UNDERGRADUATE COURSES
Music 103: Music in Context (4 credits)
This course is designed to introduce students to music in its social and cultural contexts from the seventeenth century to the present. We will pay special attention to developing a basic musical vocabulary and improving students' listening skills, while acquiring familiarity with a core repertory by composers from Henry Purcell to Julia Wolfe. Attendance at a live concert performance of music is required. Two short papers will explore connections between music and other disciplines, and the experience of music live in concert. No prior musical knowledge is necessary. Offered every semester. CLA-Breadth/Arts, CLA-Breadth/Humanities
Music 232/Film 232: Music and the Soundscape of Film (4 credits)
In the words of American film director David Lynch, “half the film is picture, the other half is sound;… they’ve got to work together.” In this course we will explore the soundscape of film and the role that music plays within that soundscape. The goal is to analyze how what we hear interacts with what we see when we watch a film. Students will learn basic listening/viewing skills by exploring the relationship between music and sound, sound and narrative, music and film form, and music and film style. Then, to understand how technology has influenced the role of sound in film, we will survey the most prominent technological developments from the early years of the twentieth century to the current day. Course work consists of a class presentation, quizzes on readings/viewings, and writing assignments building to a final paper based on a specific film soundscape. The lab is for the screening of films. No prior knowledge of music or film is necessary. CLA-Breadth/Humanities, CLA-Breadth/Arts, CLA-Breadth/Interdisciplinary
Music 301: Music of the Medieval, Renaissance, and Baroque Eras (4 credits)
An overview of Western art music from ancient Greece to the music of Bach and Handel. We will study a core repertoire of music in its historical contexts and explore debates of what these pieces may have sounded like when they were first performed. Students will also learn about the field of music history and the tools available for music research at Drew. At least one class trip to a performance of music before 1750 will be required. Enrollment priority: Limited to those with junior or senior standing. Prerequisite: MUS 103. Offered fall semester in alternate years. CLA-Writing Intensive, CLA-Writing in the Major
Music 303: Music of the Classic and Romantic Eras (4 credits)
An in-depth study of Western art music from the Enlightenment to Late Romanticism. We will study representative works in historical contexts ranging from the emergence of modern concert life in the mid-1700s to nineteenth-century Romanticism, nationalism, and exoticism. Students will apply the knowledge gained from coursework to the understanding of recent musicological scholarship. At least one class trip to a performance of music studied in class will be required.” . Enrollment priority: Limited to those with junior or senior standing. Prerequisite: MUS 103. Offered spring semester in alternate years. CLA-Writing Intensive, CLA-Writing in the Major
Music 311: Music of the Twentieth and Twenty-First Centuries (4 credits)
An exploration of the revolutionary changes in music composition, performance, and reception since 1900. Topics include the challenges of modernism and modernity, political upheaval, technological innovation, globalization, and the rising importance of popular music and jazz. Emphasis on learning effective communication of opinions about challenging musical repertoire through written assignments and oral presentations. At least one class trip to a performance of music studied in class will be required. Enrollment priority: Limited to those with junior or senior standing. Prerequisite: MUS 103. Offered fall semester in alternate years. CLA-Writing Intensive, CLA-Writing in the Major
Music 341: Topics in Music History (4 credits)
An in-depth study of a topic, viewpoint, or methodology in music history. Topic will vary according to faculty expertise and student interest. May be repeated as topic changes. Enrollment priority: Limited to those with junior or senior standing. Prerequisite: MUS 103. Signature of instructor required for registration. Offered spring semester in alternate years. CLA-Writing Intensive, CLA-Writing in the Major
Music 400/401: Music Capstone (4 credits)
The capstone for the music major is a two-semester sequence in which students bring together the creative, performance, historical and theoretical components of the major and place them in the wider context of the liberal arts. In the Fall semester, students meet as a group or individually with the Capstone instructor once per week. They attend designated concerts in the Concert Hall and participate in at least one field trip, selected with student input. Coursework consists of an online portfolio of their best work in the four components of the major, reflective written assignments, and class discussions about shared concert attendance. Students also develop and submit a formal proposal for their Capstone Project, which will be presented as part of the joint Music Capstone Festival in the spring. In the Spring semester, students prepare their Capstone Project, which will be individually designed but will meet specified goals in performance (creative, musical, verbal), writing/research, and creative work. Students will continue to attend designated concerts in the Concert Hall, to engage in departmental assessment, and to meet as a group to discuss shared concert attendance and progress on their Capstone Projects. CLA-Capstone
Humanities 217: The Modern Age in the West: Self and Society in the West, 1848 to the Present (4 credits)
The courses in the Western Humanities sequence offer rich possibilities for study. While the time frame for each course (Classical period, Middle Ages, Renaissance to Enlightenment, Modernity) is a constant, the emphasis on specific themes and materials will be determined by the faculty who currently teach the course. Offered spring semester in odd-numbered years. CLA-Breadth/Humanities, CLA-Breadth/Interdisciplinary
GRADUATE COURSES
Arts & Letters 801: Graduate Liberal Studies: What They Are, What They Do (3 credits)
This entry seminar introduces students to the work of multiple disciplines in the Arts and Letters Program. It produces initial familiarity with fields of humanistic inquiry from among the program’s nine concentrations. The seminar features a team of professors from several fields of study and practice taught in the CSGS, each of whom leads the seminar for two weeks. Through broad discussion and specific readings and assignments, classes preview what the individual disciplines “do” in our time. Students participate in the weekly conversations and write six short papers and a short interdisciplinary paper. The goal is to ground and enable each student’s interdisciplinary choices for M.Litt and D.Litt. work.
History 762: Music and Cultural History (3 credits)
This course introduces students to current theories and methodologies in musicology, defined by Joseph Kerman (Contemplating Music, 1985) as “thinking about, research into, and knowledge of all possible aspects of music.” The goal is for students to make connections between the disciplines of musicology and cultural history, with a predominant focus on modern Europe and North America. Topics covered include music research tools, music and politics, music and gender/sexuality, music and representation, sound and media studies, the study of music in/as performance, and popular music studies. Students engage with representative texts in musicology and apply musicological methodology to the study of primary sources in music of their own choosing. No prior background in music necessary.
History 896: Topics in Modernism (3 credits)
This course topic explores the Modernism movement of the late 19th and early 20th centuries from a variety of disciplinary perspectives, including literature, history, culture, art, and music. Topics will investigate the activities and output of those who felt the “traditional” forms of art, architecture, literature, religious faith, social organization and daily life were becoming outdated in the new economic, social and political conditions of an emerging fully industrialized world. Topic varies. Course may be repeated.