The Princeton University Department of Music and the Department of Psychology are thrilled to announce the addition of Elizabeth Margulis to the faculty. Professor Margulis is renowned for her fusion of music and cognitive science. Her contributions to this exciting field bring in her background in performance as well having earned a B.M. in piano performance from the Peabody Conservatory of Music — the interface between musical structure and a listener’s engagement is at the center of Professor Margulis’ work.

Her appointment paves the way for a new era of collaboration between the Department of Music and the Department of Psychology. Professor Margulis, who will be establishing a Music Cognition Laboratory at Woolworth, will be working closely with the many campus partners engaged in research in Cognitive Science. Speaking of this new partnership, Chair of the Department of Psychology Professor Ken Norman shares: “We are thrilled to welcome Elizabeth Margulis to Princeton. One of Princeton’s core strengths is interdisciplinary work — Professor Margulis’ arrival will bring together the Department of Music with Psychology and Neuroscience in new and exciting ways.”

Professor Margulis is particularly interested in the psychological experience of listeners without formal training in music. The widespread applications of her research, with music’s accessibility at its core, are an invaluable asset to the Department of Music and the larger campus community. The inclusive breadth of Professor Margulis’ work is well-matched with the Department of Music’s mission of interweaving music composition, scholarship, and performance.

Professor Margulis is looking forward to being part of such an interdisciplinary community: “I’m really excited about bringing the rich humanistic perspectives of the Music Department together with the methods and tools of cognitive science to learn more about human musical experiences. The potential for collaboration on these topics between students and faculty in multiple departments around campus is really attractive. I’m excited about serving as associated faculty in the Psychology Department and building bridges between the two programs. Princeton has a distinguished history of graduate and undergraduate training in music and I’m looking forward to working with students who are willing to move flexibly back and forth between science and the humanities to tackle big questions.”

For a complete list of Professor Margulis’ many awards and accomplishments, please visit her website.