This course explores our globalized musical present and the major forces (social, political, economic, technological) that have shaped it over the last few centuries. Attention is focused on music-making as a form of human activity within and between cultures. Course content ranges over music of diverse times and places. No prior experience in music is needed. [GM2, H]
The focus of this course is the development of music in the civilizations of Europe and America, not only as an art with its own history, but also as a mirror of the artistic, social, political, and economic development of the Western world. Students are introduced to a basic repertoire in classical music. Lecture/listening. [H]
An exploration of the history, styles, and performance practices of music of African, Asian, and Indian cultures. The study of the music in the context of cultural traditions and institutions and its influence on the music of Europe and America encourages students to examine music from a cross-cultural perspective and to experience the music through performance. Lecture/assigned listening. [GM2, H]
This course explores the use of computers to compose and record music in a digital format using industry standard digital audio workstation software, Pro Tools. The course explores modern methods of music production, audio engineering, microphone techniques, as well as music composition. Weekly assignments engage students in exploring specific audio production techniques and features of digital audio software. The final capstone project involves utilizing all skills developed in the course to compose a multi-track musical composition using both digital audio and MIDI.
Students will explore a variety of approaches to creating new music. Using samples and found sounds, as well as compositional planning, we will develop works individually and through collaboration. We will experiment with the use of text as pre-compositional material to jumpstart music projects and expand the scope and form of music we create and we will compose instrumental music as well. We will work in digital audio workstations and with acoustic instruments. Students will discuss and analyze music, present original music, and contribute pieces towards a group compilation album. [GM1, H, V]
Students will explore a variety of approaches to creating new music. Using samples and found sounds, as well as compositional planning, we will develop works individually and through collaboration. We will experiment with the use of text as pre-compositional material to jumpstart music projects and expand the scope and form of music we create and we will compose instrumental music as well. We will work in digital audio workstations and with acoustic instruments. Students will discuss and analyze music, present original music, and contribute pieces towards a group compilation album. [GM1, H, V]
Every road has a sense of place, a collective sound identity, and a story. Through readings, maps, and the many musical styles that make up the United States, we’ll “travel” significant roadways around the country and explore indigenous, immigrant, and African American contributions to our music identity. Designing and (virtually) traveling your own road trip with accompanying mixtape, you’ll gain a deeper understanding of the United States’ musical story, from its origins to contemporary times. [H, GM1, GM2, V]
Can music “model” alternate social realities? In this class we will compare musical collectives envisioned as utopian communities with ensembles that join(ed) protest movements, from the late 60’s to the current day. We will study and perform improvisation-based pieces from 1960’s “avant-garde” scenes including Cornelius Cardew’s amateur Scratch Orchestra, alongside songs from his People’s Liberation Music group; we will study open-form works by student-activist musical collectives as well as performances staged by composers, workplace bands, and political performance troupes in support of people’s liberation movements around the world. We will analyze and adapt pieces and create some new ones. What political lessons can we learn by studying amateur music ensembles that attempt(ed) public social interventions? Participants from all/any [musical] backgrounds are welcome. [H, GM1, GM2, V]
This introductory course in music theory begins with a review of elemental concepts including pitch and rhythm notation, intervals, scales, and triads. The primary focus is a study of the Common Practice Period encompassing diatonic harmonic practices since the nineteenth century, with correlated sight singing, ear training, and keyboard assignments. One-hour laboratory. [H]
This course is intended for those students who wish to begin study of the piano, particularly those with limited or no music reading skills. The class meets 50 minutes twice a week for 12 weeks. Music reading in both treble and bass clefs, as well as basic piano techniques such as scales, hand position, and other technical concepts are taught. 1/4 course.
