Timothy D. Taylor (b. 17 March 1961) is an interdisciplinary social scientist focusing mainly on music and culture. He is the author or editor of six books and over 40 articles and book chapters. His teaching and research cover subjects from capitalism to globalization, identity, consumer culture, and more.
Timothy D. Taylor (b. 17 March 1961) is an interdisciplinary social scientist focusing mainly on music and culture. He is the author or editor of six books and over 40 articles and book chapters. His teaching and research cover subjects from capitalism to globalization, identity, consumer culture, and more.
1
Social-Cultural Theorist
Social-Cultural Theorist
Theory helps us understand why things are the way they are.
Learn more
2
Performing Musician
Performing Musician
Music making was, and is, an important social medium for me. In sixth grade, I played clarinet (first chair) in the band, and I liked it. So, I just kept going on various instruments.
Learn more
3
Professor Mentor
Professor Mentor
Since completing my Ph.D. in 1993, several significant things have happened. One is the opening up of music studies to other approaches; it is now acceptable to combine music research with serious questions of power, production and culture. Second, ethnomusicology pays a lot more attention to popular music.
4
Scholar Author
Scholar Author
My academic lifetime is marked by tremendous social change. For me, music registers exceptionally clearly what’s going on in the world. Therefore, it becomes important to talk about music as a social, cultural, and historical product.
1
Social-Cultural Theorist
I never liked it when my professors said, “this is the way we’ve always done it.” All these years later, interrogating assumptions still energizes me.
2
Performing Musician
Music making was, and is, an important social medium for me. In sixth grade, I played clarinet (first chair) in the band, and I liked it. So, I just kept going on various instruments.
3
Professor Mentor
Since completing my Ph.D. in 1993, several significant things have happened. One is the opening up of music studies to other approaches; it is now acceptable to combine music research with serious questions of power, production and culture. Second, ethnomusicology pays a lot more attention to popular music.
4
Scholar Author
My academic lifetime is marked by tremendous social change. For me, music registers exceptionally clearly what’s going on in the world. Therefore, it becomes important to talk about music as a social, cultural, and historical product.
Social-Cultural Theorist
Theory helps us understand why things are they way they are.
Performing Musician
Deep hanging out, with music.
Professor Mentor
Always be curious. And don’t be afraid to ask the big questions.
Scholar Author
Music and capitalism. Consumer Culture. Global culture.
I never like it when people say, “This is the way we’ve always done it.” interrogating assumptions is what we are supposed to be doing. I think Marx and Engels were right. We are experiencing ever increasing universal interdependence—and exploitation—in all directions. For me as a musician, music is a good window into all of these processes.
So, I feel compelled to keep asking: How do real people create meaning and value in their lives?
Theoretical Interests + Selected Works
Show Less
Theory in Keynotes & Invited Papers
Show Less
Key Influences
Strictly speaking, I don’t see myself as a music scholar. Rather, my scholarship explores culture, society, and history through people who are involved in making and consuming music.
To understand how I got to this place, I think it’s helpful to know where I came from. While the work and ideas of many other scholars influence me (see my Essential Social Theory Reading List for details) this is a short list of key reference points for my intellectual development.
Show Less
Music making was, and is, an important social medium for me. In sixth grade, I played clarinet (first chair) in the band, and I liked it. So, I just kept going: an M.M. in clarinet at the Yale School of Music; learning tin whistle in Belfast; and studying Irish flute with an émigré master in New Jersey.
I believe there’s a connection between the musical work I do alone (practicing, learning tunes), my social music making (regular Irish sessions), and my research questions (music, meaning, and value).
Current Music-Making
Show Less
Meaningful Music Connections
Show Less
Teachers + Instruments
Show Less
Since completing my Ph.D. in 1993, several significant things have happened. One is the opening up of music studies to other approaches; it is now acceptable to combine music research with serious questions of power, production and culture. Second, ethnomusicology pays a lot more attention to popular music.
I want my students (future colleagues) fully equipped to join this conversation. And to keep the conversation productive, it needs to continue to broaden: through peer review, participation in conferences and symposia, and actively connecting students to resources, people, opportunities, and intellectual currents in related fields.
Core Courses
Show Less
Advisees
Show Less
Recommended Reading
This is a list I often share with graduate students looking for theory grounding and research inspiration. In each topic category, I’ve given the must-reads first (in priority order), then some additional important sources. Enjoy!
Show Less
Positions Held
Show Less
Service
Show Less
Applicant Reader
Show Less
Journal Manuscript Review
Show Less
Press Manuscript Review
Show Less
My academic lifetime is marked by tremendous social change. For me, music registers exceptionally clearly what’s going on in the world. Therefore, it becomes important to talk about music as a social, cultural, and historical product.
Value and Exchange
Show Less
Capitalism
Show Less
Globalization
Show Less
Consumer Culture
Show Less
Cultural Business
Show Less
Technology
Show Less
Music and Power (Gender, Politics)
Show Less
Ireland
Show Less
General Topics
Show Less
Events
Special Lecture Series (Mainz)
Wednesday, June 27, 2018 6:00 pm
Thursday, June 28, 2018 6:00 pm
Friday, June 29, 2018 6:00 pmValuing Music Lecture Series (June 27-29) This year’s topic: Valuing Music, feathering Timothy Taylor, professor of ethnomusicology and musicology at the University of Los Angeles (UCLA). In a series of three public Find out more »Read moreCapitalism: Culture and the Individual – Keynote
Saturday, April 14, 2018 9:00 amThis conference—Capitalism: Culture and the Individual—aims to examine the influence or relationship between capitalism and society. We seek to create an interdisciplinary discourse regarding the reach of capitalism. Specifically, we Find out more »Read more“Branding ‘Western Music'” Keynote – Universität Bern
Friday, September 8, 2017 4:55 pmConference: Branding ‘Western Music’ Universität Bern – 7–9 September 2017 The three-day conference Branding ‘Western Music’ aims to foster an interdisciplinary dialogue on the intersections between Western music and the institutionalised Find out more »Read more
news
JGU Mainz Lectures – Recordings Available Soon
Monday, December 10, 2018 09:00 AMConference organizers recently announced they’ll be posting recordings of my 3 lectures. I’ll officially announce their availability here. But you can also check back for the links posting on this site. …Read moreBook Review: Music in the World
Sunday, September 30, 2018 12:15 PMMusic in the World: Selected Essays. Book review by Emilie Hurst Journal of Radio & Audio Media, 25:2, 351-353. (Note: there’s a paywall between this link and the review’s full text.…Read moreBook Review: Music and Capitalism
Wednesday, January 10, 2018 17:30 PM“Music and Capitalism: A History of the Present by Timothy Dean Taylor” Book review by Carol Lubkowskil. Notes – Quarterly Journal of the Music Library Association Vol. 73 No. 3,…Read more