Music Matters

Catalog description

Why is music one of the few cross-cultural universals? Why don't other species have music? This course considers why we invest so much time and money in creating and listening to music by exploring specific topics such as psychoacoustics, emotional responses to music, creativity, how music reflects and influences culture, music's role in shaping personal identity, how music contributes to movies, and music's potential as a therapeutic agent. We will listen to a diverse array of music ranging from Bach to the Beatles, to jazz, to music from India, Cuba, and other cultures around the world.