Group Voice Class is applied voice lessons in a group setting for the individual who has an interest in singing but has never formally studied. It is designed to introduce students to their natural voice by learning an applied vocal technique used in solo singing. This technique can be applied to both classical and non-classical singing styles. (0.25 cr)
Private instruction for students who wish no academic credit. Twelve private lessons of 45 minutes each. Considered an audited course. (Additional course fee)
This is the primary course for students interested in private instrumental or vocal instruction. Twelve lessons of 45 minutes each. Jury examination is required.0.25 credit course. No more than eight 0.25 credit courses may be counted toward the 32/36 course credit requirement for the degree. (Additional course fee)
This course is reserved for advanced students who have completed a minimum of two semesters of Music 141 with grades of A.'' Both jury examination and exemplary recital participation are required. Twelve lessons of 60 minutes each. 0.25 credit course. No more than eight 0.25 credit courses may be counted toward the 32/36 course credit requirement for the degree. (Extra fee)
Active participation in an approved musical ensemble. Regular attendance at rehearsals and all performances in addition to other requirements as deemed necessary. 0.25 credit course. No more than eight 0.25 credit courses may be counted toward the 32/36 course credit requirement for the degree.
Active participation in an approved musical ensemble. Regular attendance at rehearsals and all performances in addition to other requirements as deemed necessary. 0.25 credit course. No more than eight 0.25 credit courses may be counted toward the 32/36 course credit requirement for the degree.
Active participation in an approved musical ensemble. Regular attendance at rehearsals and all performances in addition to other requirements as deemed necessary. 0.25 credit course. No more than eight 0.25 credit courses may be counted toward the 32/36 course credit requirement for the degree.
Active participation in an approved musical ensemble. Regular attendance at rehearsals and all performances in addition to other requirements as deemed necessary. 0.25 credit course. No more than eight 0.25 credit courses may be counted toward the 32/36 course credit requirement for the degree.
Active participation in an approved musical ensemble. Regular attendance at rehearsals and all performances in addition to other requirements as deemed necessary. 0.25 credit course. No more than eight 0.25 credit courses may be counted toward the 32/36 course credit requirement for the degree.
Active participation in an approved musical ensemble. Regular attendance at rehearsals and all performances in addition to other requirements as deemed necessary. 0.25 credit course. No more than eight 0.25 credit courses may be counted toward the 32/36 course credit requirement for the degree.
Active participation in an approved musical ensemble. Regular attendance at rehearsals and all performances in addition to other requirements as deemed necessary. 0.25 credit course. No more than eight 0.25 credit courses may be counted toward the 32/36 course credit requirement for the degree.
The Lafayette College Contemporary Music Ensemble performs chamber and small ensemble music by composers who are living or have been active in the 20th/21st centuries. Instrumentation for the ensemble is flexible and dependent upon the repertoire, often including video, lighting, electronics, and improvisation. Concerts will include music by master, emerging, or student composers representing multiple and diverse voices in the contemporary sound world. Membership in the ensemble is by audition or invitation of the directors.
This course is a performing ensemble designed to provide qualified vocalists with an opportunity to perform advanced literature from a variety of genres and styles. Attendance at all rehearsals and performances is required. Participation is by audition. 0.25 credit course. No more than eight 0.25 credit courses may be counted toward the 32/36 course credit requirement for the degree.
Active participation in an approved musical ensemble. Regular attendance at rehearsals and all performances in addition to other requirements as deemed necessary. 0.25 credit course. No more than eight 0.25 credit courses may be counted toward the 32/36 course credit requirement for the degree.
The Lafayette Latin American Music Ensemble performs a variety of styles of Latin American music including salsa, bolero, son, cha, tango, and bossa nova. Each semester the group focuses on a different genre of Latin music, and the selected pieces are presented to the Lafayette community. The course will include discussions of historical context of the music we will play, as well as aspects of music theory with respect to performance and small ensemble playing. (0.25 credit)
The development of basic piano skills is an important building block in the comprehensive study of music. The piano class is the foundation upon which students learn basic skills to physically and aurally integrate their study of music theory and musicology. Piano proficiency enables one to produce the vertical and horizontal structures of music on an instrument that is visual and tactile in its universality.
This course surveys the music of the Western ''cultivated'' tradition from 1600-1915 (the ''Baroque,'' ''Classical,'' and ''Romantic'' periods). The repertoire is presented through lectures, discussion, readings, and sound recordings. Emphasis is on an analysis of and engagement with actual musical compositions, representative of the principal stylistic developments characteristic of each of the three major style periods. [GM2, H]
This course examines music since 1915 through extensive listening. Course content includes a survey of Western art music as well as examples of blues, jazz, musical theater, rock, and non-Western music. The repertoire is presented through a study of readings, sound recordings, films, and lectures. Students encounter the communities, histories, traditions, and newer forms of expression of music since the early decades of the 20th century.
