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Thanks to their longstanding presence on the Italian peninsula, the Jews of Italy have a rich history of engagement with all aspects of Italian culture, including music. Through creative adaptation and reinterpretation, Italian Jews expressed their Jewishness by drawing upon the musical styles of the majority culture, while at the same time enriching both the theory and practice of the Italian musical tradition as Italians. This conference will convene musicologists, historians, and scholars of Jewish Studies and other disciplines to explore Italian-Jewish musical life from the Renaissance to the end of WWII. Special attention will be paid to the relationship between sacred and secular music; the diversity of musical styles in Jewish sub-cultures; the interaction of music with other cultural forms (e.g., literature, theater, dance, and architecture); and the role of music in expressing Jewish modernity. In addition to a keynote lecture and traditional academic panels, the conference will feature a live concert of music composed by Italian Jews, graduate student presentations, and supplementary performances by visiting artists.