Kira Thurman

Kira Thurman is an assistant professor of Germanic Languages and Literatures and History at the University of Michigan. A classically-trained pianist who grew up in Vienna, Austria, Thurman earned her PhD in history from the University of Rochester in 2013 with a minor field in musicology from the Eastman School of Music. Her research, which has appeared in German Studies Review, Journal of the American Musicological Society (JAMS), Opera Quarterly, and Journal of World History, focuses on two topics: the relationship between music and national identity in European history, and Europe’s historical and contemporary relationship with the black diaspora.

Fields of Study:

• Modern Central Europe
• Music and Sound Studies
• Black Studies