200

Prerequisite: MUSC 101 or exemption by examination; or permission of instructor.

A continuation of concepts from MUSC 101. Basic principles of 4-part voice leading, an introduction to species counterpoint, all non-harmonic tones, harmonic progression and sequence, cadences, phrases, periods and sentences. Voice leading for seventh chords and secondary dominants. Aural skills include recognition of all diatonic intervals, including compound intervals, triads and seventh chords in all inversions. Melodic and two-part dictation, sight singing with solmization.

In this course, we will study the use of music in movies. We will focus on two broad areas: 1) The analysis and interpretation of film soundtracks, with particular attention to the relationship between music and image; 2) A historical survey of soundtracks, with particular attention to style, genre, and influence from select moments in this history of film. The class will culminate in a final research paper in which students will write a critical exegesis and critique of select aspects of film music.

This course surveys the history of jazz from its origins in the early twentieth century to the approximate present. We will study the various stylistic milestones of jazz such as big band jazz, bebop, cool jazz, etc., as well as the cultural, social, and political circumstances that gave rise to these developments. Among the issues we will discuss are: the roots of jazz in blues music and other African-American music of the early twentieth century; the spread of jazz to white American culture in the 1920s; the birth of bebop against the backdrop of the Civil Rights Era; the use of jazz as Cold War propaganda; and the various “cross-over” jazz movements in the later twentieth century.

A survey of the non-Western musical cultures of Africa, Asia, Latin America, and North America within the context of ethnomusicology, aesthetics, cultural anthropology and ethnic diversity. 

Occasional special courses, taught on a one-time basis. Topics have included study trips to Europe, a Beethoven research class, and opera history and literature.