Congratulations to the 2023-24 Cykler Song Scholar Winners, Paula Alva Garcia and Madison Stepherson!
This award provides financial support and mentorship to graduate students interested in pursuing original research related to song and encourages the exploration of underexplored song repertoire.
“Being a Cykler Song Scholar means I have the time and space to explore songs and artists that interest me but may be underrepresented in academia!” Stepherson said. “It means that I can draw attention to music that I love with support and mentorship.”
Alva Garcia and Stepherson earned a $6000 research award and mentorship from Stephen Rodgers, Edmund A. Cykler Chair in Music and Professor of Music Theory and Musicianship, over the course of the 2023/24 academic year.
“Being a Cykler Song Scholar is an incredible opportunity to dive deeper into the idea of presenting a part of my culture to my new community here at the University of Oregon,” Garcia said. “Dr. Stephen Rodgers has shown he cares about his students' work and that motivated me to be better. Working with him has helped me grow as a scholar and as a person and I will be forever grateful for this opportunity.”
Paula Alva Garcia
About Paula’s Project:
Garcia’s project researches the music of Rosa Mercedes Ayarza de Morales (1881–1969), a Peruvian composer, choir conductor, promoter, and music teacher. Ayarza de Morales was a prominent figure in Peruvian music, dedicating her life to promoting and preserving Peruvian folklore. Her extensive collection of Peruvian music covers a diverse range of genres, including marineras, tonderos, zamacuecas, valses, yaravíes, tristes, pregones, huaynos, festejos, and more.
Garcia selected Rosa as her subject of research after learning about her in an undergrad history survey class. “If you're in the world of academic music in Peru, you probably have heard about Rosa Mercedes, but realistically speaking not everyone has,” Garcia said. “This is why I wanted to show my peers about her wonderful music. She has many pieces in different Peruvian genres, and I believe everyone should be able to enjoy that and get to know our Peruvian music a bit more.”
The outcome of her research will be a recital presented at the School of Music and Dance with fellow musicians from the Latinx community. Additionally, she will publish an article about Ayarza de Morales and record some of her songs that have not been recorded before, contributing to the preservation and dissemination of Peruvian music.
"For this opportunity, I only researched Rosa Mercedes, but the recital will encompass different Peruvian composers and genres, and with this I aim to show the richness of my culture,” she said. “I have been away from home for many years now and I have been very lucky to build a community here in Eugene. Now, I would like to share more about where I'm from and the music that made me who I am today.”
Madison Stepherson
About Madison's project:
Stepherson’s project explores the songs of country singer-songwriter Miranda Lambert. Despite country music’s popularity and Lambert's commercial success, both the genre and her songs are underrepresented in music scholarship.
“I grew up listening to country music, and Miranda Lambert was one of a handful of women who got airtime on radio in the early 2000s,” Stepherson said. “She was always a rebel who played by her own rules, and I wanted to explore her success!”
In a scholarly article,she investigates how Lambert constructs her unique feminine persona and uses it to communicate with her audience—specifically with listeners who identify as rural white women.
Specifically, Stepherson says Lambert creates a sense of community with these listeners and speaks to issues that they can relate to, such as domestic abuse and marital issues. In this way, she exists within the so-called “feminist countercurrent” of country music but at the same time presents a different version of female identity and empowerment that is partly at odds with mainstream, liberal feminism.
This research will become a chapter in Stepherson’s dissertation, “Vocality and Femininity in Post-Millennial Country Music.” She will also present her research at the annual meeting of the American Musicological Society in November, and at the Cascade Song Forum in January. Her research was also accepted for presentation at the annual meeting of the Pacific Southwest chapter of the American Musicological Society and the annual International Country Music Conference.