music theorist
My research primarily deals with popular music, timbre, synthesizers, and recording techniques. My methodology is presented in my Music Theory Online article “The Cultural Significance of Timbre Analysis: A Case Study in 1980s Pop Music, Texture, and Narrative.” I proceed from a technical analysis of timbre via spectrograms and incorporate cultural and sociological research. I also dabble in music and media (particularly video game music). You can read more about my research on my Research page and throughout my blog.
professor
I am an Associate Professor of Music Theory at George Mason University, where I teach undergraduate core theory and graduate courses in advanced theory topics.
soprano
I am an active performer. I have just begun a position in the Schola Cantorum at St. Matthew’s Cathedral in Washington, DC. Prior, I was in the St. Gregory Choir in McLean, Virginia. In New York, I sang in the Renaissance Street Singers chorus, which performs in New York City every other Sunday (all concerts are free and open to the public), as well as in a quartet at the Church of the Holy Innocents in midtown New York City. I am also a pianist.
background
I hold a Ph.D. from the City University of New York, M.M. from The Florida State University in Tallahassee, Florida, and B.M. from Ohio University in Athens, Ohio. I am originally from Cincinnati.
bios for publication
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Megan Lavengood (she/her) is Associate Professor and Director of Music Theory at George Mason University. Her research primarily deals with popular music, timbre, synthesizers, and recording techniques. Her current research project focuses on pedagogy of timbre analysis in the theory classroom. She is a soprano in the Schola Cantorum at St. Matthew’s Cathedral in Washington, DC.
Megan Lavengood (she/her) is Associate Professor and Director of Music Theory at George Mason University. Her research primarily deals with popular music, timbre, synthesizers, and recording techniques. Her article on the iconic Yamaha DX7 electric piano sound appears in the Journal of Popular Music Studies, and her methodology for timbre analysis is described an article in Music Theory Online. Her current research project focuses on pedagogy of timbre analysis in the theory classroom. As a pedagogue, she focuses on incorporating popular music as a step toward inclusivity of music students from non-traditional backgrounds. She has headed teams that won grants to redesign GMU’s core theory curriculum to be modular instead of sequential and to substantially expand the open educational resource Open Music Theory. She is a soprano in the Schola Cantorum at St. Matthew’s Cathedral in Washington, DC.
Megan Lavengood (she/her) is Associate Professor and Area Director of Music Theory at George Mason University in Fairfax, VA (about 20 miles from Washington, DC). Her research primarily deals with popular music, timbre, synthesizers, and recording techniques. Her article on the iconic Yamaha DX7 electric piano sound appears in the Journal of Popular Music Studies. She has published two articles in Music Theory Online: one outlining her methodology for timbre analysis, and another on video game music and topic theory. Her current research project focuses on pedagogy of timbre analysis in the theory classroom.
As a pedagogue, she focuses on incorporating popular music as a step toward inclusivity of music students from non-traditional backgrounds. She has headed teams that won grants to redesign GMU’s core theory curriculum to be modular instead of sequential (described in an article in Engaging Students: Essays in Music Pedagogy) and substantially expanded the open educational resource Open Music Theory.
Dr. Lavengood is originally from Cincinnati, OH, and holds a BM from Ohio University, an MM from Florida State University, and a PhD from the Graduate Center, City University of New York. Her primary instrument is piano, but is also a professional choral soprano, currently in the Schola Cantorum at St. Matthew’s Cathedral in Washington, DC.