Master of Music in Music Theory and Cognition in Evanston United States | Northwestern University

Northwestern's Program in Music Theory and Cognition stands out by merging two interconnected fields united in their purpose: exploring how musical form connects with creative expression (composition, improvisation), performance (reproduction, movement), and perception (listening and interpretation).

The idea of the listener serves as a central theme in our research, encompassing a broad and varied range of definitions and applications: it involves reconstructing historical listeners shaped by stylistic traditions while also considering modern listeners engaging with global soundscapes and digital media. We view the relationship between music theory and cognition as dynamic, adaptable to various forms and methodologies. This encompasses music theory shaped by cultural and historical insights into listening contexts alongside current cognitive research, as well as empirical studies using approaches like corpus analysis, laboratory experiments, and fieldwork.

This wide-ranging epistemological outlook and methodological diversity is mirrored in the extensive array of musical styles explored by our renowned faculty, spanning from the 18th century to contemporary electronic dance music. We invite PhD candidates aspiring to careers as academic music theorists and encourage applicants whose research aligns with our expertise in schema theory, topic theory, rhythm and meter, musical meaning, embodiment, popular music, and video game music.