
About the Society for Music Perception and Cognition
Welcome to the Society for Music Perception and Cognition (SMPC), a scholarly organization dedicated to the study of music cognition.
Activities of the Society
The society hosts a biennial conference, providing opportunities for members of the research community to present new research in the area of music cognition. Past meetings have been held in a variety of cities, hosted by different institutions. In addition, SMPC cooperates with other organizations in music cognition to host international conferences.
SMPC also maintains a bi-weekly digest, in which members are informed of job openings, calls for proposals for grants and papers, and other relevant information to our membership.
Objectives of the Society
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SMPC bylaws (click to open PDF):
to further the scientific and scholarly understanding of music from a broad range of disciplines, including music theory, psychology, psychophysics, linguistics, neurology, neurophysiology, ethology, ethnomusicology, artificial intelligence, computer technology, physics and engineering;
to facilitate cooperation among scholars and scientists who are engaged in research in this interdisciplinary field; and
to advance education and public understanding of knowledge gained.
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SMPC is committed to promoting standards of ethics and professionalism, and as such has developed the following Code and Conduct Policies and Procedures (all links open a Google Doc link).
All members must abide by SMPC's Code of Conduct
All conference and SMPC event attendees (whether at virtual or in-person events) must abide by the SMPC Meeting Code of Conduct
Any reports of Code of Conduct violations will be handled according to the procedures listed in the Policy and Procedures for Code of Conduct Violations
Meet the Society Officers and Board
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Past-President - Peter Pfordresher
(2025; President 2023-2024)
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President - Psyche Loui
(2025-2026; President-Elect 2024)
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Secretary - Jennifer Bugos
(2025-2027)
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Treasurer - Daniel Shanahan
(2024-2026)
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At-Large Board Member - Laura Cirelli
(2024-2026)
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At-Large Board Member - Miriam Lense
(2023-2025)
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At-Large Board Member - Jennifer Zuk
(2025-2027)
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At-Large Board Member - Joshua Albrecht
(2025-2027)
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Equity Officer - Ramesh Balasubramaniam
(2023-2025)
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Media and Communications Chair - Amy Belfi
(2024-2026)
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Trainee Member - Noah Fram
(2025-2026)
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Trainee Member - Emily Wood
(2025-2026)
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PRESIDENTS
Peter Pfordresher: 2023-2024
President-Elect: 2022
Jessica Grahn: 2021-2022
President-Elect: 2020
Past-President: 2023
Elizabeth Hellmuth Margulis: 2019-2020
President-Elect: 2018
Past-President: 2021-2022
Justin London: 2017-2018
President-Elect: 2016
Edward Large: 2014-2016
President-Elect: 2013
Andrea Halpern: 2012-2013
President-Elect: 2011
Aniruddh Patel: 2009-2011
President-Elect: 2008
William F. Thompson: 2007-2008
President-Elect: 2006
Mari Riess Jones: 2005-2006
President-Elect: 2004
Ric Ashley: 2002-2004
Lola Cuddy: 2000-2002
Carol Krumhansl: 1999-2000
Eugene Narmour: 1995-1998
David Wessel: 1992-1995
Diana Deutsch: 1990-1992
Founding President