Soprano. Music Theorist. Speaker.
Lydia Bangura (she/her) is a singer and a doctoral student in music theory at the University of Michigan. She also holds a bachelor’s degree from Northern Arizona University and a master’s degree from Roosevelt University, both in vocal performance. Bangura was selected in 2022 as an associate artist at the Atlantic Center for the Arts in New Smyrna Beach, Florida, where she had the honor of studying with mentor artist Dr. Philip Ewell. She is the founder and host of the music research podcast series, Her Music Academia, and serves as the student representative on the Society for Music Theory's Standing Committee on Race and Ethnicity. Bangura also serves on the graduate student committee for Project Spectrum. Her research interests include the intersection of performance and analysis, theory pedagogy, Black feminism/womanism in Black women’s music, and the instrumental works of Florence Price. Also a lifelong music performer, Bangura has experience studying violin, viola, and voice. She was recently the recipient of the National Association of Teachers of Singing Dillard Scholar Award. Her recent operatic roles include Pamina and Second Lady in Mozart’s Die Zauberflöte, Alcina in Handel’s Alcina, Amore in Gluck’s Orfeo ed Euridice, and the solo soprano in Judith Weir’s one woman show, King Harald's Saga.