This course is designed to further develop skills and applications of music technology as introduced in MUS 104. It explores modern recording, signal processing, microphone techniques; music composition, midi sequencing and digital audio editing using advanced computer hardware and software. The course is project-based, using industry standard digital audio workstation software, Pro Tools.
This course continues the study of advanced diatonic harmonic practices, with correlated sight singing, ear training, and keyboard assignments. Concepts covered include: inverted triads in four-part harmony, harmonic cadences, dominant seventh chords in four-part harmony, non-harmonic tones, jazz extended chords, improvisation, and exercises in basic form and analysis. One-hour laboratory.
This course is designed for students who have strong interests in jazz improvisation and performance. Students will expand their historical knowledge and listening skills, study jazz harmony in detail, analyze song forms and chord structures, enhance keyboard skills, learn to sing improvised solos, transcribe and perform solos from recordings, and perform regularly in class. Students will develop specialized musicianship skills with many assignments being individualized and project-bases.
One-hundred-fifty years ago, Charles Darwin published his treatise on the origin of species, and Richard Wagner composed his opera Tristan and Isolde. This course examines nineteenth-century [mis]applications of Darwinian theories, reflected in Wagner's operas, replete with subliminal references to the superiority of Germanic peoples and inferiority on non-Germanic peoples. We shall: read Darwin and texts reflecting his influence in Germany; view Wagner's operas; and consider Wagner's influence on Adolf Hitler. [H, GM2, V, W]
The goal of these courses is to explore the indigenous music of selected cultures and regions independent of Western common practice. Through guided listening performance activities and cultural analysis students experience both the aural landscape and the larger phenomenon of how music functions within culture. Possible topics include the musical culture of a region (e.g. Africa Asia Latin America) or a country (e.g. Japan China India). Descriptions are available through the department office and the Registrar's Office.
This course will introduce the principal musical traditions of Japan from ancient court music (Gagaku) to contemporary genres. Integrated readings and discussions of social institutions, religious practice, and historically rigid class hierarchies will inform the musical explorations. Through guided listening and performing exercises we will explore Shinto and Buddhist rituals, important theater traditions (Noh and Kabuki), classical instrumental forms (koto, shamisen, shakuhachi), and various folk-related genres. [H, GM2]
This course will explore the diversity of musical expression and related cultural traditions found in selected regions of West Africa. Examination, analysis, and performance of ritual and ceremonial-based musical genres and investigations of related cultural practices will form the core of study that will also incorporate comparative readings in African history, religions, geography, the impact of colonialism, and the global spread of West African music. [H, GM2]
This course focuses on the influence of Latin American and Caribbean popular music on the United States. Possible areas of concentration may include Salsa, Latin Rock, Bossa Nova, Latin Jazz, and Latin American music in the media. Students learn about the music through readings, recordings, and live performance. The course also introduces students to issues of musical creolization, appropriation, and music as an emblem of identity. [GM1]
This course will examine outstanding musical achievements of women throughout history and in contemporary society. Women's global contribution to music will be explored through diverse styles of composition and performance, active participation in education, and patronage. Topics include music and power, gender, class, challenging the ''roles,'' and performing identities. In an active classroom environment, students will have ample opportunity to challenge, lead, and discover their own contribution to the arts through valid argument. [GM1, H, W]
How is political ideology conveyed through storytelling and composition in musicals? We will look at a variety of significant productions of American musicals from the mid-twentieth century to current day. We will focus on works by Steven Sondheim and his collaborators, including an unproduced and abandoned collaboration with Leonard Bernstein, The Race to Urga, and then look at the “creeping virus” of jukebox musicals, the dominant new commercial form. As we study music and text, we will consider how the politics of musicals interacts with and reflects real estate, finance, and labor conditions on Broadway and the larger economy. [GM1, H, V]
This course introduces students to the processes and techniques of musical composition. Students will study major compositional techniques and compose short pieces in those styles. A final project will allow students to combine these techniques as needed. Emphasis will be placed on listening to the works of other composers so as to explore the technical and aesthetic issues these works present. Students will work in acoustic media, and will utilize the Williams Center Computer Lab. Students should have an interest in or experience with contemporary concert music.
