MUSIC 1105 - An Introduction to Western Music Theory and African Diaspora Music of the Caribbean and Americas

(HB) (LA-AS, ALC-AS)

Spring. 3 credits. Student option grading.

Prerequisite: assumed understanding of Western musical notation.

J. Spinazzola.

This course is divided into two parts: The first is a self-contained, experiential introduction to Western European functional counterpoint and harmony. The second part examines the intersection and synthesis of Western European and African Diaspora music through forced migration and enslavement during the French, Spanish, and Anglo-American colonial eras in the Caribbean and the Americas. A diverse collection of musical examples, from the 17th century Western European canon to Haitian roots music to blues, are analyzed on their own terms.