EMA Summit Presentations

EMA seeks presentations proposals for the 2025 EMA Virtual Summit. The Summit will be presented online October 17-19 with select hybrid events in Montréal on Friday, October 17.

Early Music America encourages approaches that present early music from around the world within their historical and cultural contexts – Global Early Musics.

  • Presentations should highlight topics of interest for the North and South American early-music and historical performance communities.
  • Presentations must fall under one or more of the presentation categories: (category descriptions below)
    • Applied Artistic Research
    • Education
    • Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, and Access
    • Leadership, Entrepreneurship, and Administration
  • Collaboration is encouraged, including presentations that bridge areas such as instrument making, performance, research, entrepreneurship, education, and more.
  • Montréal area presenters may be considered for a hybrid presentation on Friday, October 17 at McGill University
  • Presentations may be given in English, French, or Spanish. Translation services will be available.
  • All selected presenters will receive an honorarium and free Summit registration in recognition of their contribution.
    • 30-minute presentations: $100 per presenter up to three ($300 max)
    • 60-minute presentations: $150 per presenter up to three ($450 max)
    • Honoraria will be distributed to the contact on the proposal. It is that individual’s responsibility to disburse fees to any other presenters.

Special Call: EMA invites proposals for engaging and impactful presentations that speak directly to the needs of today’s early-music professionals.

Alongside applied research and performance topics, we are especially interested in presentations that center on professional development, organizational management, and artistic entrepreneurship. Whether you’re addressing creative approaches to audience engagement, sustainable career development, inclusive programming, or organizational leadership, we want presentations that offer practical tools, innovative strategies, and clear takeaways rooted in real-world experience.

All required materials MUST be submitted via the submission form.

We strongly encourage all applicants to submit your application at least ONE WEEK prior to the deadline in case there are any issues with your application, so we can resolve them in a timely manner before the deadline.

With our switch to virtual, the Presentation Proposal form has been reopened.

The 2025 proposals will be accepted through Monday, May 19, 2025 at 11:59pm PT.

Submit a Proposal

All applicants will be notified in July 2025.

For further information, contact EMA.

Materials must be submitted using the presentation proposal form.

You will be asked to include the following information: 

  • First and Last Name
  • Primary contact email
  • Primary contact telephone
  • Official Affiliation (if you are officially representing an organization, ensemble, or institution with this presentation)
  • EMA Membership Status (Current EMA Membership is NOT required to submit a proposal.) 
  • Title of presentation
  • Brief description of the presentation suitable for publication on the Summit website if the proposal is accepted. (100 words max.)
  • Presentation Categories (descriptions below)
  • Selected presentation formats/length (descriptions below)
  • A complete description of your presentation, how it relates to selected presentation categories, specific materials as defined by the presentation formats above, and any other supporting details to strengthen your proposal. (500 words max)
  • What is your background and experience with the topic of your presentation? In addition, if your proposed activity touches upon Indigenous traditional knowledge, linguistic or cultural intellectual property of a culture you do not directly identify with, describe your relationship to this content and how appropriate protocols are/will be observed or addressed. (200 words max.)
  • Names and a 2-3 sentence bio for each panelist/presenter/performer involved with this presentation
  • Identification of any audio-visual technologies or keyboard instruments requested for this presentation.
  • Other resource requirements necessary for your presentation, if any.
  • Applied Artistic Research
    • Presentations that exhibit new research which further or enhance the understanding of performance practices.
  • Education
    • Presentations that exhibit new perspectives on educational practices.
  • Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, and Access
    • Presentations that demonstrate research and/or the implementation of strategic initiatives so the field of early music may represent and embrace a ever broadening range of histories and human cultures.
  • Leadership, Entrepreneurship, and Administration
    • Presentations that demonstrate innovative approaches to leadership, professional development, entrepreneurship, or administration within early-music organizations or which seek to critically examine current practices.  

Panel Discussion (60 minutes) – Submit topic, outline, and names of the participants and moderator. Allow 45 minutes for panel discussion and 10 minutes for questions/comments. 

Individual Research Presentation (30 minutes)– Submit complete research in any standard style format. Allow 20 minutes for reading and 10 minutes for questions/comments. Individual research sessions will be assembled by the Programs Committee after the selection of abstracts and may consist of two to four presentations.

Research Panel Presentation (60 minutes) – Groups of two to three related research presentations. Panels will be accepted or rejected in total; the Programs Committee will not break up panels to accept individual papers. Submit topics, panel outline, and the names of panel participants and moderator. Please allow time for questions and comments.

Lecture-Performance Presentation (60 minutes) – lecture-performance presentations may range in length from 30 to 45 minutes, should offer an appropriate balance of lecture and performance elements, and will be followed with 15 minutes of Q&A. Applicants should specify the length in their proposal. Applicants must also include in the supplemental materials a link to a video that is representative of the proposed performance content.

Workshops (60 minutes) – Workshops should directly engage attendees in discussion of a defined topic related to at least one of the Summit categories. Ideal workshop proposals will speak to a range of audiences’ expertise, and clearly demonstrate the ways in which attendees will be involved as active participants. The majority of the workshop time should be devoted to interactive dialogue and/or exchange. The bulk of the time allocated for the workshop should be devoted to engagement and opportunities for participants to ask questions and brainstorm ideas with colleagues.

Special-format Presentations (30 or 60 minutes) – Groups or individuals may propose sessions in other formats. These may include, for example, workshops on career-related or pedagogical topics; or exploration of topics or issues currently in the news that have connections to the theme and categories of this year’s Summit. Special-format session proposals may put forward up to four panel participants. Please specify 30 or 60 minutes in your presentation description.

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