First Junior Scholar Opera Conference at the University of Bayreuth

On 24 and 25 June 2021, the Chair of Musicology (Prof. Dr. Kordula Knaus) and the Research Institute for Music Theatre (Prof. Dr. Anno Mungen) recently organised the first Junior Scholar Opera Conference to take place in Bayreuth. Since the Transnational Opera Studies Conference (tosc@bayreuth.2021) planned for 2021 had to be postponed to 2022 due to the pandemic, the format of the digital Junior Scholar Opera Conference was established to give young scholars the opportunity to present their current research topics to a broader public this year.

From numerous submissions, the international scientific advisory board selected 31 contributions, which were presented in online lectures. The young scholars from Europe, America, and Asia expounded research topics ranging from the question of Venetian opera institutions of the 17th century to the web-opera of the 21st century. The presentations, which were enlightening in every respect, led to diverse discussions on current issues in opera studies, which are set to continue next year.