Conference Information
Sixteenth Annual Conference
Oberlin Conservatory, Oberlin, OH, 21-22 May, 2005, 2005
General Information
This year's meeting of Music Theory Midwest, to be held Saturday, May 21 - Sunday, May 22 at the Oberlin Conservatory of Music in Oberlin, Ohio. Note the change to Saturday-Sunday from our usual meeting days. One of the special features of this year's conference is the Aural Skills Roundtable, to be held during the lunch hour on Sunday. The format for the Roundtable will include a discussion of issues in aural skills pedagogy, as well as a sharing of ideas and examples of particularly successful activities (a brief handout is optional). Anyone who wishes to participate may order a box lunch when registering for the conference.
The program committee, chaired by Neil Minturn, has selected a very interesting group of papers. The proposed focus on rhythmic theory has resulted in sessions on Rhythm and Meter and on the Perception of Musical Pulse. A session on Pedagogy complements the featured Aural Skills Roundtable. Sessions on Neo-Riemannian Theory, Transformational Theory, and Form, Tonal Process, and Interpretation combine with recently emerging topics explored in sessions on Musical States of Consciousness, Musical Narrative, and Modernism, Postmodernism, and New Modes of Perception. See the enclosed preliminary program for more information.
Keynote Abstract
One of the highlights of the conference is this year's keynote address, "The Curious Problem of Triple Meter," to be given by Lewis Rowell of Indiana University. He is the author of books and articles on time and rhythm, the history of music theory, the philosophy of music, and the music of India. A founding member of the Society for Music Theory, he has held several offices in the Society and edited the journal Music Theory Spectrum from 1983-85. His most recent book is Music and Musical Thought in Early India (University of Chicago Press, 1992), which won the Otto Kinkeldey Award from the American Musicological Society in 1993. In 2003 his article on "New Temporal Horizons and the Theory of Music" received the ASCAP Deems Taylor Award from the American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers.
Conference Events
Our banquet will be held at the Oberlin Inn on Saturday evening, May 21, at 6 pm. It will be a buffet with 3 choices of entree, and will cost $25 per person (with a special discount rate of $20 for students).Options for evening activities after the banquet include a visit to the Carlisle Reservation nature preserve or making the short trip to hear the Cleveland Orchestra.
Travel
Accommodations
We have 50 rooms reserved at the Oberlin Inn, located at 7 North Main Street in Oberlin. (This is one block from the Conservatory). The rate will be $70 per night. Room availability and rate will be guaranteed until noon on April 20, 2005. Call to reserve your place: (440) 775-1111; be sure to mention that you are with a special group, Music Theory Midwest. There is plenty of free parking at the hotel.
Local Information
Local Arrangements: Deborah Rifkin (Oberlin College-Conseratory of Music) and Diane Urista (Oberlin College-Conseratory of Music)
Program Committee
Neil Minturn (University of Missouri-Columbia), Chair
Online Program
The online program can be found here once it is available.