David E. Rosengard was a math teacher who would later become the assistant superintendent of the Boston public schools.
Subotnik began her teaching career as an assistant professor of musicology at the University of Chicago (1973–80).
She received fellowships from the American Council of Learned Societies (1977), the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation (1977).
[5] Early in her career, Subotnik's academic interests focused on the German philosopher Theodor Adorno (of the Frankfurt school), as she argued that music could not be dissected and fully analyzed out of context, i.e. without understanding its place in society.
In recent years, Subotnik’s interests have turned to Tin Pan Alley and American musical theatre as well as critical theory.