Susan Lewis
Professor - Musicology, Department of Music Research and Composition
Office: IGAB 1N20G
Phone: 519-661-3335
Email: susan.lewis@uwo.ca
Susan Lewis was appointed to the position of Vice-Provost (Academic Programs) at Western University for a five-year term beginning September 2, 2022. She also holds an appointment as a Tenured Professor of Musicology in the Department of Research and Composition in the Don Wright Faculty of Music.
Susan completed her undergraduate studies at Queen's University (BMus, BA Hons Music and Politics). She attended graduate school at the University of Arizona (Master of Music) and Princeton University (PhD and Master of Fine Arts). Prior to joining Western University, Susan held leadership roles as Director of the School of Music, Dean of the Faculty of Fine Arts, Associate Vice-President Academic Planning and Acting Provost at the University of Victoria.
In the words of Susan Lewis:
I began my studies as a performer and continue to bring that sense of exploration and discovery to all that I do. After graduate study and research in the US and Europe, I started my career at the University of Victoria, Canada in 2001 and joined Western University in 2022. I enjoy ongoing opportunities for collaboration, research, creativity and learning, whether here in London or around the world.
I believe that creativity is at the heart of innovation. Having taught and mentored hundreds of students over the past two decades, I see my role as an educational architect, who guides students to new discoveries as we explore ways that music transforms our lives and our planet.
As a scholar of early modern European music, my interests have grown and been shaped by my many collaborations and partnerships with colleagues in Canada and around the world. I am an active researcher and author of four books on music printing, Italian madrigals, the composer Claudio Monteverdi, and Baroque music. Across my research, I am focused on questions of musical and cultural networks, translation and reception, and the broader intellectual and artistic frameworks in which music flourished in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries.
In my academic leadership roles, I foster relationships and collaborations that support new program development, ensure the quality of academic programs, and cultivate a student experience enriched by research-inspired and experiential learning to best prepare our graduates for success. I have enjoyed sharing my expertise and learning from others through my roles on executive boards for a number of regional, national, and international organizations that support higher education, research and technology and scholarship, including the editorial board of the Journal of American Musicology Society, the Society for Seventeenth Century Music, and the Canadian Association of Fine Arts Deans.
