CFP: North American British Music Studies Asssociation (NAMBSA) Conference (Des Moines, Iowa)

NORTH AMERICAN BRITISH MUSIC STUDIES ASSOCIATION (NABMSA)
FOURTH BIENNIAL CONFERENCE
DRAKE UNIVERSITY, IOWA
29 JULY - 1 AUGUST 2010
CALL FOR PAPERS

NABMSA's fourth conference will once again bring together scholars and lovers of British music from various academic fields and locales for three days of papers, discussions, and musical performances. We welcome papers examining all time periods of British music and musical life, all geographical regions of Britain, and all uses of British music outside of Britain. Papers that draw upon interdisciplinary or broader cultural contexts are particularly welcome, as are papers on figures celebrating important anniversary years in 2010 (including Thomas Arne, Samuel Sebastian Wesley, and Rutland Boughton). We also encourage students to submit papers; the best student paper presented at the NABMSA conference will be awarded the Temperley Prize.

Abstracts of up to 500 words for 20-25 minute individual papers, for paper sessions, or for lecture recitals should be sent by February 1, 2010, to Charles McGuire, Oberlin College, 77 W. College St., Oberlin, OH 44704; or send an e-mail to cmcguire at oberlin.edu. For additional information about the conference, see www.nabmsa.org.

Upcoming Conference: Setting Agendas - Text-Setting and the Libretto in Contemporary British Music (University of Southampton)

SETTING AGENDAS: TEXT-SETTING AND THE LIBRETTO IN CONTEMPORARY BRITISH MUSIC
UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHAMPTON
CHAWTON HOUSE LIBRARY, CHAWTON
18 SEPTEMBER 2009

Speakers include: Richard Baker, Stephen Benson, Michael Finnissy, Lavinia Greenlaw, Michael Zev Gordon, John Habron, Brian Inglis, Irene Morra, Julian Philips

For many modern writers and composers, music and literature make an ungainly combination. Stravinsky notoriously regarded his text-settings as a sin, whilst T.S. Eliot refused to demean himself by working as a librettist for Michael Tippett. Yet recent years have seen British composers enlist a series of high-profile literary collaborators for operatic works, from Ian McEwan and Simon Armitage to Seamus Heaney and Vikram Seth. How might this change the relationship between the libretto and the performed work? What questions does the raise about the way modern operatic music is being listened to and disseminated? What are the pragmatics of interdisciplinary collaboration?

This one-day conference will approach these questions in a variety of ways. A series of poets and composers who have worked together will offer their own perspectives on collaborative projects, academics whose work has focused on the British libretto will trace recent developments in the form, and leading British composers will explore how practical and aesthetic considerations inform their use of the written word. The conference will conclude with a short chamber performance.

A limited amount of delegate places are now available for what promises to be a unique event in a stunning location. The conference fee is £25 and includes full lunch, refreshments, and an evening wine reception. In addition, five postgraduate bursaries are available to subsidise the costs of conference registration and travel. To register or for conference enquires please email Will May (w.may at soton.ac.uk).

For more information about the conference and its location, please see chawtonhouse.org and the conference website http://www.soton.ac.uk/english/news/setting_agendas09.html.