Kai Hinrich Müller, born 1985 in Stuttgart, studied Musicology, Business Administration and Law at the Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität in Bonn. He received his doctorate in 2013 with a thesis on the history of the early music movement. In 2022 he completed his habilitation with a study on Richard Wagner’s prose writings and their reception in the Bayreuth circle. As a fellow of various foundations, he lectures at the Cologne University of Music and Dance since 2017. He also advises and curates international research and cultural projects, most recently "Musica non grata," "Wagner-Lesarten," and the exhibition "Richard Wagner and the Nationalization of Feeling" at the German Historical Museum Berlin. His research focuses on functions of music in social discourses, structures of musical life in the past and today, Richard Wagner and his reception in the 20th century, and the musical life of the interwar and Nazi periods. Further activities connect him with the Bauhaus-Archiv Berlin, the WDR and various concert and opera houses.

Publications (Selection)
2022 | Wagner-Lesarten. Bayreuther Register zu Richard Wagners Schriften.
2022 | "Richard Wagner, die Bühne und die Aussprache des Deutschen". In: Richard Wagner und das deutsche Gefühl, hrsg. von Raphael Gross, Katharina J. Schneider und Michael P. Steinberg. S. 153–158.
2020 | "Historische Aufführungspraxis und Experimentelle Archäologie. Zur Idee, aus heutigem aufführungspraktischem Handeln Rückschlüsse auf ein früheres zu ziehen". In: Musik, die Wissen schafft. Perspektiven künstlerischer Forschung, hrsg. von Arnold Jacobshagen. S. 113–134.
2018| Wagner-Lesarten – Richard Wagners "Der Ring des Nibelungen" im Blickfeld der 'Historischen Aufführungspraxis'.
2016 | Am Scheideweg? Perspektiven der Alte-Musik-Bewegung. 4 parts.
2013| Wiederentdeckung und Protest. Alte Musik im kulturellen Gedächtnis. 2013.

Project description
The political mandate of the opera: Freedom of the arts is essential for any democracy. But what role do the arts play when democracies come under pressure? On the centenary of Berlin's Kroll Oper, and in light of ongoing discussions about the future of musical theater after the pandemic, the fellowship focusses on the political mandate of opera and its relevance in contemporary democratic discourse. How can opera help protect democracy, and how can it itself become a fair, free, and equal art form? A series of transatlantic events and a book publication with contributions from international experts are planned.