Compositional Language(s) Instructor: Prof. SIGMAN Tuesday 13:00-15:00 Lecture I

Welcome/Willkommen/Bienvenue/B envenuti/Welkom!

0. Administrata

Required Textbooks 1)Weiss/Taruskin, Music in the Western World: A History in Documents 2) Burkholder/Grout/Palisca, A History of Western Music, 8 th Edition [available via Amazon, Kyobo, etc.] Additional articles/excerpts/book chapters supplied and assigned by instructor.

Assessment Weekly assignments Midterm Exam Final Exam Final Paper (6-7 pages) Attendance/Participation

Office Hours Tuesday/Thursday 16:00-17:00, or by appointment Room 376 Feel free to me at any time!

Lecture slides… …will be ed to you after each class

I. Course Content

A. Topics Musical terminology, ca German, French, Italian, English, and perhaps a few other languages Musical aesthetics The influence of other arts, philosophy, and natural sciences on musical concepts Writing about music: analysis, research, and scholarly writing methods

B. Activities Reading and interpretation: primary sources and commentary Music analysis (scores/recordings) Research and writing

B. Why take this course?

1. This course will NOT… a) -> ++ ¥/€/$ b) make you a better composer (in any direct way)

2. But it will… a) help you better understand musical tendencies and concepts in an historical context b) create a bridge between composition and research c) familiarise you with terminology in Western European languages in music and related fields d) prepare you for further study and/or your career! (especially if you are interested in studying or working abroad!) e) prepare you for other courses that I will be teaching in the future

C. Course Language English, primarily If anything is unclear, please let me know!!!

D. Course Structure 1) by compositional dimension 2) by chronology (+/-) Rather than considering historical periods in isolation, we will be comparing and contrasting concepts and approaches of different historical periods side by side.

E. Caveats 1) Syllabus subject to change! 2) Not ALL subtopics will be covered!!

III. Writing Music vs. Writing About Music

A. About Me: hi

Besides composing, I: Write articles, book chapters, interviews, and reviews Edit Search Journal for New Music and Culture ( Translate Have a background in philosophy, linguistics, psychology, and computer science

B. A Paradox Composers are completely immersed in the creative process, and therefore the best at writing about music. Composers are biased and isolated by being completely immersed in he creative process, and therefore the worst at writing about music. How is this resolved????

C. New Concepts, New Vocabulary New musical concepts = new musical vocabulary Invent new terms, transform older terminology, or borrow/steal from other fields

D. Interpretation and Research In writing about/discussing a composer or piece, it is therefore essential to: a) be consistent and precise in use of terms b) have a sense of the origin of the terms c) have a sense of the application and context for the terms d) differentiate between subjectivity and objectivity in the application and context of these terms

E. Why Write/Talk About Music? Music (and particularly contemporary music) does NOT “speak for itself” A) It is important to understand how a piece works B) It is important to understand a composer’s musical thinking and aesthetic intentions C) It is important to understand the context(s) in which a composer is/was operating D) It is important to develop connections between different historical periods, geographic locations, and disciplines (arts and other fields). E) It is important to develop a discourse around A)-E).

F. How to write/talk about music? There is no single “right answer” To be addressed throughout the course!

IV. Basic Musical Dimensions, Basic Problems

A. What are music’s basic ingredients? Sound Time

B. Typical Musical Parameters Pitch Rhythm (Pulse/Meter) Melody Harmony Dynamic Register Timbre Texture Orchestration

C. Metaphors: Visual Culture Pitch/Register as “high” or “low” (spatial metaphor) Pitch and timbre as “colour” (visual metaphor) Texture (visual metaphor) Dynamic as “soft” (tactile metaphor) Orchestration as “thick” or “thin” (tactile metaphor) Harmony as “widely” or “narrowly” spaced (spatial metaphor) Sound as “sculptural” (visual and spatial metaphor) [These metaphors exist in German, French, and Italian as well.]

D. Music Described in Terms of… A) Acoustics B) Psychology (Perception and Cognition) C) Literature and Poetry D) Philosophy E) Visual Art (including Film) F) Architecture G) Theatre and Dance H) Chemistry, Physics, Neuroscience, Computer Science…