Elaine Fefferman
Assistant Professor of Music and Technology
School of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences
Education
- PhD (2014) Princeton University (Music Composition)
- MFA (2009) Princeton University (Music Composition)
- BA (2004) Yale University (Music Composition)
- BA (2004) Yale University (Near Eastern Languages & Civilizations)
Research
Lainie Fefferman makes music by putting dots on lines, drawing curves in software, writing code in boxes, and finding new and surprising ways to wiggle her vocal chords.
General Information
Lainie Fefferman makes music by putting dots on lines, drawing curves in software, writing code in boxes, and finding new and surprising ways to wiggle her vocal chords. Her most recent commissions for the creation of original works have been from Recap Quartet, Greg Oakes, JACK Quartet, Aaron Larget-Caplan, Ensemble Decipher, Tenth Intervention, So Percussion, Make Music New York, Experiments in Opera, ETHEL, Kathleen Supové, TILT Brass, James Moore, Eleonore Oppenheim, and Dither. Her one-woman voice & electronics feminist song project "White Fire," an electroacoustic meditation on the heroines of the Hebrew Bible, was released as an album on Gold Bolus Recordings in 2023. Her album "Here I Am," a 13-person oratorio based on nine different Torah texts, was released on New Focus Recordings in 2024. She is a co-founder and director of New Music Gathering, an annual conference/festival hybrid event for the international New Music Community. She had a wonderful time getting her doctorate in composition from Princeton University and is a programming/performing member of Princeton-based laptop ensemble Sideband. She is half of the synth pop duo The Beverage Station, whose premiere album "Little Grey Cells" will be released on Gold Bolus Recordings in 2025. She currently teaches and advises a fabulous bunch of music makers as a professor of Music & Technology at Stevens Institute of Technology and recently concluded her time as artist in residence at Nokia Bell Labs. For more info, visit: http://lainiefefferman.com
Institutional Service
- Academic Appeals Committee Member
- Academic Appeals Committee Member
- Junior Faculty Board of Representatives Member
- M&T NTT Position Search Committee Member
- M&T Tenure Stream Position Search Committee Member
- Music & Technology - m&T Minor Coordinator Chair
- Academic Appeals Committee Member
- Junior Faculty Board of Representatives Member
- Music & Technology - m&T Minor Coordinator Chair
- Junior Faculty Board of Representatives Member
- Micro Zoom Dance Parties Chair
- Music & Technology - m&T Minor Coordinator Chair
- Junior Faculty Board of Representatives Member
- M&T Student Concert Production Chair
- Director of Scene Lab Chair
- Director of Scene Lab Chair
- CAL Academic Advising Data Collection Chair
- Brought Industry Professional guests to M&T courses Chair
- M&T Concert Production Chair
- Junior Faculty Board of Representatives Member
- Creating appendix to tenure guidelines surrounding creative output of faculty Member
Professional Service
- New Music Gathering Co-founder / Co-director
- New Music Gathering Co-founder / Co-director
- New Music Gathering Co-founder / Co-director
- New Music Gathering co-director
- NIME (New Interfaces for Musical Expression) Invited Reviewer for New Instruments for Musical Expression Conference
- International Computer Music Conference Invited Reviewer of proposals for ICMC 2020
- SEAMUS (Society for Electro-Acoustic Music) Invited Reviewer for Society of Electro-Acoustic Music
- Audio Mostly Invited reviewer of music technology paper submissions
- NIME Invited reviewer of performance submissions
Consulting Service
ICMC (International Computer Music Conference)
NIME (New Interfaces for Musical Expression)
SEAMUS (Society of Electroacoustic Music)
NIME (New Interfaces for Musical Expression)
SEAMUS (Society of Electroacoustic Music)
Professional Societies
- ACF – American Composers Forum Member
- ACF – American Composers Forum Member
Selected Publications
White Fire on Gold Bolus Recordings
https://goldbolus.com/whitefire/
Here I Am on New Focus Recordings
https://www.newfocusrecordings.com/catalogue/lainie-fefferman-here-i-am/
https://goldbolus.com/whitefire/
Here I Am on New Focus Recordings
https://www.newfocusrecordings.com/catalogue/lainie-fefferman-here-i-am/
Courses
HMU 192 Music Appreciation
HMU 199 Creative Collaboration 1
HMU 210 Introduction to Music Technology
HMU 211 Introduction to Electronic Music
HMU 310 Composition
HMU 314 Electroacoustic Composition
HMU 405 Advanced Topics in Electronic Music
HMU 498 Ensemble
HASS 498 Thesis Preparation
HASS 499 Senior Thesis
HMU 199 Creative Collaboration 1
HMU 210 Introduction to Music Technology
HMU 211 Introduction to Electronic Music
HMU 310 Composition
HMU 314 Electroacoustic Composition
HMU 405 Advanced Topics in Electronic Music
HMU 498 Ensemble
HASS 498 Thesis Preparation
HASS 499 Senior Thesis