Courses focus on an area of music theory, analysis, or composition. Possible topics include the theoretical concepts that underlie an era of school (e.g. the New Viennese School), a theoretical/ compositional discipline such as eighteenth-century counterpoint, or a special aspect of analysis such as form and structure in music. Descriptions of current offerings are available through the department office and the Registrar's Office. Lecture/discussion/ laboratory/listening.
Recent scientific evidence indicates that the benefits of music extend to the brain. Further insights into how music affects the brain may lead to new education methods and ways to treat neurological disorders. We will take a multidisciplinary approach to understanding the connection between music and neural function. By the end of this course students will have a broad understanding of research in this field and specific knowledge about brain mechanisms mediating music perception and performance. [H]
In this course, we shall concentrate specifically on understanding Italian music during its ''Golden Age'' (1300-1900): the six centuries from the Middle Ages (the time of Dante) through the period of the ''great tradition'' of nineteenth-century Italian opera. We shall simultaneously consider the larger question of what constitutes a national music. In addition, Italians' music has been deployed at various times in their history to create a more local (regional or dynastic-familial) political and cultural identity, and the course will examine such uses of music as well. Students may not earn credit for both MUS 260 and MUS 360. [GM2, H]
Possible topics include the historical development and the repertoire of an era or school'' (e.g. the Baroque Era French Music Music in the United States the History of Jazz). These courses typically investigate the master works and lives of the principal composers of the era as well as the social and musical concepts that influenced the period. Classes involve student presentations field trips and live and videotaped performances as well as sound recordings. Descriptions of current offerings are available through the department office and the Registrar's Office. Assigned listening. Lecture/laboratory.''
A study of songs written by dozens of great composers and lyricists (Kern, Hammerstein, the Gershwins, Rodgers & Hart, Berlin, Porter, Arlen, Harburg, Ellington, Mercer, Fields, and many more), and performed by Ella Fitzgerald, Louis Armstrong, Billie Holiday, Fred Astaire, Bing Crosby, Judy Garland, Frank Sinatra, Nat Cole, Sarah Vaughan, Stan Getz, Oscar Peterson, and many more. [H]
Explores the early history of jazz, America's principal contribution to world musical-culture. Considers jazz antecedents-the blues, ragtime-and origins in early twentieth century New Orleans. Then considers the ''Chicago School,'' early territory bands, ''New Orleans revival,'' big band tradition of the 1940s, and small group sessions and beginnings of bebop. Although there is consideration of the historical/music-historical backgrounds, emphasis is on the music itself, through original recordings and scholarly transcriptions, which permit detailed analyses of jazz characteristics at critical moments in history. Students may not earn credit for both MUS 263 and MUS 363. [H, GM1]
Whether it recollects a fond memory or inspires a future dream, the sounds of the piano often transport us. Each story can then be retold or improvised for a new community of listeners. This course will explore the diverse literature of the keyboard, as well as consider the pianists who tell these stories, giving us a glimpse of the philosophies, the historical context, the social circumstances, and the artistic atmospheres where this music was created. [GM1, GM2, H]
A survey of music in the experience of African-Americans and peoples of African descent in the Caribbean, from the earliest historical sources (ca. 1650) to ca. 1950. The principal genres – music in formal worship services; spirituals; camp-meeting songs; concert music; music in the theatre; music and the institution of slavery; jubilee singing; ragtime; the blues; jazz; gospel; and compositions in the cultivated tradition – are studied in historical context, with an emphasis on the music itself. Students may not earn credit for both MUS 265 and MUS 365. [GM1, GM2, H, V]
Florence occupies an enviable place in the historical imagination. It was the city of Dante Alighieri, Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo Buonarotti, Niccolò Machiavelli, and Galileo Galilei. But its music-historical importance is less well-understood. And, yet, Florence was the birthplace of opera and the piano, Italy’s two greatest contributions to world musical civilization. This course tells the story of music in Florence during its “golden age,” from the Middle Ages to the seventeenth century. [GM1, GM2, H, V]
This course examines the musical, cultural, and historical significance of the works of Wolfgang
Amadeus Mozart. Students will approach Mozart and his works through an interdisciplinary
lens, encompassing musicology, cultural history, political history; musical instrument design,
construction, and tuning; literature, religion, as well as short forays into questions of gender
and race.
