departmental program that integrates a wide range of current music-making practices with research and critical engagement in music studies and associated fields. The appointment is expected to be made at the Assistant Professor level and to begin on July 1, 2024.
We invite applications from artists who represent a broad range of aesthetics and backgrounds, and who will reach out to other creative artists at Harvard and beyond. We seek a candidate whose body of work includes an active, creative life in music as well as scholarly publications or other forms of writing. They should ideally complement and/or extend the fields of expertise of current CPCI faculty and should be qualified to mentor student composer-performers, many of whom are professionally active and have diverse research interests and interdisciplinary concerns. Possible fields of expertise may include (but are not limited to) Black music, contemporary improvisation, integrative arts, contemporary performance, new compositional methods, sound art, non-Western musical systems, popular music, and/or experimental music.
The successful candidate will be responsible for teaching undergraduates and graduate students, as well as advising and mentoring. This full-time position involves teaching three courses a year as well as a teaching-equivalent contribution (often called a “plus one”) which can range from leading weekly rehearsals or workshops to an administrative role in the department. Advising encompasses supervising CPCI PhD dissertations, acting as reader for dissertations in various department programs, supervising senior theses, and directing independent study. Courses can include undergraduate music courses, graduate seminars, and courses within Harvard’s General Education program (for students with varied backgrounds). Candidates should be conversant with the skills needed for teaching creative practices and music-making in a liberal arts context.
Keywords: assistant, associate, faculty, instructor, tenure track, Boston, Cambridge, Massachusetts, MA, Northeast, New England Music, improvisation, composition, Black music, experimental music, American music, artist-scholar, composer-performer, multidisciplinary practice, creative music, integrative arts
Basic Qualifications: Candidates must have a doctorate or comparable experience and artistic distinction by the time the appointment begins.
Additional Qualifications: Demonstrated strong commitment to teaching, advising, and mentoring.
Special Instructions: Please submit the following materials through the ARIeS portal (https://academicpositions.harvard.edu/postings/12585). Applications must be submitted no later than October 1, 2023.
1. Cover letter
2. Curriculum Vitae
3. Narrative summary of artistic work and research
4. Teaching and advising statement (describing teaching philosophy and practices)
5. Statement describing your experience in encouraging diversity, inclusion, and belonging in your work, with emphasis on envisaged future efforts.
6. Names and contact information of three referees, who will be asked by a system-generated email to upload a letter of recommendation once the candidate’s application has been submitted. Three letters of recommendation are required, and the application is considered complete only when at least three letters have been received. At least one letter must come from someone who has not served as the candidate’s undergraduate, graduate, or postdoctoral advisor.
7. URL links to streaming or downloadable media files of up to three examples of your creative work (not to exceed 20 minutes in total duration) and one written essay, creative writing sample, or article, as a PDF. Additional work samples may be requested at a later date. Please do not send hard copies or use email to send material for your application.
Harvard is an equal opportunity employer and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, creed, national origin, ancestry, age, protected veteran status, disability, genetic information, military service, pregnancy and pregnancy-related conditions, or other protected status.
Contact Information: Professor Vijay Iyer, Search Committee, Department of Music, email evakim@fas.harvard.edu