About
Hi!
I am working towards a Ph.D. at the University of Michigan. I hold a bachelor’s degree in psychology and music from the University of Minnesota, where I co-authored Basic Music Technology: An Introduction (2018) with my colleagues there. Then, I received my M.M. in Music Theory from Louisiana State University in 2020. My recent empirical works focus on emotional perceptions of lyrics and auditory distractions among musicians, published in Musicae Scientiae. My current dissertation research explores how vocal timbre facilitates the construction of gender identities in Japanese popular music, which received the Komar Award from Music Theory Midwest. Outside of academia, I enjoy performing the carillon at the bell towers in Ann Arbor.
Curriculum Vitae (updated September 2024)
ym curriculum_vitae .pdfEducation
Doctoral of Philosophy - Music Theory, University of Michigan (2025)
Master of Music - Music Theory, Louisiana State University (2020)
Bachelor of Arts - Psychology, University of Minnesota, Twin Cities (2017)
Dual degree in Music, minor in Japanese Studies
Publication
Yiqing Ma, David J Baker, Katherine M Vukovics, Connor Davis, Emily Elliott. 2024. “Lyrics and melodies: Do both affect emotions equally? A replication and extension of Ali and Peynircioğlu (2006).” Musicae Scientiae 28 (1): 174–186.
Awards and Grants
Arthur J. Komar Student Paper Award, Music Theory Midwest
Center for Japanese Studies, Summer Research Fellowship ($5,000)
The Guild of Carillonneurs in North America, Ronald Barnes Memorial Fund ($12,606)
Services
Co-Editor at Currents in Music Research
Languages
Mandarin Chinese (native or bilingual proficiency, L1)
Japanese (C2 professional proficiency, JLPT N1 certificated)
Classical Chinese (professional proficiency)
Korean (A2 basic reading and listening proficiency)
French (A1 basic reading proficiency)
Memberships
Society for Music Theory
Association for Asian Studies
International Association for the Study of Popular Music
Society for Music Perception and Cognition