Possible topics include the historical development and literature of opera, the symphony, chamber music, vocal and choral music, music for keyboard instruments, etc. These courses typically investigate the master works in a genre, the lives and contributions of composers in several areas, and the social, technological, and musical factors that have affected the development of that genre. Classes involve student presentations, field trips, and live and videotaped performances as well as sound recordings. Descriptions of current offerings are available through the department office and the Registrar's Office. Lecture/laboratory.
Opera is a theatrical genre where the text is sung throughout, and the music contributes indispensably to the work's dramatic and emotional impact. This course considers what makes the experience of opera so compelling for so many. It surveys a handful of the greatest operatic masterpieces from the beginnings of opera to the nineteenth-century ''great tradition'' and considers contrasts of comic and serious opera, music that narrates vs. music that provides lyrical commentary, etc. Students may not earn credit for both MUS 272 and MUS 372. [GM2, H]
Topics include Bach, Mozart, Beethoven, Verdi, Stravinsky, to name a few. These courses investigate the master works in the important genres, the life and musical development of the individual studied, and the social factors that affected the time period in which he/she lived. Classes involve student presentations, field trips, and live and videotaped performances as well as sound recordings. Descriptions of current offerings are available through the department office and the Registrar's Office. Lecture/laboratory.
This course is designed to improve the student's ability to recognize, notate, and reproduce vocally fundamental musical gestures such as melodies, rhythm and meter, basic chord progressions, cadences, and modulations. To achieve this goal, students will work on a variety of exercises, including but not limited to sight singing (using solfege), harmonic and melodic dictation, and error detection.
This course will explore the fundamentals of creating original sounds using analog and digital synthesis. We will begin with an overview of the physics and properties of various wave shapes, their acoustic and aesthetic properties, and their uses within vintage and modern synthesizers. We will progress to using oscillators as modulation sources, and from there explore programming original sounds in software emulations of several vintage synthesizers. Students should have an understanding of DAW software.
This course furthers the study of the ''Common Practice Period'' with chromatic language since the eighteenth century, with correlated sight-singing, ear training, and keyboard assignments. Concepts include diatonic 7th Chords in 4-part harmony, borrowed chords and augmented 6th chords, chromatic and enharmonic modulation, secondary sub-dominants and passing chords, jazz analysis and keyboard voicing, chromatic improvisation, and topics in form and analysis. Additional one-hour lab scheduled weekly.
This course continues the study of chromatic harmony of post-Romanticism and begins the study of 20th century idioms. Students will compose short works in 20th century styles for small ensemble settings. Students will also analyze important works by Stravinsky, Bartok, Schoenberg, Copland, and others.
This course is designed for advanced and highly motivated music theory students interested in writing music for ensembles or individual instruments and voices. Students will compose works in genres largely of their own choosing and will organize and rehearse ensembles appropriate to their compositions, with musicians chosen primarily from the College community. Additionally, students will research various composers, examining a range of publications produced by the selected composers themselves.
This course will study the techniques of instrumental and vocal ensembles. Basic topics, such as instrument ranges and the transpositions, will be emphasized. Exercises will consist of analysis of orchestral, choral, and wind ensemble literature as well as original orchestrations of existing music.
The detailed study of a composer, school, specific style or topic, employing more advanced analytical tools. Topics in past years have included African-American music; Mozart: The Man, the Myth, the Music; history of jazz; the music of J. S. Bach. Topics for the following year are announced at spring registration. Classroom experiences are augmented by artist visits and field trips to suitable venues, for example, a jazz club or concert for the course on jazz history.
