Selected Topics in Music Theory (435-0-2)
Topic
19th Century Analysis
Instructors
Richard Ashley
847/491-5720
r-ashley@northwestern.edu
Office Hours: W 10-11 and by appt.
Professor, music theory and cognition program. Research and publications in music cognition focusing on expressive performance, musical communication, and long-term memory for music. President, Society for Music Perception and Cognition. Member, editorial board, Music Perception. Recipient of two Fulbright grants for research in the Netherlands and grants from National Endowment for the Humanities and U.S. Department of Education. Recipient, Bienen School of Music Exemplar in Teaching Award. Also teaches in the cognitive science program.
Meeting Info
RCMA 1-180: Tues, Thurs 11:00AM - 12:20PM
Overview of class
This class presents music-analytic concepts and methods focused on chromatic music, primarily in the Western art music tradition from the years 1830 to 1930. Readings will be drawn from historical sources and modern treatises. Works to be analyzed will include compositions of Schumann, Brahms, Liszt, Wolf, Wagner, Faure, and Ravel. The interaction of melodic, harmonic, and rhythmic forces in shaping the "flow" of music for performer and listener will be a primary focus
Registration Requirements
Upper level standing; at least two years of undergraduate-level music theory.
Learning Objectives
Deeper acquaintance with chromatic music from repertoires ca. 1850 to ca. 1920
Facility with analytic techniques appropriate to these repertoires
Improved ability to hear relationships between structure and expression
Teaching Method
Lecture/discussion.
Evaluation Method
Evaluation will be based on daily homework assignments, class participation, and a final analysis paper. DM students may, depending on their curriculum, be obliged to observe the 15-page paper requirement.
Class Materials (Required)
All required materials are on Canvas. No purchased materials are used.