About Sonia:

Sonia Tamar Seeman is an Associate Professor of Ethnomusicology in the Butler School of Music at the University of Texas, Austin. She specializes in music of the Middle East and Southeastern Europe and has been working with Romani professional musicians since mid-1980s. She is the founder and director of UT’s Middle Eastern Ensemble, “Bereket” which brings together students, faculty, staff and community members in studying and performing regional, court, religious and popular music from these regions and their diasporic communities. Her research interests include issues of musicians’ labor and affect. She has published on Turkish and Macedonian Romani musicians, published liner notes and co-produced a commercial cd with Turkish clarinetist Selim Sesler.