- Introduction: The Critical Imperative Powers, Devon and Perchard, Tom. 2017. Introduction: The Critical Imperative. Popular Music, 36(1), pp. 1-5. ISSN 0261-1430
- New Riffs on the Old Mind-Body Blues: “Black Rhythm,” “White Logic,” and Music Theory in the Twenty-First Century Perchard, Tom. 2015. New Riffs on the Old Mind-Body Blues: “Black Rhythm,” “White Logic,” and Music Theory in the Twenty-First Century. Journal of the Society for American Music, 9(3), pp. 321-348. ISSN 1752-1963
- Doing Musical Fieldwork with James G. Spady Perchard, Tom. 2013. Doing Musical Fieldwork with James G. Spady. The Western Journal of Black Studies, 37(2), pp. 104-112. ISSN 0197-4327
- Eric Drott, Music and the Elusive Revolution: Cultural Politics and Political Culture in France, 1968-1981 (Book Review) Perchard, Tom. 2013. Eric Drott, Music and the Elusive Revolution: Cultural Politics and Political Culture in France, 1968-1981 (Book Review). The French journal of popular music studies, 9(2), pp. 150-152.
- Hugues Panassié contra Walter Benjamin: Bodies, masses and the iconic jazz recording in mid-century France Perchard, Tom. 2012. Hugues Panassié contra Walter Benjamin: Bodies, masses and the iconic jazz recording in mid-century France. Popular Music and Society, 35(3), pp. 375-398. ISSN 0300-7766
- Thelonious Monk meets the French critics: Art and Entertainment, Improvisation, and its Simulacrum Perchard, Tom. 2011. Thelonious Monk meets the French critics: Art and Entertainment, Improvisation, and its Simulacrum. Jazz Perspectives, 5(1), pp. 61-94. ISSN 1749-4060
- Tradition, modernity and the supernatural swing: re-reading ‘primitivism’ in Hugues Panassié’s writing on jazz Perchard, Tom. 2011. Tradition, modernity and the supernatural swing: re-reading ‘primitivism’ in Hugues Panassié’s writing on jazz. Popular Music, 30(1), pp. 25-45. ISSN 0261-1430
- Hip hop Samples Jazz: Dynamics of Cultural Memory and Musical Tradition in the African American 1990s Perchard, Tom. 2011. Hip hop Samples Jazz: Dynamics of Cultural Memory and Musical Tradition in the African American 1990s. American Music, 29(3), pp. 277-307. ISSN 0734-4392
- Robin D. G. Kelley, 'Thelonious Monk: The Life and Times of an American Original’ (Book Review) Perchard, Tom. 2009. Robin D. G. Kelley, 'Thelonious Monk: The Life and Times of an American Original’ (Book Review). Jazz Research Journal, 3(2), pp. 212-219. ISSN 1753-8637
- Writing Jazz Biography: Race, Research and Narrative Representation Perchard, Tom. 2007. Writing Jazz Biography: Race, Research and Narrative Representation. Popular Music History, 2(2), pp. 119-145. ISSN ISSN: 1740-7133
- Eithne Quinn, 'Nuthin’ but a “G” Thang: The Culture and Commerce of Gangsta Rap’ (Book Review) Perchard, Tom. 2005. Eithne Quinn, 'Nuthin’ but a “G” Thang: The Culture and Commerce of Gangsta Rap’ (Book Review). Popular Music, 24(3), pp. 459-462.
Professor Tom Perchard
Tom’s teaching and research centres on the cultural history and historiography of jazz and popular music.
Staff details
Position
Head of Department, Professor of Music, Convenor of BMus Popular Music
School
Subject
Theatre, Music and Performance
t.perchard (@gold.ac.uk)
Website
I am Director of Research, convenor of the BMus Popular Music programme, and, with Prof. Keith Negus, co-director of the Popular Music Research Unit. My work centres on the history and historiography of jazz and popular music. My most recent book is After Django: Making Jazz in Postwar France (University of Michigan Press, 2015), and an edited anthology, From Soul to Hip Hop, was published in 2014 as part of Routledge’s Library of Essays on Popular Music. My first monograph was Lee Morgan: His Life, Music and Culture (Equinox, 2006). My research articles appear in the Journal of the Royal Musical Association, American Music, Popular Music, Jazz Perspectives, Popular Music and Society, the Journal of the Society for American Music and Popular Music History.
Teaching
Since 2008, I have designed, delivered or team-led the following modules: Popular Music History; Analytical and Contextual Studies; Approaches to Contemporary Music; Music Study Skills (Level 1); What is Jazz? (Level 2); Topics in African American Music; Music/Modernities; Research Essay; Advanced Popular Music Studies (Level 3); Encounters in African American Music; Popular Music and its Critics (Masters).
