With its conferral of the 2026 Herta and Kurt Blaukopf-Award, the mdw has once again recognised excellent dissertation projects that stand out for their innovative methods, interdisciplinary approaches, and socio-political relevance. This award carries forward the legacy of Herta Singer-Blaukopf (1924–2005) and Kurt Blaukopf (1914–1999), two scholars persecuted under National Socialism whose work had a lasting impact on both musicology and music sociology, and simultaneously helps to position the mdw as an international centre of academic research.

What do musique mixte, gender roles in Austrian film, and music mediation have in common? The answer is that all three are topics of mdw dissertations recognised with the 2024 Herta & Kurt Blaukopf Award.

On 8 June 2022, the Herta and Kurt Blaukopf Award for outstanding mdw dissertations was conferred for the second time. This award, worth € 2,000 per awardee, went to four excellent early-stage researchers. The dissertations thus recognised demonstrate the broad spectrum of research currently being pursued at the mdw and once again bear witness to the quality of the findings being produced by our University’s doctoral candidates.