Courses » » Music 298. Experimental Courses

Ethnomusicology of the Music Business

This course will introduce the student to the music business in the United States today, contextualizing the contemporary scene within a study of the history and evolution of the music business internationally over time. Primary texts will address key issues such as copyright, music publishing, marketing and promotion, artist development and management, and the huge influence of evolving technology on the business. We will also gain invaluable perspectives by reading biographies and memoirs of key figures in twentieth century music such as the impresario Sol Hurok, who first brought artists like Ravi Shankar and Andrés Segovia on tour to the United States in the 1930s; producer and recording engineer Phil Ramone, whose clients ranged from Sinatra to McCartney and Madonna; important and pioneering women artist-composers in the field including Bonnie Raitt and Joni Mitchell; and promoters such as George Wein, founder of the Newport Jazz and Folk Festivals.

Bach, Handel and the Baroque Style

Why is the music of Bach and Handel regarded as the culmination of the musical Baroque? A look at the lives and works of these two composers against the backdrop of the musical, cultural, social, and political history of 17th- and 18th-century Europe. Lecture, discussion, listening, and live performance. No prerequisites.

J.S. Bach

In a recent article about constructing a list of “the top 10 classical music composers,” Anthony Tommasini, chief music critic of the New York Times, announced, “the winner, the all-time great is . . . Bach!” Why is Bach’s legacy so enduring, his influence so profound, his music so enriching to mind and spirit? Through listening, discussion, lecture and live performance, this course explores these questions. Prerequisites: MUSC 113 or MUSC 114, or permission of the instructor.

Opera

A survey of the 400-year history of opera. Topics include: drama and music; singers and vocal technique; characterization and role stereotypes; interpretation, design, and staging; and social history, including patrons, opera houses and audiences. Examples will be mainly major European works, but will also include operetta, musical theatre, non-Western genres and film scores. Lecture, discussion, listening, viewing and live performance. No music reading ability required and no music theory prerequisite.