Joe Maurer is delighted to be back in his home state of Massachusetts, teaching ethnomusicology courses at MIT. He received a Ph.D. in Ethnomusicology from the University of Chicago (2020) and a B.A. in Music, Public Policy, and Education from Brown University (2010). His primary areas of research include heritage music education in Chicago immigrant communities, maritime music/sea chantey revivalism, and the nonprofit arts education sector. Maurer’s published work includes “‘Now We’re Actually Playing Music’: Sones and Parental Transformation in Mexican Chicago” in the journal Ethnomusicology, a forthcoming article on arts education and social-emotional learning, assorted research reports on arts learning in Chicago Public Schools, and entries on global folk music, sea chanteys, and the city of Chicago in several music encyclopedias. He enjoys teaching on these topics and many others.
Prior to pursuing a doctoral degree, Maurer worked with FGLI high school students as a college access counselor in Providence and Boston. Beyond his academic career, he enjoys public- and nonprofit-sector work, including strategic planning and education program evaluation for arts organizations.
His primary focus as a musician is folksinging, both solo and in small group harmony. His assorted other musical roles have included accordionist in a maritime rock band, piano accompanist, musical theatre performer, pit orchestra violinist, and ice skating mellophonist. He is currently learning to play the tenor recorder. When not making, teaching, or studying music, he enjoys time with his family, hiking, cycling, gardening, and cooking.