Exploration and coaching of varied repertory for duos and small ensembles. May be repeated for credit. Open to instrumental students. Instructor permission required.

This course considers various kinds of writing--from daily journalism and popular criticism to academic monographs and scholarly essays--that concern the broad history of music. Via regular writing assignments and group discussions of substance and style, students have opportunities to improve the mechanics, tone and range of their written prose. Required of senior majors; open to others with instructor permission. Enrollment limited to 12. Juniors and seniors only. Instructor permission required.

This seminar is a practicum on songwriting. Through weekly creative assignments, in-class workshops and listening, students develop and strengthen their skills as musicians, performers and lyricists. Students try several songwriting and compositional techniques, and create and finalize work to be presented in a final concert. Students should have a basic working knowledge of music notation and theory, including harmonic analysis. Prerequisites: MUS 110 or equivalent. Enrollment limited to 12. Juniors and seniors only. Instructor permission required.

What counts as music? Who decides? Can anyone make music? This course raises these and other questions by focusing on experimental music. The course explores the history and practice of experimental music, focusing on text, graphic and other forms of notation. The course also looks at the history of experimental music in performance and makes in-class performances of several key pieces. Through reading and practice, the course asks questions about musical authority, skill and even failure, and the role of institutions in shaping musical ideas.

This course offers an introduction to opera from the 16th to the 21st centuries, with an emphasis on gender performance, virtuosity and the unique history of opera performance at Smith College. Earlier works include Monteverdi’s Orfeo, Handel’s Rodelinda, Mozart’s Marriage of Figaro and Verdi’s Aida, while more modern and contemporary operas include Strauss’s Salome and Kaija Saariaho’s L’Amour du Loin.

Offered as MUS 249 and REL 249. Music is a complex issue in many Islamic societies. There are tensions between those who believe that music has no place in Islam and try to prohibit it, those for whom it is a central component of mystical devotion, and those who tolerate it, albeit within well-defined parameters. The debate intensifies in the case of popular music, a core part of the self-identification of young people everywhere. Despite this, there is an amazing variety of vibrant popular music throughout the Islamic world.

A hands-on introduction to the basic concepts, equipment and software involved in modern music production. This course serves as an introduction to MIDI sequencing, Digital Audio Workstations, analog and digital audio, digital audio recording, mixing and basic studio techniques. Enrollment limited to 8. Instructor permission required. (E)

Basic techniques of composition, including melody, simple two-part writing and instrumentation. Analysis of representative literature. No previous composition experience required. Prerequisite: MUS 110 or equivalent.

A continuation of MUS 110. One 50-minute musicianship section required per week, in addition to classroom meetings. Prerequisite: MUS 110 or equivalent. Enrollment limited to 18.

A continuation of MUS 110. One 50-minute musicianship section required per week, in addition to classroom meetings. Prerequisite: MUS 110 or equivalent. Enrollment limited to 18.