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Margaret Beissinger focuses on Balkan cultures, particularly Romanian, Serbian, and Bulgarian traditions, emphasizing oral tradition, oral epics, and Romani traditional culture music-making. Her fieldwork has taken her across southern Romania, especially during the 1989 revolution, where she engaged with Romani musicians. Beissinger is particularly interested in the marginalized Roma performers within the context of traditional popular culture and the implications of oral epic genres in southeastern Europe. Her recent projects include a co-edited volume titled 'Manele in Romania: Cultural Expression and Social Meaning in Balkan Popular Music', published in August 2016, which examines the contemporary 'Oriental' Balkan ethnopop genre performed by Romani musicians. Currently, she is working on two book projects that explore the culture and performance of Romani musicians and their families in Romania, as well as the broader cultural landscape shaped during the post-communist period. Beissinger is also involved in co-editing a volume related to South Slavic oral traditional poetry, further contributing to the field with her extensive research and practical engagements.
GRE scores are not accepted. Ph.D. is the primary degree; students are not required to hold an M.S.E. prior to admission.