“Reframing the Gaze” Symposium

In November, Mount Holyoke hosted “Reframing the Gaze,” a symposium celebrating the bicentenary of Maria Theresia von Paradis, a blind Viennese composer and musician who lived from 1759 to 1824. I had the great opportunity to work with Adeline Mueller, associate professor of music at Mount Holyoke, ahead of the symposium to help prepare materials for the exhibition and participants. I am a junior music and history double major with a Nexus in Museums, Archives and Public History, so getting to work on a project that blended all three areas was very fulfilling.

My favorite part of the preparation process was creating labels for the small, 17-object exhibition featuring Paradis, other blind musicians and accessibility for the blind. This was most enjoyable due to my interest in museums and how objects are presented. I took a course this past spring, titled “Museums, Difficult Dialogues, and Social Repair,” with Mark Auslander, a visiting professor in anthropology. We discussed how to write object labels and how to present objects, especially ones with difficult topics such as those related to the experiences of people with disabilities. I enjoyed applying this new knowledge in practical ways for the symposium. The pinnacle of the exhibition was a recreation of the composing board Paradis used, which was made in conjunction with the Fimbel Makerspace here on campus. The original composing board is behind glass in the Kunsthistorisches Museum, but this recreation allowed in-person participants of the symposium to interact with it hands-on.

The symposium had about 30 in-person attendees from North America and Europe and virtual participants from North America, Europe and Japan. It featured three paper sessions, two keynote speakers and three recitals, including a modern-day premiere of a cantata by Paradis.

Participating in the symposium was great in many aspects of my academic interests. For one, Paradis lived in Vienna her whole life, and I will be studying abroad there this spring through the IES Abroad Vienna European Culture & Society program. Learning about the history of Vienna’s rich music culture through the experiences of Paradis was fascinating to me. While living in Vienna, I hope to visit the Kunsthistorisches Museum where her original composing board is kept.

Additionally, this fall, I have been taking a new 300-level course in the music department with Ben Geyer, titled “Music Theory and Difference.” This course focuses on themes of representation within the field of music theory through many lenses, including, but not limited to, universality, race, ethnicity, gender and (dis)ability. Over the second half of the semester, we have been developing final research topics and papers, and my paper happens to be on disabled music theory. Getting to hear the paper sessions at the symposium was interesting, not only because of my personal interest in music history but also due to the research aspect of my paper. I am going to be citing the works of multiple presenters from the weekend, including keynote speaker Stefan Sunandan Honisch, a leading scholar in the intersection of disability studies and music.

Having the opportunity to help prepare for and attend the symposium was valuable for me in so many ways. From growing professionally as Professor Mueller’s research assistant to growing academically for my paper and being able to talk with many academics of differing backgrounds about their experiences in academia, I begin to think about grad school and life after Mount Holyoke. The symposium was an experience that I hope to carry through my future, as it was an opportunity that many of my peers at other institutions do not have. Mount Holyoke is a great place for growth and learning in a highly academic environment that continues to challenge and push me outside of the classroom, and the “Reframing the Gaze” symposium furthered these ideas.