David Kidger is Associate Professor of Musicology at the Department of Music, Theatre and Dance, where he is coordinator of the Undergraduate and Graduate Music History area.
Originally from London, England, he holds a MA degree in Musicology from the University of California, Santa Barbara, and a Ph.D. degree in Musicology from Harvard University. Since 2004 he has also taught for the Harvard University Summer School, and has been invited to return there to teach for the summer 2007 session. He teaches core music history classes for the music major curriculum at Oakland University, as well as graduate classes on Introduction to Graduate Research, the History of Opera, and Topics in Renaissance Music.
Kidger's main research publication to date is in the Garland/Routledge Composer Research Guide series, "Adrian Willaert: A Guide to Research," published in 2004. The book takes the approach of a thematic catalog in providing a complete primary and secondary source list for each music work, as well as a complete appraisal of the scholarly literature on Willaert and his music.
In Fall 2005, Dr. Kidger received an Oakland University Faculty Research grant, to support sabbatical research on the biography of Adrian Willaert. Visiting archives and libraries in Venice, Bologna and Modena, he examined all known documents related to Willaert' biography. This research provides the foundation for a new book-length study on the life and works of Adrian Willaert.
His edition "C.P.E. Bach: 4 Symphonies for 12 Obbligato Parts," published in 2005 by the Packard Humanities Institute, California, is the first volume in the new complete works edition of the works of C.P.E. Bach. These symphonies, originally published in 1780, show a new and original conception of the symphonic genre of the time. The project received support from the Packard Humanities Institute and was coordinated by the Bach-Archiv, Leipzig. He edited the Complete Works of Petrus de Domarto for Antico Edition, and his edition of De Domarto's Missa Spiritus Almus was used for the recording by the Binchois Consort, directed by Andrew Kirkman.
Dr. Kidger has presented research papers nationally and internationally at musicology conferences, including the American Musicological Society, the Renaissance Society of America, the International Musicological Society, the Annual Medieval and Renaissance Music Conference and the Royal Musical Association. He has published reviews in Renaissance Quarterly, Early Music, and Music and Lettters, and has written program notes for the Detroit Symphony Orchestra. He is also on the program committee for the Midwest chapter of the America Musicological Society.
He serves on the Oakland University Senate Athletics Committee (2005-2008), the College of Arts and Science Committee on Appointments and Promotions (2006-2009), and the Department of Music, Theatre and Dance Graduate Committee. He is chair of the Technology Committee for the Department of Music, Theatre and Dance, and acts as departmental liaison to Kresge Library. Dr. Kidger is advisor for the B.A. (Music) program and the Music minor programs. He has played viola in the Pontiac Oakland Symphony Orchestra since 1999.