The Evolution of Western Music

Catalog description

A media-rich course that traces the evolution of contemporary Western music. Beginning with current trends, we reach into two thousand years of history, uncovering Western music's roots and the cultural and historical contexts in which it evolved. The first half of the semester focuses on the divergent musical landscape of the twenty-first and twentieth centuries and the co-development of the recording industry, while the second half begins in the Romantic period and digs down to the Renaissance and Middle Ages, predominantly covering Europe's "classical" tradition and some discussion of its "folk" traditions. Special attention is paid to focused listening. By the end of the course, students have a deep understanding of the reasons why Western music sounds as it does today.