Areas of supervision
I am currently primary supervisor for three MPhil/PhD students: Jeremiah Spillane, ‘Identity, Improvisation and Influence: The Stylistic Development and Enduring Legacy of Django Reinhardt; Alex de Lacy, ‘Grime Music: Live Performance and the Creative Process’; Fiamma Mozzetta, ‘The Past in Contemporary Popular Music: Historical Meaning-Making in Creative, Institutional and Commercial Sites’. I have had one PhD completion: Jasmin Taylor, ‘Billie Holiday and the Gendered Politics of Jazz Creativity’ (2017). I have examined four PhDs. Since 2008 I have supervised over 20 Masters students’ dissertations.
Publications and research outputs
Book
- Twentieth-Century Music in the West Perchard, Tom; Graham, Stephen; Rutherford-Johnson, Tim and Rogers, Holly. 2022. Twentieth-Century Music in the West. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 9781108481984
- After Django: Making Jazz in Postwar France Perchard, Tom. 2015. After Django: Making Jazz in Postwar France. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press. ISBN 9780472072422
- From Soul to Hip Hop (The Library of Essays on Popular Music) Perchard, Tom, ed. 2014. From Soul to Hip Hop (The Library of Essays on Popular Music). Ashgate. ISBN 978-1-4094-2719-3
Edited Journal
- Special Issue: The Critical Imperative Perchard, Tom and Powers, Devon, eds. 2017. Special Issue: The Critical Imperative, Popular Music, 36(1). 0261-1430
Book Section
- The Vocalized Tone Perchard, Tom. 2019. The Vocalized Tone. In: Nicholas Gebhardt; Nichole Rustin-Paschal and Tony Whyton, eds. The Routledge Companion to Jazz Studies. Routledge, pp. 197-207. ISBN 9781138231160
- 'Introduction' Perchard, Tom. 2014. 'Introduction'. In: Tom Perchard, ed. From Soul to Hip Hop. Farnham: Ashgate, xi-xxix. ISBN 978-0-7546-2950-4
Article
- Technology, Listening and Historical Method: Placing Audio in the Post-War British Home Perchard, Tom. 2017. Technology, Listening and Historical Method: Placing Audio in the Post-War British Home. Journal of the Royal Musical Association, 142(2), pp. 367-399. ISSN 0269-0403
- Growing Old Together: Pop Studies and Music Sociology Today Perchard, Tom. 2017. Growing Old Together: Pop Studies and Music Sociology Today. Twentieth-Century Music, 14(2), pp. 335-343. ISSN 1478-5722
- Mid-Century Modern Jazz: Music and Design in the Postwar Home Perchard, Tom. 2017. Mid-Century Modern Jazz: Music and Design in the Postwar Home. Popular Music, 36(1), pp. 55-74. ISSN 0261-1430
Conference or Workshop Item
- Hearing, Seeing, Talking, Touching: Pop Music Experiences in the Postwar British Home Perchard, Tom. 2018. 'Hearing, Seeing, Talking, Touching: Pop Music Experiences in the Postwar British Home'. In: 8th William A. Kern Conference in Visual Communication. Rochester Institute of Technology, United States.
- Towards a History of Pop Music in the 20th-Century Home Perchard, Tom. 2018. 'Towards a History of Pop Music in the 20th-Century Home'. In: Research Symposium. Kunstuniversität Graz, Austria.
- Reimagining Popular Music History Perchard, Tom. 2017. 'Reimagining Popular Music History'. In: Research Colloquium. University of Oxford, United Kingdom.
Broadcast
- Historical consultant, Rock ‘n’ Roll Guns for Hire: The Story of the Sideman. BBC Films Perchard, Tom. 2017. Historical consultant, Rock ‘n’ Roll Guns for Hire: The Story of the Sideman. BBC Films.
- Programme guest, Jazz Now. BBC Radio 3 Perchard, Tom. 2016. Programme guest, Jazz Now. BBC Radio 3.
- Historical consultant, Things Called Jazz that are Not Jazz. BBC Radio 4. Perchard, Tom. 2016. Historical consultant, Things Called Jazz that are Not Jazz. BBC Radio 4..
Professional Activity
- Advisory Council member, Institute of Musical Research Perchard, Tom. Advisory Council member, Institute of Musical Research.
- Editorial Board member, 'Jazz Research Journal' Perchard, Tom. Editorial Board member, 'Jazz Research Journal'.
- Regular referee, 'Popular Music' Perchard, Tom. Regular referee, 'Popular Music'.
Project
- Leverhulme Trust Major Research Fellowship (£145,059): Popular Music in the British Home, 1945-90: Technology, Experience and Daily Life Perchard, Tom. 2020-2023 Leverhulme Trust Major Research Fellowship (£145,059): Popular Music in the British Home, 1945-90: Technology, Experience and Daily Life.
- AHRC Early Career Fellowship (£64,800). Jazz in France, 1934-75: Contesting the Politics of Nation, Art and World through Music Perchard, Tom. January-October AHRC Early Career Fellowship (£64,800). Jazz in France, 1934-75: Contesting the Politics of Nation, Art and World through Music.
- AHRB/C PhD award (2002-5) Perchard, Tom. 2005. AHRB/C PhD award (2002-5).
Research Interests
My research is focussed on the cultural history of jazz and popular music in the (long) 20th-century. I welcome enquiries from potential research students.