Global Arc

Whether through work songs, field hollers, spirituals, ragtime, blues, jazz, soul music, or gospel music, the African American folk music tradition is a distinct reflection of the African American experience throughout the history of America. It is the individualized approach to storytelling, the societal and cultural influences upon the artist, and the function of the music for both the artist and community that has cultivated a legacy of core musical elements, values, and performance practice that exist within these diverse styles. This course will explore these characteristics through historical inquiry and practical application.

A performance and creative course focusing on the playing of "tunes" in a variety of traditions, and the making of new tunes (tunesmithing). Tunes will be taught aurally and played together in a variety of ways, with an emphasis on style, rhythm, ornamentation, improvisation, and arrangement. Styles will include Old Time, Irish, Scandinavian, Bluegrass, and others, and will be taught primarily by a number of renowned guest musicians from around the world. Students will create new tunes, and learn relevant theory as needed. All instruments are welcome, including all bowed strings (not just violins), plucked strings, voice, and others.

An introduction to opera. Lectures deal with works by major composers, conventions of libretto poetry, singers and voice types, musical forms and dramatic pacing, and opera staging. Classes are devoted to close study of two works and the plays on which they were based. Two lectures, one class. Prerequisite: any music course, or some musical background, or instructor's permission. Open to freshmen.

A survey of vocal literature (excluding opera) from the fifteenth century to the present day. Lectures focus on representative works that illustrate historical developments in musical style, vocal texture, and text-music relationships; attention is also given to choral music's role as an institution of social engagement, an expression of collective identity, and the societal ability to rejoice, celebrate, critique, and mourn on an impersonal level.

A history of ballet from its origins in the French courts through its development into a large-scale theatrical spectacle in the 19th century and its modernist deformation. Emphasis will be placed on seminal dancers, choreographers, and composers, nationalist tradition, and socio-political context.

What is "folk" music, and who makes it? How do notions of authenticity, class, and capital affect the construction of "folk" identity? How has recording technology impacted oral traditions? This course introduces the folk music of America, focusing on Anglo-American ballads and hymns, African-American spirituals and blues, and Appalachian old-time/bluegrass, while also touching on various Native-American and ethnic traditions. We'll learn ballads by ear, sing from shape notes, debate various folk-song collectors' agendas, and discuss the 1960s folk revival. We'll also explore the influence of folk music in popular culture.

A study of the development of the symphony from its origins in the mid-18th century through the first half of the 20th. Representative works will be chosen for detailed study in the class meetings. Two lectures, one class. Prerequisite: any music course, some musical background, or instructor's permission.

A study of the concerto genre persisting through stylistic and formal changes from the 17th to the 20th centuries. Two lectures, one class. Prerequisite: any music course, some musical background, or instructor's permission.

Major developments of Western music up to about 1400, including some of the following: the origin and growth of chant, its liturgical context and musical properties; medieval secular song; early polyphony and Parisian organum; the French ars nova and Machaut; the Italian trecento; English medieval music. Prerequisite: a year of theory or instructor's permission.

Introduction to the history and current scholarship of European music in the period 1400-1600. The principal thread is compositional history; in addition, the course includes extensive coverage of these topics: aesthetics, orality/literacy, improvisation, gender and sexuality.