Ian Bates is Assistant Professor of Music Theory at the Lawrence University Conservatory of Music in Appleton, Wisconsin. His research interests include 20th-century tonality, theories of harmonic function, music theory pedagogy, and the music of Vaughan Williams. Ian has presented papers at annual meetings of the Society for Music Theory, Music Theory Midwest (MTMW), the New England Conference of Music Theorists, the Music Theory Society of New York State, and the Canadian University Music Society. He also served as chair of local arrangements for MTMW's 2014 annual meeting. His dissertation theorized post-common-practice diatonic harmony and large-scale diatonic relationships in the music of Vaughan Williams, and his article “Vaughan Williams’ Five Variants of ‘Dives and Lazarus’: A Study of the Composer’s Approach to Diatonic Organization” appeared in Music Theory Spectrum in 2012.

Prior to his appointment at Lawrence, Ian taught at Western University and at Yale University. He completed his Ph.D. in Music Theory at Yale, from which institution he also holds Master of Arts and Master of Philosophy degrees. A native of Ontario, Canada, he earned a Bachelor of Music in theory and composition from Western. A pianist, Ian is also an Associate of the Royal Conservatory of Toronto (A.R.C.T.) and studied at Western with Canadian pianist Ronald Turini.