Call for Participation

The Symposium will be hybrid, with in-person demonstrations and a keynote address from Prof. Eran Egozy, director of the Music Technology Lab at MIT, co-founder of Harmonix Music Systems which developed the video game franchises Guitar Hero™ and Rock Band™.

Registration

We invite project demonstration proposals (demos) from students and faculty on all topics relating to technology supporting music education, performance practice and musicians' well-being. The backgrounds include, but are not limited to: Music Technology, Music Performance Studies, and Music Psychology.

For this event, only the proposals in the format of demos are welcome.

Proposals and presentations may be in either English or French.

Please fill out the form available at this link in order to register for participation.

Deadline for applications is Sunday, April 21st.

Schedule

In the interest of accessibility and in keeping with the GPS’s commitment to equity and diversity, we ask applicants to let us know of any accessibility requirements including (but not limited to) those regarding disability accommodations and childcare arrangements during the conference. Every effort will be made to accommodate requests where possible. Questions and inquiries can be sent to our Student Representatives.

Biographies (in alphabetical order)

Prof. Isabelle Cossette, McGill University

Director of the Centre for Interdisciplinary Research in Music Media and Technology (2015-2020), of the Music Performance and Body Lab (since 2005) and at the forefront of establishment of the Applied Performance Sciences Hub, Isabelle Cossette's research and teaching, at the Schulich School of Music/McGill University, aims at developing scientifically - and at times technology - based instrument pedagogies through the study of the performer- interaction, its biomechanical and expressive aspects, as well as looking into the health benefits/challenges of music-making. Her multidisciplinary expertise (flute and respiratory mechanics) and international collaborations led her to publish in journals such as Respiratory Physiology and Neurobiology and Acta Acustica.

Prof. Andrea Creech, McGill University

Dr Andrea Creech is Professor of Music Pedagogy at the Schulich School of Music, McGill University, where she holds a James McGill Professorship and currently serves as Associate Dean for Academic and Student Affairs. Following an international music performance career, Andrea was awarded a PhD in Psychology in Education from the Institute of Education, University of London, where she subsequently was appointed Reader in Education. She returned to Canada in 2016, as Canada Research Chair in Music in Community at Université Laval. Andrea’s research has covered a wide range of issues in formal and informal music education contexts, including interpersonal dynamics, informal learning, inclusion, lifelong learning, and music for positive youth development. She is co-author of Active Ageing with Music, and co-editor of Music Education in the 21st Century in the UK. Andrea's most recent co-authored book (2020) is Contexts for Music Learning and Participation: Developing and Sustaining Musical Possible Selves. She has also co-edited the Routledge International Handbook of Music Psychology in Education and the Community (2021).

Prof. Roger Dannenberg, Carnegie Mellon University

Roger B. Dannenberg is a Professor Emeritus of Computer Science, Art & Music at Carnegie Mellon University and an ACM Fellow. He received a Ph.D. in Computer Science from Carnegie Mellon University in 1982. He is internationally known for his research in the field of computer music, including the Piano Tutor, the first intelligent tutor to teach a pyscho-motor skill, computer accompaniment, which was pivotal in the launch of SmartMusic, polyphonic pitch recognition for Music Prodigy, and the co-creation of Audacity. His current work includes live music performance with artificial computer musicians, interactive media, and high-level languages for sound synthesis. Prof. Dannenberg is also a trumpet player and composer. He has performed in concert halls ranging from the historic Apollo Theater in Harlem to the modern Espace de Projection at IRCAM in Paris. Besides numerous compositions for musicians and interactive electronics, Dannenberg co-composed the operas La Mare dels Peixos and Felicità with Jorge Sastre.

Prof. Eran Egozy, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Professor of the Practice of Music Technology at MIT, entrepreneur, musician, and technologist. He was the co-founder and chief technical officer of Harmonix Music Systems, the music-based video game company that created the revolutionary titles Guitar Hero, Rock Band, and Dance Central with sales in excess of one billion dollars. Eran and his business partner Alex Rigopulos were named in Time Magazine's Time 100 and Fortune Magazine's Top 40 Under 40.

Eran is also an accomplished clarinetist, performing regularly with Radius Ensemble, Emmanuel Music, and freelancing in the Boston area. Prior to starting Harmonix, Eran earned degrees in Electrical Engineering and Music from MIT, where he conducted research on combining music and technology at the MIT Media Lab. Now back at MIT, his research and teaching interests include interactive music systems, music information retrieval, and multimodal musical expression and engagement.

His current research project, ConcertCue, is a program-note streaming mobile app for live classical music concerts that has been featured with the Boston Symphony Orchestra, Boston Baroque, and the New World Symphony.

Prof. Ian Howell, New England Conservatory of Music

Associate Professor of Voice and Vocal Pedagogy at the New England Conservatory, Ian Howell has been at the cutting edge of voice science and pedagogy, particularly through his leadership at the Voice and Sound Analysis Laboratory since 2011. His work focuses on the intersection of music performance, acoustic voice analysis, and the biomechanics of singing. He aims to bridge the gap between scientific understanding and practical vocal instruction, developing pedagogies that enhance both performance and vocal health. His multidisciplinary expertise, combining singing performance, pedagogy, and digital signal processing, allows for innovative research collaborations. Howell's contributions to the field are recognized in publications across various platforms, including the Journal of Voice and the Journal of Singing.

Prof. Luc Nijs, University of Luxembourg

Luc Nijs is Associate Professor in Early Childhood Music Education at the University of Luxembourg and Visiting Professor at Ghent University, affiliated to IPEM (Systematic Musicology) and - as co-founder - to the Jonet Chair on Music Making and Social Action. His research integrates theory development, empirical studies and practice, focusing on the musician ‐ instrument relationship, on the role of body movement in the instrumental learning processes, and on the role of technology in provoking an embodied approach to instrumental music education. His work with the Music Paint Machine was awarded the EAPRIL Best Research and Practice Project Award 2012. He was a guest lecturer in Music Educational Technology at Luca School of Arts Leuven (BE) and the Royal Conservatoire of The Hague (NL). Furthermore, he was selected as a member and appointed chair (2017-2021) of the AEC Digitization Working Group. He is regularly invited as guest speaker at universities and seminars, and as guest editor for scientific, e.g., Frontiers, IJMEC, Education Science. He is a member of the permanent scientific committee of ICDS, the International Conference of Dalcroze Studies. Apart from his work as a scholar, Luc is active as a musician, mainly performing with his band The Holy Seven.