Introduction to Music (170-0-2)

Instructors

Anisha Srinivasan

Meeting Info

RCMA 1-164: Tues, Thurs 2:00PM - 3:20PM

Overview of class

How does a piece of music become a classic, and who decides which music belongs in the canon at all? This course introduces students to concepts and vocabulary for listening to, talking about, and writing about music, using the idea of the canon as its guiding question. The first half of the quarter follows the conventional canon of Western art music, from Bach through Mozart and Beethoven to Stravinsky, while building skills in hearing and describing melody, rhythm, texture, and instrumentation. The second half turns to musicians whose work entered a canon of its own in the 20th and 21st centuries, including the North Indian classical (Hindustani) sitarist Ravi Shankar, the jazz saxophonist John Coltrane, and Kendrick Lamar, who in 2018 became the first rapper to win the Pulitzer Prize for Music. Moving between these two halves, students will consider how critics, prizes, and audiences shape musical reputations, and what each canon includes and leaves out. No previous musical training or ability to read music notation is required.

Class Materials (Required)

None required for purchase. All readings and listening will be provided on CANVAS.

Class Attributes

Literature and Arts Foundational Discipline
SoC Humanities and Fine Arts Distro