Assistant Professor of Electroacoustic Studies, Department of Music
Last updated: December 19, 2024, 4:32 p.m.
Job title: Assistant Professor of Electroacoustic Studies, Department of Music
Position code: 24-T-MUSI-O
Date posted: December 19, 2024
Application deadline: January 20, 2025
Advertised until: Position is filled
Situated on the traditional and unceded territory of the Kanien’kehá:ka people, Concordia University is North America’s top university under the age of 50, celebrated for advancing transformative learning, convergent thinking and public impact.
Position description:
The Department of Music at Concordia University invites applications for a tenure-track position at the rank of Assistant Professor in Electroacoustic Studies, starting August 1, 2025. We are seeking applicants with a versatile skill set to enable teaching across a range of areas within electroacoustics, including composition, performance, electroacoustic aural training, as well as topics such as theory and instrumental/vocal performance. The ideal candidate will have a proven track record of research-creation activities in live electroacoustics, collective improvisation, and the application of audio coding environments. They will also bring an informed, feminist, and community-minded approach—manifested through mentoring, outreach, or engagement with social, cultural, and equity-oriented perspectives. The ability to secure external research funding is required.
This position involves administrative duties including service in the role of Coordinator of the Electroacoustics (EA) area, which entails managing admissions, providing academic advising, overseeing course management and representing the EA area in department-wide curricular planning and reform efforts. As such, preference will be given to candidates who demonstrate evidence of collaborative stewardship and potential to meet the leadership goals of the program and the department during a period of institutional change and budget constraints.
The successful candidate will be expected to teach undergraduate and graduate courses in electroacoustic studies. In addition to teaching duties, the incumbent will be expected to provide academic and research supervision in electroacoustic studies and related fields, as well as contribute to curricular innovation, including the potential development of new programs within the Department. Over time, the selected candidate will actively embrace program stewardship, and engage in committee work at the Department, Faculty and University levels. The Department is dedicated to creating an environment that respects and supports all voices in the pursuit of artistic, academic, and societal advancement.
Qualifications and assets
Candidates must have a completed doctoral degree in sonic arts, electroacoustic studies, composition, music technology, or a related discipline. The main criteria for selection are teaching, scholarly, and administrative excellence. The successful candidate will provide evidence of effective teaching experience at the university level, including the ability to develop and teach courses in electroacoustics, music technology, composition, performance, and electroacoustic aural training. The capacity to guide students through the processes of sound design, coding for audio, and performance-based experimentation is essential, as is the capacity to support students in navigating the gender dynamics of music and technology ecosystems. A strong research-creation profile with a proven track record of performances, recordings, installations, and independent research leading to peer assessed publications is expected. Other required qualifications include:
- Proven expertise in specialized aural training in sound (e.g., technical ear training)
- Demonstrated proficiency in coding for audio applications (e.g., SuperCollider, Max, Kyma, and other live coding tools) with an ability to integrate new media tools into creative and pedagogical work
- Familiarity with vocal and/or instrumental performance practices alongside electroacoustic approaches, thus fostering strong connections among diverse musical communities within the department
- Additional research-creation pursuits in electroacoustic music and sound art, with a demonstrated capacity to integrate advanced audio technologies, live electronic performance, improvisation, and/or compositional practice
- Ability to engage in feminist pedagogy and mentorship
Other assets include:
- Experience supporting a pluralistic learning environment and engaging with equity, diversity, inclusion, and accessibility values in teaching, mentoring, and service
- Experience with general-purpose programming languages (e.g., Python, JavaScript, C++)
Candidates are encouraged to share any career interruptions or personal circumstances that may have had an impact on their career goals in their letter of application. These will be carefully considered in the assessment process. The Department values diversity among its faculty and strongly encourages applications from those who will contribute to that profile. Concordia University is an English-language institution of higher learning at which the primary language of instruction and research is English. Since this position supports academic functions of the university, proficiency in English is required. Working knowledge of French, including reading and grading student work in French, is an asset.
How to Apply
All qualified candidates are encouraged to apply; however, Canadians and Permanent Residents will be given priority. To comply with the Government of Canada’s reporting requirements, the University is obliged to gather information about applicants’ status as either Permanent Residents of Canada or Canadian citizens. While applicants need not identify their country of origin or current citizenship, all applicants must include one of the following statements:
Yes, I am a citizen or permanent resident of Canada
or
No, I am not a citizen or permanent resident of Canada
Applications should be submitted electronically to music@concordia.ca on or before January 20, 2025. Review of applications will begin soon after the position closes and will continue until the position is filled. Only short-listed candidates will be notified. For video files, please submit links to a professional website, a YouTube or Vimeo channel. If the link is private, please provide the password.
Submissions should consist of a single PDF file and include the following items in the order specified below:
- A cover letter clearly identifying the job title and position code (24-T-MUSI-O)
- A complete updated curriculum vitae
- A statement of research-creation interests
- Selected examples of creative work (e.g., links to recordings, performances, publications, or other relevant media)
- A teaching statement that includes the applicant’s teaching philosophy and interest as well as approaches to mentorship
- Evidence of teaching effectiveness (e.g., teaching evaluations [statistical information only] and syllabi of courses taught)
- The names and contact information of three referees who can speak to the applicant’s creative, research, and teaching capabilities
- Declaration: “Yes, I am a citizen or permanent resident of Canada” or “No, I am not a citizen or permanent resident of Canada”
All inquiries regarding this position may be directed to Joshua Rager, Chair, Department of Music at chair.music@concordia.ca.
