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About our research

Our research encompasses a broad spectrum of music studies with expertise in Ethnomusicology, Popular Music Studies, Music Industry Studies, Composition, Music Technology, Music Analysis and Critical Musicology. We also specialise in cross-repertoire, multi-disciplinary research.

The department is home to two specialist research centres:

Research activity is supported by a regular series of seminars and performances, an annual postgraduate research symposium, and special symposia and conferences.

Specialist in-house resources and facilities for research include extensive library and archival collections, a state-of-the-art recording studio and computing suites, and an interactive music/gaming room.

Collaboration

Much of our research is conducted in collaboration with local, national and international groups and organisations, and a wide range of non-academic organisations.

I am impressed by the range of public engagement activities my colleagues regularly undertake on the basis of their research, whether international performances, gallery installations and museum exhibitions, or weekly broadcasts on local radio.

Professor Sara Cohen - Research Lead for Music

We are extensively engaged with local organisations such as the Foundation for Art and Creative Technology, Radio Merseyside, the Liverpool Open Eye Gallery and Liverpool Sound City.

We also benefit from strong and long-standing institutional partnerships with National Museums Liverpool, the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, the International Association for the Study of Popular Music and the Society for Music Analysis.

The University of Liverpool is ranked in the top 1% of universities worldwide and is a member of the prestigious Russell Group, comprising the leading research universities in the United Kingdom.

Academic visitors

We have been engaging in internationally collaborative research by hosting academic visitors from all over the world. Please view the academic visitors' profile for more information.