- Year of study: Year 1, over one semester (autumn).
- Final assessment: Written assignment
- Prerequisites: Admission to the Master of Music in Practice-Oriented Music Analysis Programme
- Language of instruction: Norwegian or English.
Course description
The course covers various aspects of the history of Western music analysis, focusing on key developments spanning from the Middle Ages to the 18th century. The course aims to equip the students with the tools and knowledge necessary for independent exploration of the subject.
Learning objectives
On completion of this course, the student is expected to
- Be able to discuss and disseminate relevant issues in the development of music analysis
- Be familiar with relevant databases for historical music analysis sources and effectively utilize them
- Work independently on issues related to the history of music analysis
- Be able to reflect on trends in the history of music analysis and their significance in contemporary music education
Overview
Problems and methods relating to historical music analysis, e.g.
- the evolution of musical notation
- historical development of concepts related to consonance and dissonance
- counterpoint, harmony, form, and aural skills within their historical context
- teaching traditions and practices of music analysis in a historical context
- use of relevant databases and other search methods
Structure
The course spans the first semester of the programme and primarily consists of seminars, student presentations, and literature study. Typically, there is a reading requirement of 200-300 pages related to the seminars.
Course requirement
Oral presentation
The student is required to deliver an oral presentation to the group on an assigned topic. The presentation should be based on the literature included in the reading list for the subject. The date and topic of the presentation will be determined by the course instructor. Duration: 20 minutes.
The course requirement must be met in order for the student to be given a final assessment.
Final assessment
Written assignment
The student is required to write an essay on the provided reading list for the subject.
Length: 2,000–3,000 words (parts of the written material may be analyses, transcriptions etc.).
Deadline: The written assignment must be submitted to the course instructor by 20 December.
The student will be judged on the basis of the learning objectives for the course. The assessment is expressed in the form of a pass/fail.
Reassessment
The same rules apply to reassessments as to ordinary assessments.