Cross-Cultural Dialogues

“To write about a fine scholar and a good friend is a double privilege. The excellence of Michael Beckerman’s work is evident not only in authored volumes on Janácek and Dvorák, numerous edited volumes—most recently, with Aleš Brezina, Martinu and His World (2025)—but also in signal articles, not least his pioneering study from 1986 ‘In Search of Czechness in Music.’ Along with these achievements are his abilities as a networker ‘par excellence’, always deployed generously in establishing connections between scholars and scholarly communities. Above all, perhaps, is his stature as a sure friend to so many in our fields of endeavor. He stands alone as a figure of wisdom, sympathy, creative engagement and when the time and place are right, fun.”

* Jan Smaczny, Sir Hamilton Harty Emeritus Professor of Music, Queen’s University Belfast *

"Cross-Cultural Dialogues: Essays in Honor of Michael Beckerman is an inspiring book for an inspiring scholar. Just as Beckerman has nurtured community through his scholarship, collaborative projects, and mentorship, so this book forges community among those who have benefited from his work and wisdom – whether as colleagues, former students, or friends from his own student days. The volume is remarkable for its topical and disciplinary breadth: it brings together scholars from across the spectrum of music studies, history, literature, film, and philosophy, and grapples with issues in music and the arts from the sixteenth to the twenty-first centuries. [...] Overall, the volume is a major contribution not only to the areas of Beckerman’s scholarship – among them Czech and Eastern European music, music in concentration camps, musical form and meaning – but also to music studies more generally.

Cross-Cultural Dialogues stands out for both its collaborative vision and scholarly breadth – not only within musicology, but across the humanities more generally, with forays into history, poetry, and philosophy. There is a palpable sense of the contributors coming together to celebrate Michael Beckerman – as scholar, mentor, colleague, and friend – while simultaneously continuing the conversation that his work has set in motion. The title of this essay collection captures the collegial nature of the enterprise while encouraging an open exploration of music and cultural practices around the world. This approach leads to new readings of Beckerman’s scholarship, a deepened appreciation of his impact on the field of music studies, widening application of his ideas, and the continued rediscovery of figures and histories that have yet to receive sustained attention. The book makes a major contribution to scholarship – offering a model for future Festschriften and highlighting the power of scholarship infused with professional generosity."

* Joe Davies, visiting professor, NYU Abu Dhabi and Chair of the Schubert Institute United Kingdom *

"The volume represents an extraordinary scholarly achievement and a deeply thoughtful tribute to Professor Michael Beckerman. The editors are to be congratulated for the immense work involved in commissioning, curating, and bringing together such a rich and diverse collection of essays. The intellectual content across the chapters is of high quality, and the volume’s thematic coherence, breadth, and spirit of collaboration are deeply impressive.

The volume displays an impressive range of original research, interpretation, and methodological innovation. Many essays offer fresh archival discoveries, new analytical insights, and novel interdisciplinary perspectives that extend and deepen the field of Czech and Central European music studies. The editors have curated an excellent set of contributions that are both intellectually adventurous and personally resonant, reflecting Michael Beckerman’s own example of imaginative, boundary crossing scholarship. The originality lies in exciting, individual findings and in the collective reframing of familiar repertories and ideas through new cultural, philosophical, and transnational lenses.

This Festschrift makes a substantial professional contribution to the discipline, enriching the historiography of Czech, Central European, and transatlantic musical cultures. It documents the continuing vitality of these fields while highlighting Beckerman’s profound and lasting influence on generations of scholars. The essays complement rather than duplicate existing work, and there is little overlap among contributions beyond shared engagement with Beckerman’s themes and methodologies. Together, they form a wide-ranging yet coherent portrait of a discipline shaped by his intellectual generosity and curiosity."

* Nicole Grimes, associate professor of music, Trinity College Dubl