University of Liverpool in London,
33 Finsbury Square,  London EC2A 1AG
Saturday 2nd to Sunday 3rd April, 2016

Deadline for proposals: 21st February 2016
Keynote Speaker: Dr Emily Howard (RNCM; University of Liverpool)

The SMA’s annual Theory and Analysis Graduate Students (TAGS) Conference will be hosted by the University of Liverpool in London, in their Finsbury Square Campus on Saturday 2nd and Sunday 3rd of April, 2016. The event provides a supportive and friendly environment in which postgraduates can gain experience in presenting their work and meet fellow researchers. Participants who do not wish to give a paper are also very welcome.

Our keynote speaker, Dr Emily Howard is a senior lecturer in composition at the Royal Northern College of Music and Leverhulme Artist in Residence at the University of Liverpool, where she is also a Senior Visiting Fellow. In our TAGS 2016 conference, the SMA particularly invite papers from postgraduate students exploring the intersections between analysis and contemporary compositional processes, but  proposals are invited for 20-minute papers, themed sessions and lecture recitals addressing any analytical, critical or theoretical subject and in relation to any style of music. This includes:

•         Analysing non-Western Musics;

•         Performance as Analysis / Analysis as Performance;

•         Analysis, Philosophy, and Critical Theory;

•         Intersections between History, Theory, and Analysis;

•         Analysing Popular Music and Improvisation;

•         Music Perception and Cognition;

•         Empirical Approaches to Music

•         Analysing a-/microtonal Music;

•         Themed sessions focusing on the analysis of a particular work(s), or on specific arrangements or transcriptions are also welcomed.

For 20-minute paper proposals, abstracts of no more than 250 words should be sent by email to Rebecca Day at students@sma.ac.uk. Please include name, affiliation, postal address, email address, and AV requirements on a separate cover sheet (Ms Word or PDF). Organisers of themed sessions should submit a brief overview together with the individual abstracts. Proposals for lecture recitals / composition performances should include full details of the proposed performance and any relevant requirements in their cover sheet.

The closing date for receipt of proposals is 21st February 2016. All those submitting proposals will be notified of the outcome by the beginning of March 2016. Delegates will be invited to register from lunchtime on Saturday 2nd April, and the conference will run until Sunday afternoon, 3rd April. For information about travel to University of Liverpool’s London campus:https://www.liverpool.ac.uk/study/london/

If you are presenting a paper you will be eligible to apply for an SMA Student Travel Bursary to help cover the costs of travel and accommodation (B&B accommodation will be available near campus). Further details can be found here; please note that the deadline for applications for bursaries is 2 April, 2016.