Non-Majors Courses

** Syllabi and Course Texts will be added for each course on this page as they become available.

Music Theory for Non-Majors  (MPATC-UE 1022)

Introduces students to basic elements of melody, harmony, and rhythm and how they combine to create musical meaning. Emphasizes hands-on music experimentation, including guided in-class performance and use of music apps, software, and other technology. Students study a diverse body of musical examples from classical, popular, and world music via projects completed in and outside the classroom. Culminating project is an original musical composition. No prior musical experience required. Cannot count toward music major/minor.

Prerequisite: None. Credits: 2.
Semesters Offered: Fall & Spring. Syllabus: Spring 2026 Syllabus

Popular Music Analysis for Non-Majors  (MPATC-UE 1124)

This course introduces students to music analysis through close listening to popular music. Students develop the vocabulary and skills to describe, analyze, and interpret harmony, melody, rhythm, form, and timbre, using a variety of online music theory tools and AI applications for composition and analysis. Combining creative practice with critical listening, the course offers a hands-on, technology-driven approach to understanding how popular songs are constructed and how they communicate musical ideas. Intended for non-majors, no prior musical training is required. 

Prerequisite: None. Credits: 2.
Semesters Offered: Fall & Spring. Syllabus: Fall 2026 Syllabus

Music Fundamentals  (MPATC-UE 1300)

The development of fundamental musical skills and understanding through creative application of listening, singing, playing, writing, and analysis. Emphasis on aural development as essential to musical growth. Topics include staff notation, clefs, major and minor keys, time signatures, meter and rhythm, intervals, triads, 7th chords, Roman numerals, and rhythmic, melodic, and harmonic ear training. Open to all members of the University community.

Prerequisites: None. Credits: 2.
Semesters Offered: Fall & Spring.   Syllabus: Fall 2025 Syllabus.
Course Texts: Fundamentals Text, Theory Anthology, Aural Anthology. (Please note that these sites are only accessible to NYU students and faculty).  

Notes: This course is open to all students in the university. Music majors are required to take a placement exam before registering to determine placement. Non-majors and minors may register without an exam unless they wish to pass out of the course and begin at a higher level. Non-majors (but not minors) may alternatively take Music Theory for Non-Majors (MPATC-UE 1022); this course does not require an exam or permission for registration. 

Music of East and Southeast Asia, Past and Present  (MPATC-UE 1086)

A survey of traditional and recent music making from areas of East Asia (China, Tibet, Japan, Korea, Mongolia), Southeast Asia (Indonesia, Vietnam, Cambodia, Philippines, Myanmar) and the Indian subcontinent. In addition to examining the musical systems and techniques that define specific practices, readings and discussions cover issues from Asian American cultural studies. Open to undergraduate and graduate students familiar with music terminology and notation. 

Prerequisite: None. Students must be able to read music notation. Credits: 2.
Semesters Offered: Spring. Syllabus: Spring 2025 Syllabus

Music History: Gender and Sexuality in Music (MPATC-UE 1048)

This course explores the history of music as a space for signaling, performing and imagining gender and sexuality. We consider expressions of gender and sexuality in Western classical music (medieval era to the present) as well as in popular music (disco, glam rock, hip hop, synthpop), and in film. While course readings include essays from a variety of research areas, emphasis will be placed on a critical reading of current discourse against what we hear and see in the musical works.  

Prerequisite: None. Credits: 2.
Semesters Offered: Fall & Spring.  Syllabus: Fall 2024 Syllabus 

Global Soundscapes: A Survey of Musical Traditions (MPATC-UE 1123)

This course introduces students to selected musical sounds and practices from cultural groups around the world. Through exposure to distinct musical cultures, from traditional to transnational, students learn to define and apply musical concepts such as rhythm, timbre, melody, and form. The socio-cultural context and relevance of musical practices are also examined, touching on issues such as race, gender, embodied participation, technologies of production and circulation, and relationship to religion, the state, and other social structures. 

Prerequisite: None. Credits: 2.
Semesters Offered: Fall  Syllabus: Fall 2024 Syllabus

Music History: Music & Protest (MPATC-UE 1079)

Throughout history, individuals and communities have used music as a powerful means of expressing dissent and challenging injustices. This course explores how music has served as a vehicle for protest from antiquity to the present day. Through case studies, we examine music from various genres and periods, from medieval chant and spirituals to heavy metal. By analyzing these works, students gain insight into how music has been used to confront deities, systems, and authorities.

Prerequisite: None. Credits: 2.
Semesters Offered: Fall  Syllabus: Spring 2025 Syllabus 

Music History: American Popular Music (MPATC-UE 1042)

This course explores the history and cultural context of American popular music. Students will examine major stylistic eras, trace foundational musical traditions that shaped the genre, and analyze the evolution of diverse musical styles and their commercial expressions. Students will evaluate the complex relationship between social change, evolving technologies, and the music industry’s role in shaping popular taste. Through critical analysis and discussion, learners will construct cohesive arguments about the music's historical significance and cultural influence.

Prerequisite: None. Credits: 2.
Semesters Offered: Fall & Spring.  (Note: This course will run for the first time, Fall 2026); Syllabus: Fall 2026 

History of Western Art Music I (MPATC-UE 1041)

An exploration of the history of Western art music from the Middle Ages through to the Enlightenment, focusing on the musical styles, major developments, and influential composers of each era by engaging with representative works in their historical and cultural contexts.
Prerequisite: None. Students must be able to read music notation.  Credits: 2.
Semesters Offered: Fall & Spring.  (Note: This course will run for the first time, Fall 2026); Syllabus: Fall 2026