Professor Gene Trantham Organizes Sessions at College Music Society National Conference

Gene Trantham organized and moderated the following two sessions during the 2016 National Conference of the College Music Society held recently in Santa Fe, New Mexico:
    1)  "Lightning Panel:  Interdisciplinary Approaches to Music"
    2)  "Research Presentations by Students and Recent Graduates"

The lightning panel included both faculty and students who discussed "best practices" in interdisciplinary approaches to music. The purpose of this session was to continue the exchange of ideas between CMS students & faculty regarding the impact of transformation on student learning. In a fast paced session, student and faculty presenters explored topics that included:

    1.    Interdisciplinary approaches to music that you have experienced as an instructor or a student.
    2.    Resulting transformations that have occurred due to your encounters with interdisciplinary research.
    3.    General characteristics of successful interdisciplinary approaches to music.
    4.    "Best Practices" in specific areas such as:
        a.    Music and Anthropology & Ethnomusicology
        b.    Music and Language & Musical Communication Structures
        c.    Holistic Education
    5.    Other interdisciplinary areas to explore in the future.


As part of the special second session, invited presenters are paired with faculty mentors (senior researchers) from within the CMS membership. In the months prior to the conference, mentors reach out to their assigned presenter and help them with their final preparations. Mentors assist with the format of the paper and offer helpful guidance in terms of topic and paper development. The goal of this session is to give space for all CMS student members to come together and learn from, and with, a select group of researchers as well as to extend the networking web facilitated by CMS.

The CMS conference took place October 27-29, 2016.

Updated: 12/01/2017 11:14PM