Daniel J. DiCenso

Biography

Daniel J. DiCenso, ’98 is Associate Professor and Chair of the Department of Music at the College of the Holy Cross (2024-2026 and 2027-2030). His work spans academic leadership, curriculum development, faculty governance, musicology, and teaching, with a longstanding interest in building connections among scholarship, performance, and the public life of the arts. As Chair, he has overseen departmental strategic planning, faculty recruitment, budgeting, curricular revision, assessment, student recruitment, and the expansion of artistic programming while leading one of the College's largest and most visible arts department through a period of significant growth.

Prof. DiCenso's scholarly work focuses on medieval liturgy and Gregorian chant, particularly the history of chant transmission during the eighth and ninth centuries. He is Co-Editor of Plainsong & Medieval Music, the journal of the Plainsong & Medieval Music Society published by Cambridge University Press, and previously co-edited Chant, Liturgy, and the Inheritance of Rome (Boydell & Brewer, 2017), a collection honoring the distinguished musicologist Joseph Dyer. His current research includes a monograph on the ninth-century Monza Sacramentary-Antiphoner, a handbook of medieval Latin liturgy for Brill, and ongoing work on medieval liturgical books, chant transmission, and the emotional expression of Gregorian chant. His scholarship has been supported by fellowships from the Gates Cambridge Trust, the Yale Institute of Sacred Music, and the Belgian American Educational Foundation.

Beyond medieval music, Prof. DiCenso has developed innovative teaching and public humanities initiatives that bring together music scholarship, performance, and community engagement. His courses include Gregorian Chant, History of Western Music, Introduction to Music, African American Music: From Blues to Rap, Music and Gay Rights, Hip Hop and the Politics of Expression, and the History of Rock. Working closely with Laurence Rosania and the Office of the College Chaplains, he developed Holy Cross's interdisciplinary Gregorian Chant course, in which students study medieval history, liturgy, notation, and performance before presenting a public service of sung Vespers in St. Joseph Memorial Chapel. Since its introduction, hundreds of students from across the College have participated in the course.

Prof. DiCenso earned his Ph.D. in Musicology as a Gates Cambridge Scholar at the University of Cambridge under the supervision of Professor Susan Rankin. He also holds a Ph.D. in Education (Teaching, Learning, and Curriculum) and an M.S.Ed. from the University of Pennsylvania, an M.A. in Classical Studies from Villanova University, an M.A. in Musicology from the University of Pennsylvania, and a B.A. in Music and Medieval & Renaissance Studies from the College of the Holy Cross. The combination of advanced study in musicology and education has shaped his longstanding interests in curriculum design, pedagogy, assessment, faculty development, and academic leadership.

Outside the classroom, Prof. DiCenso has held leadership roles in numerous scholarly organizations, including the American Musicological Society, the Henry Bradshaw Society, the International Medieval Congress, the North American Academy of Liturgy, and the Gates Cambridge Scholars' Alumni Association. He also works closely with the Office of Distinguished Fellowships and Graduate Studies, mentoring Holy Cross students applying for nationally competitive scholarships, including the Gates Cambridge Scholarship.