Music

This course examines the role of music in the social, ceremonial, spiritual, and everyday lives of people in the western world over the last two millennia. It provides an overview of how people in successive eras experienced music and the influences that initiated changes in and perceptions of music. Many of the great musicians, composers, and styles of western music culture are studied. This course serves as a foundation for other studies in music and music history. Normally this course is taught online.

This course allows students to develop an understanding of world cultures through the musical traditions and habits of people in different parts of the globe. Students will investigate the development and historical background of world music traditions and the typical musical instruments and representative musicians in various regions. Students are also encouraged to develop their perspective on the relationship between music and society. Normality this course is taught online.

An introductory course investigating music theory and performance, for students with limited or no music background.  Content includes notation in treble and bass clef, rhythmic notation, basic music theory, music terminology and various aspects of performance. May require concert attendance.

Introductory course in music appreciation for the classical music lover with little or no music background. This course covers elements of music, performing media, and historical music periods from the Middle Ages to the Twentieth Century. The student will be introduced to music terminology, important composers and will develop listening skills. May require attendance to a symphony and additional lab fee. Restriction: Credit may not be obtained for both FNAT 2123 and MUS 2123.

Introductory course in music theory for those students with some musical background. Content includes notation, time values, major and minor scales, intervals, chords, simple time, transposition, terms and signs, music analysis, ear-training and rhythm studies. Restriction: Credit may not be obtained for both FNAT 2123 and MUS 2123. 

This course is a survey of the history of Rock music from its origins in the late nineteenth century to the present day. Topics addressed include: the effects of technology in the music industry, role of African-American music in the development of popular music, the developments of Jazz, R&B, and early Rock and Roll, and the “white appropriation” of African-American music. The course finishes with a survey of recent trends of disco, new wave, heavy metal, rap and alternative music. Restriction: Credit may not be obtained for both FNAT 2792 and MUS 2797. 

Practical work in some aspects of music. Students must seek permission of the Director of Music before registering. Restriction: Credit may not be obtained for both FNAT 3000 and MUS 3000. 

Practical work in some aspect of music, often in the form of one-on-one lessons to develop knowledge, musicianship and skills on an instrument or voice. Students must seek permission of the Director of Music before registering. Most students will complete both MUS 3003 and MUS 3004. Students who have received credit for MUS 3001 cannot receive credit for MUS 3003. 

Practical work in some aspects of music, often in the form of one-on-one lessons to develop knowledge, musicianship and skills on an instrument or voice. Students must seek permission of the Director of Music before registering. Most students will complete both MUS 3003 and MUS 3004. Students who have received credit for MUS 3001 cannot receive credit for MUS 3004.

Practical work in one area of music, to develop musicianship through participation in directed ensembles such as band, choir or orchestra. Students must seek permission of the Director of Music before registering. Most students should expect to take all three of MUS 3005, MUS 3006, and MUS 3007.

Practical work in one area of music, to develop musicianship through participation in directed ensembles such as band, choir or orchestra. Students must seek permission of the Director of Music before registering. Most students should expect to take all three of MUS 3005, MUS 3006, and MUS 3007. Students who have received credit for MUS 3002 cannot receive credit for MUS 3007.

An exploration of Vienna through its musical heritage and contemporary musical culture. Composers such as Mozart, Haydn, Beethoven and Schubert all made their home in Vienna and wrote some of the most memorable and influential music known. Drawing on the city’s history, art and architecture over three centuries, we will examine Vienna’s role in the development of Classicism, Romanticism and Nationalism in music history. We will also consider the current music scene in Vienna as present in Jazz and pop festivals, street performances and events. The course will include concerts in historic halls, visits to museums/galleries, and walking tours in the Old City. Taught on location as part of the Travel Study program Vienna.

A course in basic elements of composition for students with some musical background and literacy. This course addresses both technical issues and the creative nature of composing music. Musicians who cannot read music are welcome but must have permission from the instructor. Restriction: Credit may not be obtained for both FNAT 3123 and MUS 3123 .

The uses of computers in music from a practical and historical perspective is identified and studied. Early uses in notation, composition, presentation, interactive media applications are explored. Project based with work in current software and applications. Open to students who have completed 30 credit hours, or with permission of the instructor.

Basic conducting techniques as applied to wind, string, and vocal ensembles and the interpretation of various types of music. Permission of the Director of Music required before registering. Restriction: Credit may not be obtained for both FNAT 3133 and MUS 3133. 

A practical and theoretical examination of the role in music in cinematic narrative from the silent film to the 21st century. The course will examine the origins of the music-cinema relationship from the misnamed “silent film era”, through the development of synchronized sound-film systems and the use of music in a selection of genres including film-noir, musical, science fiction, romantic comedy and suspense films. Music video production processes will be explored including the use of narrative storytelling techniques, as well as animation, claymation, multimedia and experimental methods of creating images to synchronize with existing soundtracks.

Introduction to music between 800 and 1600, studying representative styles and putting this music in a historical perspective.

Begins with an examination of the stylistic background of music of the Baroque Period, and follows the development of musical form and style through the late Baroque and Classical eras, i.e. from c.1700-c.1830. Some attention will be given to the role of the musician in the context of the social history of the time.

Traces musical development in nineteenth century Europe in its cultural-historical milieu, mainly in France and Germany. Examines the development of the orchestra, and the French and Austro-German contribution to that development, the role of nationalism in music and the role of the opera.

This course will examine some of the ways in which cultural (national, regional, ethnic, class, etc.) identity is and has been expressed through music, as well as the origins, persistence, and dispersion of some of the resultant forms and genres. This will also permit us to interrogate the stability and/or fluidity of various notions of identity. Critical and theoretical readings will be employed to explore the identity of cultural groups and musical forms ranging from Tango to Blues, Opera to protest song, Flamenco to Hip Hop, from Hawaii to Russia, Canada to South Africa.  The course will normally be team-taught; no previous musical background required.  Open to students who have completed at least 30 ch of university courses or by permission of instructor. 

Begins with an examination of the Post-Romantic composers, particularly Mahler and Strauss. Studies Debussy and the Impressionists, the Second Viennese School (Berg, Schoenberg, Webern)and its impact on twentieth-century music and the tonalist composers of the first half of the century. Examines music as an art form in North America.

An examination of the theoretical constructs behind Wagner's music dramas, the compositional histories of some of the dramas of the 1840's, and then of the Ring Cycle itself. Some attention will be given to the performance history of the dramas as well.

Introduction to Canada's rich and diverse traditions, institutions, and industry. From the musical traditions of the First Nations peoples, through the music of the early settlers, to today's diversity of styles, Canada's music will be studied in its cultural and historical contexts.

This course explores the social and historical developments of music in Canada from the 1950s through the public awakening of the 1960s to the implications of the Canadian content regulations of the 1970s and up to the present with a focus on the period ending around 1980. Music will be examined in relation to such notable phenomena as the Cold War, Expo 67 and the Hippie Movement. Major musical figures, composers and performers featured and discussed may include, The Band, Oscar Peterson, Glenn Gould, Paul Anka, Buffy Saint-Marie, The Guess Who and Rush.

Tracing the influences of women involved in music in a range of settings in the western world, this course presents the variety of ways that women have influenced, created and performed music through the ages. Feminist perspectives will be explored through an examination of the roles of selected individuals whether they were composers, performers or patrons. As such the course will include such individuals as Nannerl Mozart, Nadazhda von Meck, and Alma Mahler, as well as composers Clara Schumann, and Fanny Mendelssohn, who were performers in their own right.