Maeve Gillen (she/her) is a bassoonist, conductor, and third-year PhD candidate in Music Theory at the Eastman School of Music. Her current research centers on the intersection of bodies and politics in American minimalist music. Maeve’s other research interests include queer and trans* theory, theories of rhythm and meter, ska music, and the history of music theory within the American academy. In addition to her research, she is a teaching assistant for the Eastman Music Theory Department and serves as a member of the Eastman Theory Committee for Equity and Inclusion (ETCEI). Maeve is also reviews editor and social media manager for Volume 38 for Intégral: The Journal of Applied Musical Thought and is creator and host of the forthcoming Intégral Pod. 

Prior to her studies at Eastman, Maeve earned a BFA in bassoon performance from Carnegie Mellon University, as well as a Master’s of Music in bassoon performance from Rice University’s Shepherd School of Music. As a bassoonist, she has performed in Europe, across the United States, and has appeared as soloist with the Carnegie Mellon University Wind Ensemble as winner of their 2016 Concerto Competition. Her principal teachers are Benjamin Kamins, Nancy Goeres, and Anthony Georgeson. Maeve plays on a 10,000 series Heckel bassoon. As a conductor, Maeve has studied under Daniel Nesta Curtis as well as at the Pierre Monteux School and Festival under the late Michael Jinbo.

In addition to her music studies, Maeve is an avid home barista, enthusiastic candy consumer, and napper extraordinaire.