Undergraduate Course: Music Analysis (MUSI08076)
Course Outline
| School | Edinburgh College of Art |
College | College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences |
| Credit level (Normal year taken) | SCQF Level 8 (Year 2 Undergraduate) |
Availability | Available to all students |
| SCQF Credits | 20 |
ECTS Credits | 10 |
| Summary | This course provides an introduction to the analysis of music composed in the Western ¿extended common practice¿, from the medieval period to the twentieth century. It involves the study of musical scores alongside aural evidence obtained from listening. |
| Course description |
This course provides an introduction to the analysis of music composed in the Western extended common practice. It concentrates on Western tonal music from the seventeenth to the twentieth centuries, but more broadly extends modal and post-tonal repertoires from c. 1350 to the present, and ranges from instrumental and vocal genres to music theatre and music for screen. It involves the study of musical scores alongside aural evidence obtained from listening.
The course is taught from two intersecting perspectives, namely through:
1) a particular analytical technique or concept.
2) a specific musical work or composition, chosen to showcase the application of a particular analytical method. Works will be drawn from the medieval period to the 21st century.
The course is delivered in twenty one-hour lectures, supported by a weekly tutorial.
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Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
| Pre-requisites |
It is RECOMMENDED that students have passed
Creative Musicianship (MUSI08077)
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Co-requisites | |
| Prohibited Combinations | |
Other requirements | None |
Information for Visiting Students
| Pre-requisites | Facility reading music and good grasp of basic theory (harmonic functions, cadences, etc.). |
| High Demand Course? |
Yes |
Course Delivery Information
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| Academic year 2024/25, Available to all students (SV1)
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Quota: 60 |
| Course Start |
Semester 1 |
Timetable |
Timetable |
| Learning and Teaching activities (Further Info) |
Total Hours:
200
(
Lecture Hours 22,
Seminar/Tutorial Hours 10,
Feedback/Feedforward Hours 1,
Formative Assessment Hours 1,
Summative Assessment Hours 4,
Programme Level Learning and Teaching Hours 4,
Directed Learning and Independent Learning Hours
158 )
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| Assessment (Further Info) |
Written Exam
0 %,
Coursework
100 %,
Practical Exam
0 %
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| Additional Information (Assessment) |
This course has two components of assessment:
- 1 x 1,000-word musical analysis essay, submitted in/around week 7, worth 30% of final mark.
- 1 x 2,000-word musical analysis essay, submitted in/around week 12, worth 70% of final mark.
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| Feedback |
Formative Feedback:
Formative feedback is delivered verbally during weekly tutorial tasks.
Summative Feedback:
Written summative feedback on both assignments will be provided as per university regulations, with the feedback on assignment 1 returned before assignment 2 is submitted.
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| No Exam Information |
Learning Outcomes
On completion of this course, the student will be able to:
- Describe musical form and structure by talking about compositional components and their interactions.
- Identify specific information about a musical work or practice via a score or appropriate other medium (e.g. key stylistic and structural features).
- Analyse music critically by evaluating the compositional effect of such features, drawing on their broader musical knowledge to contextualise the findings
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Reading List
William E. Caplin, Analyzing Classical Form: An Approach for the Classroom (Oxford, 2013).
Mark Everist (ed.), Models of Musical Analysis: Music before 1600 (Oxford, 1992).
James Hepokoski and Warren Darcy, Elements of Sonata Theory (Oxford, 2006).
Cristle Collins Judd, Tonal Structures in Early Music (Abingdon and New York, 2014).
Peter Schubert, Modal Counterpoint, Renaissance Style (New York and Oxford, 1999).
Tim Summers Understanding Video Game Music (Cambridge, 2016).
Dmitri Tymoczko, A Geometry of Music: Harmony and Counterpoint in the Extended Common Practice (Oxford and New York, 2011).
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Additional Information
| Graduate Attributes and Skills |
Enquiry and lifelong learning
In this course, you will be introduced to a number of perspectives on how how to analyse certain types of music, giving you the tools to explore and develop your own analytical approaches.
Personal and intellectual autonomy
By reading and engaging with materials for the submissions, you will learn to develop your own approach to analysis, the ability to solve your own analytical problems through the application of appropriate models, and to seek help when necessary from a variety of sources.
Personal effectiveness
The ability to organise and summarise your thoughts and material in a flexible and accessible way is a core feature required for personal effectiveness. Planning, time management and reflection are central to this. By providing you with a timetable where key submission dates are highlighted, we encourage you to develop your effectiveness throughout this course. These same skills extend to other courses and also to your overall ability to maximise your achievement while studying at this University.
Communication
This course will help to prepare you to communicate your ideas about musical analysis both verbally, in class, and in more formal written assignments.
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| Keywords | Music Analysis,western,medieval,twentieth,scores,listening,composition |
Contacts
| Course organiser | Dr Philip Alexander
Tel:
Email: Phil.Alexander@ed.ac.uk |
Course secretary | Ms Rowan Paton
Tel:
Email: rpaton5@ed.ac.uk |
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