This course is designed to be a continuation of Introduction to Composition. The seminar is open to students who wish to study advanced topics in the composition of Contemporary Concert Music, and who have had some experience composing. Topics will include repertoire, orchestration, and notation, and students will compose several pieces during the semester. Interested students should have completed MUS 323 and meet with the instructor before enrolling.
In this course, we concentrate specifically on understanding Italian music during its ''Golden Age'' (1300-1900): the six centuries from the time of Dante through the period of the ''great tradition'' of nineteenth-century Italian opera. We simultaneously consider the larger question of what constitutes a national music. In addition, Italians' music has been deployed to create a more local (regional or dynastic-familial) political and cultural identity, and we examine such uses of music as well. Students may not earn credit for both MUS 260 and MUS 360. [H, GM2]
This course examines the social and political contexts for popular music in the 1960's. Students will explore the cultural conditions that supported music in U.S. centers such as San Francisco, Los Angeles, and New York. Through an examination of primary and secondary sources, as well as in-class video viewing, class participants will gain knowledge of how music of a counter cultural generation was representative of an emerging social consciousness, as well as how it was used as a form of social protest. [W, GM1]
Explores the early history of jazz, America's principal contribution to world musical culture. Considers jazz antecedents-the blues, ragtime-and origins in early twentieth century New Orleans. Then considers the ''Chicago School,'' early territory bands, ''New-Orleans revival,'' big-band tradition of the 1940's, and small-group sessions and beginnings of bebop. Although there is consideration of the historical/music-historical backgrounds, emphasis is on the music itself, through original recordings and scholarly transcriptions, which permit detailed analyses of jazz characteristics at critical moments. Students may not earn credit for both MUS 263 and MUS 363. [GM1, H]
A survey of music in the experience of African-Americans and peoples of African descent in the Caribbean, from the earliest historical sources (ca. 1650) to ca. 1950. The principal genres – music in formal worship services; spirituals; camp-meeting songs; concert music; music in the theatre; music and the institution of slavery; jubilee singing; ragtime; the blues; jazz; gospel; and compositions in the cultivated tradition – are studied in historical context, with an emphasis on the music itself. Students may not earn credit for both MUS 265 and MUS 365. [GM1, GM2, H, V]
Florence occupies an enviable place in the historical imagination. It was the city of Dante Alighieri, Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo Buonarotti, Niccolò Machiavelli, and Galileo Galilei. But its music-historical importance is less well-understood. And, yet, Florence was the birthplace of opera and the piano, Italy’s two greatest contributions to world musical civilization. This course tells the story of music in Florence during its “golden age,” from the Middle Ages to the seventeenth century. [GM1, GM2, H, V]
Students majoring in music may wish to explore career opportunities by participating in an approved internship with a professional performing organization, arts management consultant, or related music industry representative. Under the supervision of a designated internship sponsor, the student develops and completes a work-related project. Additional activities include assigned readings and a final written report.
Opera is a theatrical genre where the text is sung throughout, and the music contributes indispensably to the work's dramatic and emotional impact. This course considers what makes the experience of opera so compelling for so many. It surveys a handful of the greatest operatic masterpieces from the beginnings of opera to the nineteenth-century ''great tradition'' and considers contrasts of comic and serious opera, music that narrates vs. music that provides lyrical commentary, etc. Students may not earn credit for both MUS 272 and MUS 372. [GM2, H]
Advanced special topics studies emphasizing research in greater depth of a selected musicological problem. Open only to junior and senior music majors and minors.
Individual projects in musicology, theory, or composition, with emphasis on the bibliographical and analytical tools of music research or composition. Open to students with a strong background in music.
Independent study of a selected problem in musicology, theory, or composition, with emphasis on the bibliographical and analytical tools of music research, resulting in the completion of a project such as a research paper or a series of original compositions. Open only to senior music majors.
Thesis/Honors independent study of a selected problem in musicology, theory, or composition, with emphasis on the bibliographical and analytical tools of music research, resulting in the completion of a project such as a research paper or a series of original compositions. Open only to senior music majors. Upon completion of MUS 496, the awarding of Departmental Honors is determined by successful defense of the thesis. [One W credit only upon completion of both 495 and 496]