Prerequisite: Instructor permission.

Exploration of the role of sound and listening in film. We will consider the history of sound recording in film and will listen to and watch examples and techniques of sound storytelling. Students will also learn about different types of microphones, experiment with making recordings, and create their own short sound films. No musical experience necessary.

This course focuses on critical analyses of and questions concerning the "Black Voice" as it pertains to hip-hop culture, particularly rap and related popular musics. Students will read, analyze, discuss a wide range of thinkers to explore many conceptions and definitions of "Blackness" while examining popular artists and the statements they make in and about their art.

Through discussion, reading, writing, viewing/listening, we explore African performance theory associated especially with Ewe (Ghana) and BaAka (Central African rainforest) music/dance we are learning to perform, experimenting with abstracting concepts and remaking them in the immediate context of the course. No experience required, but dedication to an interactive, interdependent intellectual and creative community is expected from each student.

Study of the evolving styles of orchestration, from the Classical era through the present-day. Close study of orchestral masterworks spanning these eras. Students will create short orchestrations emulating styles of specific composers.

Selected topics, announced in advance, exploring the study of music within cultural and historical frameworks.

An intensive experience with ethnomusicology and performance studies, this seminar explores musical ethnography (descriptive writing), experiential research, sociomusical processes, and other interdisciplinary approaches to musical performance. Addresses issues involving race, class, gender, and identity politics in light of particular topics and areas studies. Prerequisite: MUSI 3070 or instructor permission.

Studies in computer music studio techniques, sound synthesis using a variety of software packages based on the Macintosh platform, and the creation of original music using new technologies. Prerequisite: MUSI 3390 or instructor permission.

Topics involving the composition, performance, and programming of interactive computer music systems. Prerequisite: Instructor permission or MUSI 3390.

This course provides the opportunity to offer new topics in the subject of Music.