The Amherst Symphony Orchestra is open by audition to all students regardless of major. It rehearses twice a week from 7-930pm on Tuesday and Thursday evenings and performs three concerts per semester. Membership ranges in size from fifty to eighty. Repertoire includes overtures, concertos, symphonies and tone poems by canonic composers from the Baroque, Classical, Romantic and Modern periods in addition to works by a diversity of historically underrepresented artists.
Participation in a jazz combo involves 2 coached sessions per week and a minimum of 3 performances each semester. Players are placed in groups according to their ease with the skill of improvisation. Repertoire is taken from traditional, standard jazz resources as well as more popular music and original compositions. Though prior experience is helpful, we can find a place for virtually all who wish to be a part of this vibrant program. Establised in 2021-2022, Jazz@Friedmann Room provides a club-like atmosphere for our students to share their musical progress.
The Amherst College Jazz Ensemble meets a minimum of 2X per week in rehearsals and gives a minimum of three performances each semester. Membership is possible for those who perform on traditional jazz instrumentation (saxophones, brass, piano, guitar, bass, drums, vibes) as well as vocalists. An exciting opportunity each year is the chance to give a world premiere of a piece composed especially for the membership of the jazz ensemble. This always current piece goes along with other repertoire that is chosen from the last 100 years of jazz.
Political turmoil, artistic movements, and cultural shifts all left their marks on the music of the twentieth century and we will follow history's course through the lens of various composers, musical styles, and artistic movements.
Requisite: MUSI 111 or 211, or consent of the instructor. Fall semester. Department faculty.
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Through composition, analysis, listening practice, and performance, we will build a solid working understanding of many principles of music common in Western musical traditions. The course aims to develop comfort and dexterity in engaging with music via listening, analysis, and creative work. Assignments include harmonizing melodies, writing short melodies and accompaniments, creative representation and listening projects, and annotated analysis. On several occasions we will use our instruments and voices to bring musical examples to life in the classroom.
The Amherst College Glee Club, founded in 1865, is the fifth oldest collegiate choral ensemble in the United States. In this course, the ensemble will meet twice a week to develop the skill and knowledge to perform a wide range of musical styles and genres. Participation in this course will help singers develop their vocal ability in a positive environment, interact with living composers on newly composed repertory, as well as engage in the study of repertory from the Western and non-western choral canon.
(Offered as MUSI 123 and RELI 120) This course examines the relationship between music, sound, and religion in a broad, comparative perspective. We will devote particular attention to the intersections of religious sounds and racialized and minoritized communities. In the context of major world religions, new religious movements, and traditional spiritual practices, we will address fundamental issues concerning sacred sound: How does music enable and enhance the ritual process? How is sound sacred and what are its effects and affects?
This hands-on course offers students an introduction to key concepts of realizing music in Digital Audio Workstations (DAWs). Topics include: analog and digital workflows, microphone types, acoustics, digital editing, mixing, MIDI, sampling, and studio practices. DAWs such as Garageband, Logic Pro, ProTools, and Ableton, are arguably the most ubiquitous tools used for creating music.
