Autopsying European Art Music

Module overview

This module focuses on the detailed 'hands-on' analysis of works of European art music, guided by a selection of classic and contemporary theoretical and analytical writings that challenge assumptions about the inner structure of musical works. Extramusical matters may be considered too. The module will focus on two areas of music theory and analysis, with approximately half the semester being spent on each. It is taught together with MUSI6023 Analytical Techniques, which is designed for students taking Music's MMus degree; students on the undergraduate module will attend the same seminars and do the same reading, but will complete shorter assignments.

Aims and Objectives

Learning Outcomes

Knowledge and Understanding

Having successfully completed this module, you will be able to demonstrate knowledge and understanding of:

the applicability of different methods of analysis to different repertoires
some of the current methods of music analysis

Subject Specific Intellectual and Research Skills

Having successfully completed this module you will be able to:

describe in analytical terms a range of European works drawn from the 18th century onwards
relate detail to structure in music
apply methods of analysis to specific musical works

Transferable and Generic Skills

Having successfully completed this module you will be able to:

actively participate in debates about interpretative matters

Subject Specific Practical Skills

Having successfully completed this module you will be able to:

use and understand specific analytical notation

Learning and Teaching

Teaching and learning methods

Teaching methods include - teaching and discussion in seminars - student-led discussions of individual works Learning activities include - reading about music analysis and analytical methods - following, in a step-by-step fashion, some classic analytical and theoretical writings - preparing analyses of short- and medium-length pieces of music - contributing to analytical discussions, in a critical way The seminars are designed to clarify the principles underlying analytical approaches, and to show how they may be applied to specific contexts. The background reading will enable you to study in greater depth matters that are introduced in the seminars but not explored in detail. The week-to-week study of analytical methods and of examples from the musical repertoire to which they may be applied, together with the longer-term application of these methods in formal assessment, will give you the competence to undertake analyses of your own, and the confidence to share your insights.

Study time
Type	Hours
Independent Study	126
Seminar	24
Total study time	150

Resources & Reading list

Textbooks

Richard Cohn (2012). Audacious Euphony: Chromatic Harmony and the Triad's Second Nature. Oxford.

James Hepokoski and Warren Darcy (2006). Elements of Sonata Theory: Norms, Types, and Deformations in the Late- Eighteenth-Century Sonata. Oxford.

Allen Cadwallader and David Gagné (1998). Analysis of Tonal Music: A Schenkerian Approach. Oxford.

Jonathan Dunsby and Arnold Whitall (1988). Music Analysis in Theory and Practice. London and New Haven.

Allen Forte and Steven E. Gilbert (1982). Introduction to Schenkerian Analysis. New York.

William E. Caplin (2000). Classical Form: A Theory of Formal Functions for the Instrumental Music of Haydn, Mozart, and Beethoven. Oxford.

Nicholas Cook (1987). A Guide to Musical Analysis. New York and London.

Fred Lerdahl and Ray Jackendoff (1983). A Generative Theory of Tonal Music. Cambridge, MA.

Assessment

Assessment strategy

This module is assessed via two assignments: - Analysis, based on the selected method/theory taught in the first half of the semester (1250 words, or equivalent: diagrams, charts, score-based analysis, etc.) - Analysis, based on the selected method/theory taught in the second half of the semester (1500 words, or equivalent: diagrams, charts, score-based analysis, etc.)

Summative

This is how we’ll formally assess what you have learned in this module.

Breakdown
Method	Percentage contribution
Analysis	40%
Analysis	60%

Referral

This is how we’ll assess you if you don’t meet the criteria to pass this module.

Breakdown
Method	Percentage contribution
Analysis	100%

Repeat

An internal repeat is where you take all of your modules again, including any you passed. An external repeat is where you only re-take the modules you failed.

Breakdown
Method	Percentage contribution
Analysis	100%

Repeat Information

Repeat type: Internal & External

Module overview

Aims and Objectives

Learning Outcomes

Knowledge and Understanding

Subject Specific Intellectual and Research Skills

Transferable and Generic Skills

Subject Specific Practical Skills

Syllabus

Learning and Teaching

Teaching and learning methods

Resources & Reading list

Textbooks

Assessment

Assessment strategy

Summative

Referral

Repeat

Repeat Information