Manhattanville College
Professor Carmelo Comberiati
Music Department
Email: comberiatic@mville.edu
Voice Mail: (914) 323-5252
Music Building, Room 114
Spring, 2001

Muh 2012: Survey of Western Music II

  • Course Requirements and Grading
  • Course Conduct
  • Course Schedule and Assignments
  • Addition WWW Links to Music Sources
    •

    Course Requirements

    1. Attendance at all sessions				
2. Reading and Listening Assignments
3. Short Paper		
4. 1 Mid-Term Exam						
5. Final cumulative assignment				
6. Final Exam (during Exam Week)
    Grading
    10% - Participation & Attendance
35% - Mid-Term Exams
25% - Paper and Final assignment
30% - Final Exam

    Course Conduct

    "What should I be listening for?" This question cannot be answered specifically, because as musicians you should be listening to all stylistic factors that will help you form a critical judgment about a composer and his or her work. As initial guidelines, however, you may wish to consider the following questions to ask yourself. Remember that a majority of the pieces assigned for listening are famous works that deserve to be part of your knowledge as musicians whatever your specialty.

    1. What performing forces are present? Do these help to identify the work (e.g., string ensemble, Piano and voice, etc.)?
    2. How would you characterize the texture of the music--contrapuntal? imitative? dense? chordal? melody and accompaniment?
    3. What role does repetition play in the formal pattern? Does the piece adhere to a traditional formal structure (sonata, theme and variations, etc.)?
    4. Is the piece composed idiomatically for the performing forces?
    5. In vocal music, what is the meaning of the text? What language is being sung? What does the composer do to project or enhance the meaning of the text?
    6. In instrumental music, are there distinctive elements of scoring present (many passages for solo instruments, separation of choirs of different sonority, etc.)?
    7. How would you characterize the harmony? Chromatic? Diatonic?
    8. What other techniques, or striking details of any kind, give the piece its identity (e.g., dynamic contrasts, leitmotif, rhythmic detail, etc.)?

    Before listening to an assignment, review your reading and lecture notes, and make sure, in the case of vocal music, to read the text carefully. While listening, take note of things that strike your interest, of characteristic features, or of any questions you have about the piece.
    The Study Guide will help you focus on the salient features of the pieces, as well as provide you with a cogent outline of the text. You should understand the material in the Study Guide well before moving on. Some students find it helpful to study with the use of 3" x 5" study cards: one per piece with significant features noted for each piece. Shuffle the cards and associate expectations for what you will hear in a piece.
    To get the most from the course it is essential that you prepare for lectures by reading the required assignments and by listening in advance of lectures to a given week's pieces. You should make every attempt not to fall behind in this weekly work. If there is anything, in either the reading or the lectures that you do not understand, ask me about it. See me after lecture or make an appointment. I will have regularly scheduled office hours, too.

    Course Schedule and Reading Assignments:

    Required Texts:

    Barbara Russano Hanning. A Concise History of Western Music. (New York, 1998);

    C. V. Palisca, ed. Norton Anthology of Western Music, 3rd ed. Vol. II: Classic to Modern (New York, 1996);

    J. Burkholder. Study and Listening Guide for A Concise History of Western Music. (New York, 1998); and

    Recommended Recordings:

    C.V. Palisca, ed. Norton Recorded Anthology of Western Music. Volume 2: Classic to Modern. Available in CD or cassettes and on reserve in the Library.

    Course Schedule:

    Date Topic and related Web Sites Ex. in Palisca Ch. in Hanning
    1/18 The Early Classic Period: Opera and Instrumental Music in the Eighteenth Century: Investigate the American Musicological Society Websites of Interest to Musicologists 87, 92, 94 13
    1/29 The Late Eighteenth Century -- Haydn and Mozart: A good starting site for exploring the web is the Mozart Project. 97, 100, 103 14
    2/5 Ludwig van Beethoven: See the Research page from the Beethoven Center at San Jose State University. 104, 107 15
    2/12 Romanticism and Nineteenth-Century Orchestral Music: See the essay on Symphonie Fantastique on the Berlioz page. 108 16
    2/19 Solo, Chamber, and Vocal Music in the Nineteenth Century: Try a search of the Catalog of Classical Composers for composers of the Early and Late Romantic Era. 110, 112-115 17
    2/28 Opera, Music Drama, and Church Music in the Nineteenth Century: See the list of works and links for Verdi's operas. 122, 124 18
    3/8 Mid-Term Exam 87-124 13-18
    3/19 European Music from the 1870s to World War I: See the Emory University page for Early 20th Century Composers for overview 126-128, 131 19
    3/29 The European Mainstream in the Twentieth Century: Check the Igor Stravinsky site for links. 133-134, 137 20
    4/9 Atonality, Serialism, and Recent Developments in Twentieth-Century Europe: See the page on Arnold Schoenberg. 139, 140, 142 21
    4/19 The American Twentieth Century: See the American Music Resource Center Homepage. 143, 145, 149, 151 22
    Exam Week Final Exam 125-152 19-22

    Links to Interesting Music Related Sites

    The American Musicological Society web page contains links to many music organizations, as well the most comprehensive list of both classical and popular music on the web.

    The Library of Congress often has music exhibits, currently including music at the Vatican.

    The historical Women's Music Page contains materials concerning women musicians before 1750.