Revised March 2008

Music

Dr. Blair, Dean
Dr. Burton, Coordinator of Graduate Studies
610-436-2222 or 436-2739

Faculty

Program Description

Degree Requirements

Course Descriptions

Return to Music.

Music History and Literature

Dr. Balthazar, Chairperson

PROFESSOR

Scott L. Balthazar, Ph.D., University of Pennsylvania

ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR

Julian Onderdonk, Ph.D., New York University

ASSISTANT PROFESSORS

Maria Purciello, Ph.D., Princeton University
Thomas Winters, Ph.D., University of Pennsylvania

Admission Requirements

In addition to the general requirements for admission to degree programs in music, music history applicants must demonstrate a reading knowledge of a foreign language, preferably French or German. Students found lacking in a reading skill in a foreign language must eliminate this deficiency before admission to degree candidacy.

MASTER OF ARTS IN MUSIC HISTORY (30 semester hours)

Thesis Option

I. Area of Concentration (15 semester hours)
Five topic seminars in music history drawn from the following:
MHL 610, 611, 612, 613, 614, 615, 679, and 680

II. Electives (can be taken in music history) (9 semester hours)

III. Research Component (6 semester hours)
MHL 689, 699           
Exit Oral Examination (including thesis defense)

Nonthesis Option

I. Concentration Electives (15 semester hours)
Six courses in music history, including one from each of the following groups:
Group I: MHL 601, 602
Group II: MHL 603, 604

II. Free Electives

III. Exit Examination

COURSE DESCRIPTIONS
MUSIC HISTORY AND LITERATURE

Symbol: MHL

501 Style, Form, and Genre in Music History (3) An introduction to the study of music at the graduate level designed as a survey of Western art music with emphasis on fundamental considerations of form, style, and genre.

510 Collegium Musicum (1) A chamber ensemble specializing in the use of authentic instruments and performance techniques in the music of the Medieval, Renaissance, and Baroque eras. Open by audition.

550 Seminar in Musicology (3) Bibliographical materials, introduction to musicological research, development of research techniques, and writing skills. Required of M.A. (music history) candidates.

610 Topics in Medieval Music (3) Exploration of selected topics in medieval music. Specific topics deal with various aspects of music and musical development during this period. The specific topics and their number will vary with each offering of the course. Taught as a seminar with emphasis placed on student participation and research.

611 Topics in Renaissance Music (3) Exploration of selected topics in 15th and 16th century music. Specific topics deal with various aspects of music and music development during this historical epoch. The specific topics and their number will vary with each offering of the course. Taught as a seminar with emphasis placed on student participation and research.

612 Topics in Baroque Music (3) Exploration of selected topics in the history of music in the baroque period. Specific topics deal with various aspects of music and musical development during this historical epoch. The specific topics and their number will vary with each offering of the course. Taught as a seminar with emphasis placed on student participation and research.

613 Topics in Music from 1750–1810 (3) Exploration of selected topics in the history of music in the classic period. Specific topics deal with various aspects of music and musical development during this historical epoch. The specific topics and their number will vary with each offering offering of the course. Taught as a seminar with emphasis placed on student participation and research.

614 Topics in Music from 1810–1880 (3) Exploration of selected topics in the history of music in the early 19th century. Specific topics deal with various aspects of music and musical development during this historical epoch. The specific topics and their number will vary with each offering of the course. Taught as a seminar with emphasis placed on student participation and research.

615 Topics in Music from 1880–Present (3) Exploration of selected topics in the history of music from the late romantic period to the present. Specific topics deal with various aspects of music and musical development during this historical epoch. The specific topics and their number will vary with each offering of the course. Taught as a seminar with emphasis placed on student participation and research.

620 World Music (3) An introduction to the study of tribal, folk, popular, and oriental music and ethnomusicological methodology. Open to music majors and nonmusic majors without prerequisites.

622 History of Jazz (3) A survey of the history of jazz, including representative performers and their music.

640 Medieval Music (3) Development of plainsong and secular monody, and beginnings and early history of polyphony to the 14th century. Consideration of contemporary trends in the visual arts, history, and literature.

641 Renaissance Music (3) Sacred and secular music in the Age of Dufay; changing forms and styles through the music of the Franco-Flemish groups; the frottola and related forms; and Palestrina and his contemporaries. Brief consideration of contemporary trends in the visual arts, history, and literature.

642 Baroque Music (3) Styles and forms of the European repertoire; contributions of the major composers; and the role of music and musicians in the society of the period.

643 Late 18th-Century Music (3) Changing styles and forms in the sons of J.S. Bach; the Viennese preclassicists; the Mannheim School; opera; Joseph and Michael Haydn, Mozart, and their contemporaries.

644 19th-Century Music (3) Historical developments during the Romantic period (ca. 1800- 1900). Analysis of changes and trends, and comparative aspects of new forms.

645 20th-Century Music (3) Chronological survey of 20th-century music. Development of styles. Technical aspects of changes occurring in melody, rhythm, orchestration, texture, tonality, and form.

654 History of Opera (3) The composers and their major contributions to the various schools of opera.

655 History of Orchestral Music (3) How the symphony orchestra developed from the Baroque period to the present in its function, literature, instrumentation, and performance practices.

658 Performance Practices (3) A consideration of the special problems encountered in the stylistic realization and performance of music from the Medieval through the Romantic eras. Particular attention will be focused on original sources, period instruments, and performance problems.

659 Topics in American Music (3) Exploration of selected topics in the history of music in America from 1620 to the present.

662 Mozart and His Works (3) A study of the life and music of Wolfgang A. Mozart with special reference to the period in which he lived. Taught in summers in Salzburg, Austria.

679 Topics in Music History I (1-3) Significant topics presented by faculty members or visiting lecturers. Designed to meet specific needs of the seminar group.

680 Topics in Music History II (1-3) Significant topics presented by faculty members or visiting lecturers. Designed to meet specific needs of the seminar group.

681-83 Independent Study in Music History (1-3) Individual research under the guidance of a faculty member.

698 Directed Research in Musicology (3) This course is designed to assist the graduate music history major to focus research pursuits toward formulation of a potentially successful thesis topic.

699 Thesis in Music History (3)

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