Research, Education, and Performance History.
My name is William Storz, and I am a music historian, educator, harpsichordist, and viola da gamba player located in Seattle, Washington. I received my MA in music history in 2023 from the University of Washington where I presented my thesis, titled “Queer Songtellers: LBGTQIA+ Stories Told Through Covers of Dolly Parton’s Music.” During my time at UW, I was awarded with a Boeing fellowship both years of my program. In 2020, I graduated from the University of California, Davis with a BA in Musicology and Minor in History writing about basso continuo realization in Bach cantatas. I was awarded for excellence in early music performance and service to the department. As an avid educator, researcher, and performer, I strive to instill my passion in all my students, colleagues, and audiences.
Across my career I have taught and acted as a teaching assistant for courses in music history for both majors and non-majors of music. I have also led and coached small chamber ensembles from a variety of musical periods. I have extensive experience teaching small baroque chamber groups and viola da gamba consorts. In addition to teaching in group settings, I teach individual students on the harpsichord and viol. While at UW I started and directed a viol consort at the university utilizing their instrument collection. I additionally gave harpsichord lessons to beginners and advanced keyboardists who were approaching the instrument for the first time. Other one-on-one lessons with students have comprised of music theory, including 16th and 18th century counterpoint, composition, and music historical research. As an educator, working with students and seeing their interest and skills grow is inspiring and drives me continue my work.
As a music historian I have an extensive range of research interests including: musical covers, queerness in country and folk music, music and identity, music and community, organology, 16th – 18th century music, and basso continuo realizations. My diverse interests allow me to connect with a wide range of musicians and grant me a great deal of flexibility in my teaching. My most current research examining queer narratives in covers of Parton’s music examines popular music and its entanglement with queer culture that are new and exciting while also diving into the discourse of the function of musical covers.
I have had the opportunity in my musical career to perform in many different ensembles and on different instruments. While today I focus on early music playing harpsichord and viola da gamba, I spent several years singing in choirs and playing bassoon and double bass in orchestras. As a harpsichordist and viol player I have enjoyed playing in viol consorts and attending workshops such as Viols West and Conclave. I have also performed in larger baroque orchestras on such works as the Bach passions. On both viol and harpsichord, I have been part of many small groups playing solo and trio sonatas. Being both a performer and historian I have the unique opportunity to combine these fields and I do so any time I can.
In my spare time I enjoy reading the back log of books in my library, baking, traveling, knitting, and visiting with family and loved ones. I enjoy learning new instruments and learning about how they work as well as their history. I like to research, write, perform and teach. Whether I am on a Zoom call telling some friends about something I read or discussing musical covers in front of a class, I take the opportunity to engage the material and those around me whole heartedly.