PhD Studentship in Cognitive and Digital Organology

University of Pavia
Department of Musicology and Cultural Heritage

  • Start date: 1 October 2025
  • Application Deadline:  30 June  2025, 13 noon (Rome time)
  • Interviews: 19 September 2025

The Department of Musicology and Cultural Heritage is pleased to invite applications for a fully funded PhD studentship as part of the ERC Synergy Project REM@KE(Reconstructing Embodied Musical Knowledge at the Keyboard). The successful candidate will join an interdisciplinary research team based in Italy, Sweden, and the UK, collaborating with leading scholars in organology, empirical and historical musicology, music cognition, artistic research, psychoacoustics, and digital humanities. 

The studentship is offered within the Musiciology Curriculum of the Doctoral Program in  Sciences of the Literary and Musical Text. The wide variety of disciplines represented by the board members favours a strongly interdisciplinary approach. The PhD program is articulated into three different, though complementary, curricula, thus fostering interdisciplinary collaboration: Modern philology, Modern foreign languages and literatures, and Musicology.

The Research Project

The REM@KE project, a collaboration between the Universities of Pavia, Gothenburg, and York, explores how embodied knowledge has shaped keyboard musicianship and instrument building throughout history. The project combines historical analysis, organological study, empirical research, practice-based exploration, and physical and digital reconstruction. It investigates the diverse ways in which musicians, instrument builders, listeners, and educators engage with historical keyboard instruments and their replicas, inspiring innovative approaches to their reconstruction. 

The Doctoral student will conduct original research on Girolamo Zenti and other Italian-related builders. They will combine organological analysis, archival research, and digital humanities, actively working on the development of the research framework Cognitive and Digital Organology (CaDO).

The doctoral student will also collaborate on developing and testing a documentation protocol for keyboard instruments, participate in research trips to museums, and help design experimental settings for single components relevant to sound production. 

The doctoral student will focus on Microecology 1&2, supervised by PIs Guido (UniPV) and Speerstra (UGOT), working in a team with doctoral students and other researchers at UGOT.  

Supervision and Research Environment

The PhD student will be based at the Department of Musicology and Cultural Heritage, University of Pavia, under the supervision of Prof. Massimiliano Guido and Prof. Joel Speerstra. The candidate will have the opportunity to collaborate with international scholars and performers across the three hubs of the REM@KE project. Doctoral seminars will be offered within the Doctoral Program’s general curriculum and the Research Project network.

The project’s working language is English. 

 

Funding and Benefits

The studentship is fully funded for three (full-time) years  and includes:

  • Tax-free stipend of € 16.243,00  per year.
  • An extra stipend of up to 50% of the monthly stipend for research periods spent abroad. 
  • Travel allowance for conferences, workshops, and research trips will also be provided up to 20% of the annual stipend.
  • An extension of one year is possible if required by the research project.

Eligibility

The studentship is open to both EU and international applicants. Candidates should meet the following criteria:

Essential Criteria

  • A Master’s degree in Musicology, Organology, or a related discipline.
  • Exceptional research and analytical skills, with specific experience in archival research related to musical instruments.
  • Ability to work both independently and collaboratively within an interdisciplinary team.
  • Strong understanding of keyboard organology and historical research.
  • Familiarity with the documentation of musical instruments, especially keyboards.

Desirable Criteria

  • Interest or experience in historical performance practices
  • Interest or experience in music cognition.
  • Knowledge of historical sources relating to the music performance of keyboard instruments.
  • Interest in practice-based research and digital humanities.
  • Understanding of acoustics and keyboard instrument-building techniques.

How to Apply

To apply, follow the instructions in the main call, available at https://phd.unipv.it/bando-41/ For the English version, see https://phd.unipv.it/call-41/ by 30 June  2025, 13  (Rome time).

  • CV (max 4 pages).
  • Personal statement (max 1,500 words)
  • Master thesis abstract
  • Research proposal related to Girolamo Zenti (max 5,000 characters) in English.
  • Sample of written work (7,000–10,000 words, e.g., thesis chapter or research paper).
  • Degree transcripts and certificates (for completed and ongoing qualifications).
  • Two academic references (contact details required).

 

Shortlisted candidates will be invited for an interview on 19 September 2025, at 11. For international applicants, the interview will be online.

Informal Enquiries

For an informal discussion about the opportunity, please contact:

We encourage applications from diverse backgrounds and are committed to fostering an inclusive research community.