RMA 2015 - Call for papers

  • Please note that the RMA Annual Conference 2015 call for proposals is now closed. Please see below the information that was provided for the call for papers.

The programme committee invite proposals for themed sessions (90 minutes) and individual papers, lecture-recitals, etc (20 minutes), and posters (A1 display sheet). For themed sessions, any format - including sound installations, performance-based presentations, composition workshops - may be proposed, as long as it fits into a 90-minute slot. The committee welcomes proposals from leading scholars and practitioners as well as early-career researchers. It also encourages poster displays, with scheduled question-answer sessions, on current projects of all kinds. The aim is to represent the entire scope of current musical scholarship. 

Submission of proposals and abstracts should conform to the following rules:

  • Themed sessions:Two copies of abstracts of no more than 250 words to be sent for each of the contributions to the session. One should be attributed and one anonymous to enable anonymous review. In addition, a 400-word rationale that makes clear the purpose of the session, its theme and the ways in which the individual contributions relate, both thematically and in terms of organization and timing (for example, four 15-minute position papers followed by a half-hour discussion). Please include full contact details of the convenor and indicate whether an independent chair will be required and what equipment is needed.
  • Individual papers, lecture-recitals, etc:Two copies of an abstract of no more than 250 words to be sent, one attributed and one anonymous. An indication should be given of equipment required.
  • Posters:A single copy of a statement indicating the title of the project and who will be representing it at the conference, together with a sentence or two about the project and its backers.

The programme committee comprises Eliot Bates (University of Birmingham), Ben Earle (University of Birmingham), Warwick Edwards (University of Glasgow, RMA Conferences Coordinator), Andrew Kirkman (University of Birmingham, chair), Deborah Mawer (Birmingham Conservatoire), Laura Tunbridge (University of Oxford, representing RMA), Scott Wilson (University of Birmingham). 

Themed-session proposals submitted by the advertised cut-off date will be selected on the basis of the quality of the proposal, with sessions especially welcome that: 

  • involve the participation of leading scholars, performers, and composers
  • are linked thematically to keynote speakers’ areas of expertise and to public events associated with the conference
  • address issues of current strategic interest and burning topical concern
  • are promoted by RMA’s study groups and sibling organisations concerned with research in music (e.g. members of the Music Research Consortium UK).
  • present practice-led research. 

Note:In order to secure a range of speakers with varying academic and professional experience the programme committee may actively solicit some proposals for themed sessions, particularly from sibling learned societies, its own study groups, and in significant fields of study it considers under-represented at recent annual conferences.

Proposals for individual presentations will be selected on the basis of the quality of the proposal (clarity, sense of purpose, methodology, significance of research findings) and their capacity to fit with other selected individual proposals into a thematically coherent conference session.

If the number of proposals fulfilling all the above criteria proves to be very high programme committees may favour submissions from those who did not present at the previous year’s annual conference

They must arrive no later than 17:00 (GMT) on Friday 28 November 2014. The committee aims to notify proposal authors of its decision by early February 2015. Those selected will be asked to confirm their acceptance and may make revisions to their abstract and (where applicable) timings. The full programme will be announced and booking will open in April. Abstracts will be published on the conference website in July. 

Note:All participants (save Dent and Le Huray guests and designated conference organisers) are required to register and pay the applicable fee. Registration fees cannot be guaranteed at this stage, but are expected to be no more than £65 for RMA members and £80 for non-RMA members, with concessions available at half-price and a discount offered for early-bird registration. 

You do not have to be an RMA member to propose a session or a paper, or to participate. However, you will find it well worth joining at www.rma.ac.uk. It will entitle you to a discount on the conference registration fee, free hard-copy and online access to the Journal of the Royal Musical Association and the RMA Research Chronicle, exclusive discounts on a wide range of publishers’ books, professional news and views in the monthly e-bulletin and twice-yearly printed newsletter, and much more besides.

If you have any queries, please contact the conference organisers on rma2016@contacts.bham.ac.uk