School of Music
Return to School of Music, degree requirement details.
Department of Music History and Literature
Scott Balthazar, Chairperson
FACULTY: Balthazar, Onderdonk, Purciello, Winters
COURSE DESCRIPTIONS
MUSIC HISTORY
Symbol: MHL
121 Fine Arts (Music) (3) A course in appreciating music as an informed listener. Includes an introduction to the basic elements of musical style necessary for understanding music in its cultural and historical context, examination of the great European composers and their masterworks, and topics in popular music, jazz, and/or world music. No prerequisites required. Ability to read music is not expected. Designed to satisfy the general education arts requirement.
NOTE: Other courses are available to the nonmusic major for general education requirements. Particularly suitable is MHL 125.
125 Perspectives in Jazz (3) For nonmusic majors. Guided listening to improve understanding and enjoyment of jazz with emphasis on jazz heritages, chronological development, and sociological considerations, culminating in an analysis of the eclectic styles of the 1960's and 1970's. Designed for the general education requirements. Diverse communities course
179 Special Subjects Seminar (3) Significant topics in music history and literature presented by faculty members and/or visiting lecturers. Designed for the nonmusic major who has had little or no previous musical experience. Fulfills the general education requirements. Not open to music majors. This course may be taken again for credit.
201 Form and Style in the Arts (3) Relationships between the arts, such as music, literature, visual arts, and film, stressed through common principles of form and style. Concentration on the development of skills of critical perception through practical application with reference to various arts. Approved interdisciplinary course
210 Music History I (3) An introduction to musical style and listening techniques within a historical context: (1) an introduction to style periods, music listening skills, concepts of form, and style analysis in both Western and non-Western music; (2) historical survey of music beginning with the music of the early Church and continuing through the end of the 16th century.
211 Music History II (3) A historical survey of music from 1600 to 1825. Analysis of appropriate genres, styles, forms, social contexts, aesthetics, and performance practices will be considered. PREREQ: MHL 210, with a grade of C- or better.
212 Music History III (3) A historical survey of music from 1825 to the present. Analysis of appropriate genre, styles, forms, social contexts, aestethic concepts, and performance practices will be considered. PREREQ: MHL 211, with a grade of C- or better.
301 Music and the Related Arts (3) Examines ways in which music parallels at least two other visual, performing, and/or verbal arts in Western and/or non-Western culture. Concentration on the development of skills of critical perception through practical application to music and other arts. PREREQ: MHL 211 and MTC 212 or permission of instructor. Approved interdisciplinary course. Writing emphasis course
310 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. Membership by audition. This course may be taken again for credit.
312 Women in Music (3) A survey of the role that women played in the history of music from the Middle Ages to the present. Open to nonmusic majors and music majors without prerequisites.
325 History of Rock (3) This course traces the development of 1950s rock and roll from its rhythm and blues, and country and western sources through the world music influences of the 1970s and beyond. Open to music majors and nonmusic majors without prerequisites.
420 World Music (3) An introduction to the study of tribal, folk, popular, and oriental music and ethnomusicology methodology. Open to music majors and nonmusic majors without prerequisites.
422 History of Jazz (3) A survey of the history of jazz, including representative performers and their music. PREREQ: MTC 212, or permission of the instructor.
454 History of Opera (3) A basic course in the origin and development of opera and its dissemination throughout the Western world. PREREQ: MHL 212, or permission of instructor. Writing emphasis course
455 History of Orchestral Music (3) A study of representative orchestral works: symphonies, concerti, suites, overtures, and others, from the Baroque Period to the present. PREREQ: MHL 212, or permission of instructor. Writing emphasis course
459 Topics in American Music (3) Survey of the development of music and musical styles from 1620 to the present. Analysis of styles, forms, aesthetic concepts, and practices. Open to music majors and nonmusic majors with permission of instructor. Writing emphasis course
462 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. PREREQ: MHL 212, or permission of instructor. This course is offered in Salzburg, Austria.
479 Topics in Music History I (1-3) Significant topics presented by faculty members and/or visiting lecturers. Designed to meet specific needs of undergraduate music majors. This course may be taken again for credit.
480 Topics in Music History II (1-3) Significant topics presented by faculty members and/or visiting lecturers. Designed to meet specific needs of undergraduate music majors. This course may be taken again for credit.
481 Independent Study (1)
This course may be taken again for credit.
482 Independent Study (2)
This course may be taken again for credit.
483 Independent Study (3)
This course may be taken again for credit.
MHW 401-410 Workshops in Music History (1-3) Participation-oriented workshops designed to meet specific needs in music history and to develop skills for practical application in teaching and professional settings. This course may be taken again for credit.
