21M.011 | Spring 2006 | Undergraduate

Introduction to Western Music

Readings

Textbook

All the readings for this course come from the following textbook, abbreviated in the table below as “K”:

Kerman, Joseph, and Gary, Tomlinson. Listen. 5th brief ed. Boston, MA: Bedford/St. Martin’s Press, 2004. ISBN: 9780312401153.

Lec # TOPICS Readings
1 Introduction; Music of the Middle Ages K. pp. xii-xvii, 1-19, and 54-69. Skim pp. 20-53.
2 Renaissance and Early Baroque Music for Church, Chamber, and Theater K. pp. 73-89 and 92-101.
3 Baroque Instrumental Music: Suite, Concerto, and Fugue; Bach K. pp. 104-107 and 111-148. Skim pp. 24-35.
4 Baroque Vocal Music: Opera, Oratorio, and Cantata; Handel K. pp. 102-104 and 149-163.
5 The Classical Symphony and Sonata: Haydn K. pp. 36-52 and 164-200.
6 The Classical Concerto and Opera: Mozart K. pp. 200-211.
7 Midterm Exam

8 From Classic to Romantic: Beethoven K. pp. 220-234.
9 Romantic Songs and Piano Pieces: The Art of the Miniature K. pp. 235-240 (“Romanticism”), 242-243 (“Style Features / Rhythm: Rubato”), 245-247 (“Forms in Romantic Music” / “Miniature Compositions”), and 249-262 (“The Early Romantics”).
10 Romantic Program Music and Opera: Fantasies on a Grand Scale K. pp. 240-242 (“Concert Life in the Nineteenth Century”), 244-245 (“Expansion of Tone Color” and “Program Music”), 247-248("‘Grandiose’ Composition" and “The Principle of Thematic Unity”), 2-5 (“A March by Hector Berlioz”), 262-270 (“Early Romantic Program Music”), and 271-287 (“Romantic Opera”).
11 Late Romantic Orchestral Music: Looking Forward and Back K. pp. 240-242 (“Concert Life in the Nineteenth Century”), 243-245 (“Romantic Melody” / “Romantic Harmony” / “The Expansion of Tone Color”), and 288-307 (“The Late Romantics”).
12 The Twentieth Century: The European Tradition K. pp. 312-314 (“The Twentieth Century”), 315-328 (“Prelude: Music and Modernism”), 329-347 (“The Twentieth Century: Early Modernism”), 352-362 (“Alternatives to Modernism: Ravel and Bartok”), 366-374 (“The Late Twentieth Century: Ligeti”), and 379-381 (“Music at the End of the Century: Saariaho”).
13 The Twentieth Century: The American Tradition K. pp. 347-351 (“Modernism in America: Ives”), 362-365 (“Alternatives to Modernism: Copland”), 374-376 (“The Late Twentieth Century: Varèse, Cage), 377-378, 381-383 (“Music at the end of the Century: Crumb and Reich”), 384-397, and 400-417 (“Jazz and Beyond”).
14 Catch-up and Review

Course Info

Instructor
As Taught In
Spring 2006
Learning Resource Types
Lecture Notes
Written Assignments