PeopleofSuperintelligence

Researcher

Gerhard Widmer

Gerhard Widmer is a professor whose research joins artificial intelligence with music. He studied computer science at TU Wien and then held a Fulbright grant at the University of Wisconsin, Madison, from 1984 to 1986. In 2004 he became a professor at Johannes Kepler University Linz, and in 2009 he received the Wittgenstein Prize. The European Research Council gave him two Advanced Grants, in 2015 and 2021, and in 2025 ISMIR gave a ten-year test-of-time award for a paper on joint tempo and meter tracking that he co-wrote. As of October 2026, he heads the Institute of Computational Perception at Johannes Kepler University Linz and is deputy director of the AI Lab at the Linz Institute of Technology.

Now at
Johannes Kepler University of Linz and Linz Institute of Technology
Works
475
Citations
10,773
h-index
50

Publication numbers from OpenAlex, as of 15 October 2026.

Timeline

  1. 1984

    Graduating from TU Wien

    Studying computer science at TU Wien, he graduates with distinction in 1984.

  2. 1984–1986

    A Fulbright grant in Madison

    A Fulbright grant takes him to the University of Wisconsin, Madison, for computer science and music.

  3. 2004

    Professor in Linz

    At Johannes Kepler University Linz, he becomes a professor in 2004.

  4. 2009

    The Wittgenstein Prize

    In 2009 he wins the Wittgenstein Prize, endowed with 1.4 million euros, and works at the interface between computing, AI and music. The FWF grant for the award runs from March 2010 to March 2017.

  5. 2015–2021

    Two ERC Advanced Grants

    The European Research Council awards him two Advanced Grants, in 2015 and in 2021.

  6. 2021

    Election to the Austrian Academy

    The Austrian Academy of Sciences elects him in 2021.

  7. 2025

    A test-of-time award from ISMIR

    In 2025 the ISMIR conference gives him its 10-year test-of-time award for a paper on joint tempo and meter tracking, written with Florian Krebs and Sebastian Böck.

  8. As of October 2026

    Institute head in Linz

    He is a professor and head of the Institute of Computational Perception at Johannes Kepler University Linz, and deputy director of the AI Lab at the Linz Institute of Technology.

Sources and credits

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  1. Gerhard Widmer – Wikipedia de.wikipedia.org. Checked 14 October 2026.
  2. Gerhard Widmer | Institute of Computational Perception jku.at. Checked 14 October 2026.
  3. Projectdetail - FWF fwf.ac.at. Checked 14 October 2026.
  4. Gerhard Widmer | Falling Walls falling-walls.com. Checked 14 October 2026.
  5. Test-of-Time Awards | ISMIR ismir.net. Checked 14 October 2026.