Concordia University is strongly committed to building a diverse, equitable, and inclusive community, and recognizes the importance of inclusion in achieving excellence in teaching and research. As part of this commitment to providing our students with the dynamic, innovative, and inclusive educational environment of a Next‐Generation University, we require all applicants to articulate in their cover letter how their background, as well as lived and professional experiences and expertise have prepared them to teach in ways that are relevant for a diverse, multicultural contemporary Canadian society.
Possible examples to demonstrate a diverse experience may include, but are not limited to:
- teaching about underrepresented populations
- mentoring students from underrepresented backgrounds
- committee work
- offering or organizing educational programming
- participation in training and workshops
All applicants will receive an email invitation to complete a short equity survey. Participation in the survey is voluntary and no identifying information about candidates will be shared with hiring committees. Candidates who wish to self-identify as a member of an underrepresented group to the hiring committee may do so in their cover letter or by writing directly to the contact person indicated in this posting.
Adaptive Measures
Applicants who anticipate requiring adaptive measures throughout any stage of the recruitment process may contact, in confidence, Anna Barrafato, Accessibility Change Lead: anna.barrafato@concordia.ca or by phone at 514-848-2424, extension 3511.
The Department of Music resides within the Faculty of Fine Arts and includes three main programs of study: the Specialization in Jazz Studies, the Major and Specialization in Electroacoustic Studies, and the Major in Music which houses the Specializations in Music Performance and Music Composition. These programs collectively attract over 300 applicants each year for 75 available first-year student places.
The Department provides a vibrant learning environment where students and teachers engage in pedagogies that foster the awakening of students’ skills and artistry. Discipline-specific courses in theory, ear-training and history create unique approaches to these skills. Furthermore, performance/creation courses tie together the knowledge gained through theoretical studies with the artistic and expressive areas of each student’s personal inspiration.
Classrooms, studios, and practice facilities situated in the downtown campus afford close contact with other Fine Arts programs. Collaboration among the various visual and performing arts students continues to grow as new programs and avenues of research/creation develop. For example, the Department’s yearly collaboration with the Mel Hoppenheim School of Cinema merges the skills and artistic interests of Music students from the composition, sound recording, and sound design areas with students in the Film Animation Major. This endeavor has even broader reach as it includes participation from programs at sister institutions including McGill University and the Université du Québec à Montréal.
With over 4,000 students, faculty, and staff, the Faculty of Fine Arts is among the five largest art and design schools in North America. Nestled in the heart of a pulsing city, embraced by a dynamic research university, the Faculty of Fine Arts benefits from extraordinary access to brilliant practitioners, thriving venues, cross-cultural perspectives, and an extensive network of outstanding facilities for research and production.
Taking advantage of our place within the rich fabric of a research university and our long history as one of the premiere sites in Canada for the study and creation of the arts and arts-based scholarship, the Faculty of Fine Arts is currently engaged in a transformative moment in which pedagogical, conceptual, theoretical, and material practices find resonance with a significant diversity of approaches. In our university community we value equally those practices that embrace aesthetic activism, live performance, historical scholarship, technical experimentation, skills-based production, community fieldwork and education, and therapeutic practices as well as traditional and digital fabrication. In addition to curricular advances, the formation of significant research centres and external partnerships in the Faculty of Fine Arts continue to enrich opportunities for faculty and students alike. For more information, please visit the Faculty of Fine Arts website.
“Concordia is a young, forward-looking university. It’s a unique place where experimentation, innovation and creativity are truly valued. Our community of students, faculty, staff and alumni all contribute to our momentum as Canada’s next-gen university.” — Concordia President Graham Carr.
Building on the skills of our faculty and the strengths of Indigenous, local, and global partnerships, we set our sights further and more broadly than others and align the quality of learning opportunities to larger trends and substantial challenges facing society.
Profoundly global, Concordia is recognized for attracting some of the most talented faculty and students from around the world. We are driven by ambition, innovation and a commitment to reconciliation, research and community engagement.
Tiohtià:ke/Montreal is exceptional; safe, vibrant and diverse, with new things to discover around every corner. With a population of 1.7 million, it houses four major universities, several clinical research centres, and has been named the best student city in the world.
Historically known as a gathering place for many First Nations, the city is now home to a diverse population of Indigenous and other peoples, and its residents enjoy the benefits of a thriving multicultural scene. While supporting a significant anglophone population, it is the one of the largest French-speaking cities in the world.
Montreal is famed for its innovative culinary scene and festivals. It was also the first metropolis to be designated a UNESCO City of Design by the Global Alliance for Cultural Diversity. The city is recognized globally as an important centre for commerce, aerospace, transport, finance, pharmaceuticals, technology, design, gaming and film.
Employment Equity
Concordia University is strongly committed to employment equity within its community, and to recruiting a diverse faculty and staff. The University encourages applications from all qualified candidates, including women, racialized persons, Indigenous persons, 2SLGBTQI+ persons, and persons with disabilities; candidates are invited to self-identify in their applications.
Immigration Status
All qualified candidates are encouraged to apply; however Canadians and Permanent Residents will be given priority. To comply with the Government of Canada’s reporting requirements, the University is obliged to gather information about applicants’ status as either Permanent Residents of Canada or Canadian citizens. While applicants need not identify their country of origin or current citizenship, all applicants must include one of the following statements:
Yes, I am a citizen or permanent resident of Canada
or
No, I am not a citizen or permanent resident of Canada
