Liz Rockwell is a graduate teaching associate and PhD student in musicology and ethnomusicology at The Ohio State University. Originally from southwest Pennsylvania, Liz graduated summa cum laude from West Virginia University in 2022 with a Bachelor of Arts in Music and Women’s and Gender Studies as well as a minor in world music. At Ohio State she intends to complete graduate minors in Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Studies and in Nonprofit Management.

Liz’s academic interests involve studying the role of social identities in music traditions across the world, the impact of arts and cultural tourism on communities, and the use of applied musicology as a form of community service and engagement. She has conducted exploratory fieldwork in Ghana and Brazil. Her current focus is on Afro-Brazilian percussion traditions, including blocos afros in Salvador, Bahia, and the intersection of arts and cultural tourism and music-forward social programs in Brazil.

Her previous research has included projects on the rudimental drumming traditions of France, America and Switzerland, an analysis of Dagara gyil pedagogy, and a survey of the symptoms and effects of imposter syndrome in collegiate music students. She has performed with a variety of ensembles at WVU and Ohio State, such as percussion ensemble, steel band, symphony orchestra, wind symphony, Taiko ensemble, Brazilian samba band, and African drum and dance. Liz was also named an Honors Laureate, Robert F. Munn Library Scholar, and a WVU Foundation Outstanding Senior during her undergraduate career.

At Ohio State, Liz currently serves as the president of the Graduate Music Student Association (GMSA) and the social media and communications chair for EMIC: The Graduate Student Interest Group for Expressive Culture.