Falling Out of Line, A Conference on Music and the Exceptional

(e.g. female composers, disabled musicians, and various sexual and racial minorities) in an effort to revise this history. In turn, the outliers have become the exceptional; they are now celebrities with a historical presence enabled by the very circumstances that differentiate them. Whether by way of image, body, ideas, sexual history, life style, race, “special” abilities or capabilities, the previously deviant have come to the fore. What traits define people as musically exceptional? What is the necessary background against which to frame musical exceptionalism? Where does one draw the line between the exceptional and the unremarkable? This conference seeks to explore the history of exceptionalism in music, including the reception of musical works, musical instruments, people, and places. We invite papers on music in constellation with exceptionalism. Possible topics may include, but are by no means limited to, the following:


· Positive and negative connotations of exceptionalism
· The exceptional in music marketing
· Music and competence
· Difference as the exception
· Conceiving diversity in a merit-based society
· Civil rights and equality
· The ethics of the extraordinary
· The line between the acceptable and the exceptional in music
· Standardization in music education

We welcome submissions for 20-minute papers dealing with music and the exceptional from all relevant disciplines, including musicology, music theory, ethnomusicology, sound studies, disability studies, gender studies, media and communication studies, and philosophy. Abstracts should be no longer than 300 words, submitted by August 15, 2015 (deadline EXTENDED) for anonymous review (without identifying the author) to: [email protected]


For questions, please contact either Anna Benedikt [[email protected]] or Danielle Sofer [[email protected]]