Alan Gosman Named Chair of the Department of Music

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The Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences is proud to announce that Alan Gosman was named chair of the Department of Music earlier this semester.

Gosman first joined the U of A in 2014 as an associate professor of music theory, rising to music theory area coordinator and associate chair of the Department of Music in 2016.

“Dr. Alan Gosman is an accomplished artist and instructor, as well as an incredibly service-minded individual who has given so much to the Department of Music, our students and our community over the years,” said Kathryn Sloan, interim dean of Fulbright College. “We are all excited to continue to work alongside him as he continues to lead our talented musicians in his new role as chair, helping our music students to reach professional and creative success.”

In addition to being department chair and a music theorist, Gosman is a pianist and former conductor. During his tenure as associate chair for the Department of Music, he created the Music75 program. He also co-founded both the Live at the Five & Dime series in Bentonville and the Weekend Starts series in Fayetteville, which are free weekly concert series that run during the spring and summer.  

Along with other music faculty, this semester Gosman also put together the project Bridging Differences: Music’s Lessons. This series of 35 concerts, lectures and workshops is supported by the McIlroy Family Endowment in the Visual and Performing Arts, and explores the many ways that musical spaces embrace divergent styles, cultures, perspectives and ideas.

Gosman’s research focuses on the compositional process, particularly as evidenced by Beethoven’s sketchbooks. He, along with co-author Lewis Lockwood, published Beethoven’s “Eroica” Sketchbook and has also published on music theory pedagogy, history of theory and musical form. 

“I’m honored to continue my service to the University of Arkansas as chair of the Department of Music,” Gosman said. “My team and I are excited about building upon all of the Department of Music’s strengths; creating even more connections with the community and throughout Arkansas; fostering excellence in education, research and creative activities; and preparing students for the many paths that can be taken through our 21st-century musical world.”

Gosman has been published in numerous academic journals, including the Journal of Music Theory and Music Theory Spectrum. He has also contributed chapters to several books, including the Norton Guide to Teaching Music Theory; Perspectives on Contemporary Music Theory: Essays in Honor of Kevin Korsyn; The New Beethoven: Evolution, Analysis, Interpretation; Keys to the Drama: Nine Perspectives on Sonata Forms; and Genetic Criticism and the Creative Process: Essays from Music, Literature, and Theater. 

Recently, he collaborated with pianist and composer Robert Levin to reconstruct Beethoven’s “Eroica” Symphony sketches into a piece commissioned by the WDR Symphony Orchestra in Cologne. The piece premiered with Cristian Macelaru as conductor.

Beyond publications, Gosman’s work on Beethoven has earned more than $200,000 in research grants from organizations like the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada, the West German Radio Symphony Orchestra Cologne and the U of A. He was also involved with several prominent 2020 events to celebrate the 250th anniversary of Beethoven's birth, including the Beethoven Perspectives 2020 Conference Beethoven-Haus Bonn. 

Gosman received his B.A. in psychology from Wesleyan University, his B.M.A. and M.A. from University of Michigan and his Ph.D. in music theory from Harvard University.

This story also appeared in the Fulbright REVIEW publication.