Advanced Topics in Middle East & North African Studies (390-6-2)
Instructors
Inna I Naroditskaya
847/467-2034
in-narod@northwestern.edu
Meeting Info
RCMA Lower Level 113: Wed 2:00PM - 4:50PM
Overview of class
Course title: Topics in Middle Eastern Music
Middle Eastern musical arabesque, reminiscent of the intricate patterns of carpets, parallels the path of the marketplace, echoes nocturnal poetry and dramatic conflicts.
The class on the music of the Middle East explores classical, folk, and popular musics of the region in their historical unfolding and current state. Music of the region is inseparable from religious and social dynamics. Discussion of the place of music in Islam leads to separately studying the musical cultures of Iran, Turkey, Egypt, and Iraq. The class will study the diverse music of Israel and to the intricate cultural dynamics of different, as well as musical traditions of religious and ethnic minorities, such as Yezidis, Syriacs, Zoroastrians. The discussion of music as culture inevitably raises questions of gender, turmoil, and conflicts - all topics that make music relevant to our lives.
The class assignments include listening, readings, and discussions that largely rely on students' independent research and thinking, and a final project.
Class Attributes
Literature and Arts Foundational Discipline
Literature & Fine Arts Distro Area