Dr. Kristina Jacobsen, Assistant Professor of Ethnomusicology in the UNM Department of Music, is awarded the 2018 Woody Guthrie Book Award for the most outstanding book in popular music by the International Association for the Study of Popular Music (IASPM-U.S.).
“Jacobsen’s study of the ways in which Diné, or Navajo, country music musicians and fans articulate their sense of belonging and identity through country music, a genre deemed incongruous with and even antagonistic to Navajo sensibilities, is a remarkable example of popular music scholarship. Jacobsen’s work is particularly timely as the racialization of indigeneity continues to erase indigenous presence from popular music and cultural production writ large. Jacobsen’s reflexive positioning as a non-Diné (white) scholar as well as a performing country musician in bands with Navajo musicians, Jacobsen provides a strong model for ethical and sensitive ethnographic work.”
2019 Prize Committee (Kevin Fellezs, Alexa Woloshyn, and Kate Galloway), Woody Guthrie Book Award.
Dr. Peter Gilbert Honored with UNM Research and Creative Works Leadership Award
ALBUQUERQUE, NM — Dr. Dr. Peter Gilbert, Associate Professor of Theory & Composition in the UNM Department of Music, has been named a recipient of the prestigious Research and Creative Works Leadership Award at the University of New Mexico. The award recognizes recently promoted faculty who have demonstrated exceptional achievement in research and creative work. Nominees are selected by the provost following a rigorous external review of their scholarly and artistic contributions.
Dr. Michael Hix Selected for Prestigious UNM LIFT Leadership Program
Albuquerque, NM — Dr. Michael Hix, Professor of Voice and Chair of the Department of Music at the University of New Mexico, has been selected to participate in the 2026 cohort of the Leadership Innovation for Faculty Transformation (LIFT) program, a competitive...
A Luminous Journey in Sound: Star Trail, New CD by José Luis Hurtado
Star Trail, the newest CD by composer and pianist José Luis Hurtado, invites listeners into a vibrant universe of sound, one that shimmers, expands, and unfolds like light moving through space. Released on the Kairos label, the album presents a collection of works that transform listening into an immersive, almost physical experience.