MUS 358: Music in World Cultures
TR 8:30-9:50 AM Room: CLS 250 + Discussion Section
Beyond humanly organized sound, music is a tool to think with. The different ways in which humans use and talk about music can teach us much about ourselves and each other. In this class, you will learn how people raised in a variety of cultures produce and perceive music-dance as well as what concepts scholars have developed to understand these expressions more generally. Beyond exposing you to musics that you may not be familiar with, my goal is for you to apply the concepts you learn here to think critically about the multiple types of cultural performances you experience in your own lives. This course fulfills the IC (International Cultures) Multicultural Requirement.
There is a required eTextbook for this class and you will also need an i-clicker. The text is:
Arnold, Alison E. and Jonathan C. Kramer. 2015. What in the World is Music? New York: Routledge.
It can be rented at VitalSource:
There is an optional print version that can also be purchased new or used, but it is offered only for those who wish to have a paper copy of the eText. The required eTextbook has links to videos and Spotify audio that you will need to study for the class. Any model of iClicker that you have should work.
MUS 607: Decolonizing Music
M 3:00-5:50 PM Room: 215 Frohnmayer Music Building
“Decolonizing music” begins with understanding how the major age of European colonialism (1492-mid 20th century) affected and continues to influence the way we think about music. During this period, certain ideas about what music is and how music works were repressed in the name of the modernity and progress. The result is financial and social inequity between different types of music practitioners and consumers. Particularly vulnerable are musicians and listeners from colonized peoples. What might happen if we were to recuperate some of these previously repressed ideas? What can we do to create a more just and equitable world for music cultures? This seminar is open to graduate students in all disciplines.
All reading and listening materials will be made available through the Canvas course site.