Musicology

Academic Year: 
2019-20
Address: 
Woolworth Center
Phone: 
609-258-6078
Website: 
Department of Music (Musicology)
Program offerings: 
Ph.D.
Director of Graduate Studies
Simon Morrison
Graduate Program Administrator
Greg Smith

Academic department detail

Overview

WITH A LONG TRADITION OF EXCELLENCE AND INNOVATION, the musicology program at Princeton University is broadly conceived, and includes historical and ethnographic investigation, as well as music theory, hermeneutics, and criticism. Graduate students, who are fully funded for five years, become part of a vibrant scholarly and artistic community. In addition to working closely with our renowned musicology faculty as seminar leaders and advisers, musicology students can explore Princeton’s rich offerings in the humanities, have access to the superb Mendel Music Library, and—with subsidized private studio instruction and the opportunity to participate in the Music Department’s superb ensembles—are encouraged to make performance an integral part of their lives.  With Sō Percussion in residence, the Princeton University Concerts series, Princeton Sound Kitchen, and the many performances by our many ensembles, musicology students can partake of a rich and eclectic concert life.  

Courses

Permanent Courses

Courses listed below are graduate-level courses that have been approved by the program’s faculty as well as the Curriculum Subcommittee of the Faculty Committee on the Graduate School as permanent course offerings. Permanent courses may be offered by the department or program on an ongoing basis, depending on curricular needs, scheduling requirements, and student interest. Not listed below are undergraduate courses and one-time-only graduate courses, which may be found for a specific term through the Registrar’s website. Also not listed are graduate-level independent reading and research courses, which may be approved by the Graduate School for individual students.

MUS 501 Seminar in Academic Writing A seminar designed to examine and cultivate scholarly writing. We will consider examples from the historical and analytical writing about music and related disciplines, including more traditional and more experimental models. Students will critique one another's papers and dissertation chapters, focusing on form, content, methodologies, and analytical strategies, and will have the opportunity to present work in progress. Recommended for post-generals students in both composition and musicology.
MUS 504 Medieval Musical Style and Notation (also
HLS 540
) Examines musical notation along paleographic, semiotic, and aesthetic lines, and addresses theoretical and practical problems of transcription. Focuses on earliest notations of the Christian east and west and later, the emergence of rhythmic notation.
MUS 509 Topics of Popular Music An introduction to issues involved in analyzing popular music: rock, soul, funk, hip-hop and electronic dance music from the late 1950s to the present. Topics discussed include form, timbre, texture, technology and production, harmony and voice leading, rhythm, virtuosity, video, and transcription methods. Weekly assignments of three to four analytical articles dealing with a particular theoretical issue and two to three songs for analysis in class.
MUS 510 Extramural Research Internship MUS510 is for students in the department who wish to gain experience of central importance to their area of study by working outside of the University capacity. For composition students, this might include working with theater companies, dance troupes, or other relevant organizations. For musicology students this might include archival research or performance. Course objectives and content are determined by student's adviser in consultation with the external institution. Students submit monthly progress reports including goals and progress to date, and any evaluations received from host institution or published reviews of the final product.
MUS 511 Problems in Early Christian Music (also
HLS 511
) Historical, paleographic, and stylistic studies in the liturgical chants of the Christian East and West are studied.
MUS 512 Topics in Medieval Music (also
MED 512
) Source-critical, historical, and stylistic studies of one of the late medieval polyphonic repertories are studied.
MUS 513 Topics in 19th- and Early 20th-Century Music (also
SLA 507
) Text-critical and analytic studies in the works of one or several of the major figures are studied.
MUS 514 Topics in 19th- and Early 20th-Century Music Text-critical and analytic studies in the works of one or several of the major figures are studied.
MUS 515 Topics in the History of Opera (also
COM 517
) Critical, historical, and analytic studies of music, language, and drama in the European operatic tradition are studied.
MUS 518 Musical Theory from the 18th Century to the Present Studies in the history of tonal-harmonic and rhythmic-formal theory and of changing concepts of music theory in the West are explored.
MUS 519 Topics in Music from 1600 to 1800 This seminar explores one or more topics in the history, analysis, and interpretation of music of the seventeenth and/or eighteenth century. Recent seminars have included: Handel in Italy; Gender and Sexuality in the Music of Early Modern Italy; Francesco Cavalli: Sources and Interpretation; J.S. Bach.
MUS 520 Topics in Music from 1600 to 1800 This seminar explores one or more topics in the history, analysis, and interpretation of music of the seventeenth and/or eighteenth century. Recent seminars have included: Handel in Italy; Gender and Sexuality in the Music of Early Modern Italy; Francesco Cavalli: Sources and Interpretation; J.S. Bach.
MUS 525 Topics in Music from 1400 to 1600 Studies in one or more of the major vocal or instrumental repertories of the 15th and 16th centuries are explored.
MUS 527 Seminar in Musicology Original work in areas of current musicological significance are presented to and reviewed by the seminar as the occasion arises. Emphasis is given to student projects, but work in progress by any member of the seminar may be discussed or a topic of particular controversy examined.
MUS 528 Seminar in Musicology Original work in areas of current musicological significance are presented to and reviewed by the seminar as the occasion arises. Emphasis is given to student projects, but work in progress by any member of the seminar may be discussed or a topic of particular controversy examined.
MUS 531 Composition Emphasis is placed on the individual student's original work and the study and discussion of pieces pertinent to that work.
MUS 532 Composition Emphasis is placed on the individual student's original work and the study and discussion of pieces pertinent to that work.
MUS 534 Ends and Means: Issues in Composition A consideration of the more elusive but fundamental aspects of composition: continuity; change (goal-directed, circular, sudden); tempo and texture; rhythms of harmony, contrapuntal interaction, succession of ideas, and surface attack; the "extra-musical;" contextual logic and ad hoc systems; and sonic image, form, and idea.
MUS 537 Points of Focus in 20th-Century Music Selected areas in 20th-century music are chosen for detailed examination and study. Representative works are subjected to critical scrutiny, and an attempt may be made to draw conclusions regarding larger theoretical, analytical, and social issues.
MUS 538 Computer Music: Compositional Applications The use and design of computer-based synthetic instruments and compositional software is studied. The emphasis is on the construction of computer-musical environments, for the realization of sound as well as for compositional assistance.
MUS 540 Composing Opera An introduction to some of the compositional problems pertinent to opera. Musical potentials of language and dramatic structure as well as theatrical potentials of music are explored through experiments in text setting and libretto construction.
MUS 541 Seminar in Music Composition A seminar focusing on the relationship (symbiotic or otherwise) between artistic creation and intellectual inquiry in compositional practice. Course will deal with practical concerns by sharing works in progress, recent works, and by hosting performers who are currently collaborating with members of the seminar. Although all composition graduate students are welcome, the seminar is especially geared toward first-and second-year students in composition.
MUS 542 Instrumentation and Performance A study of the characteristics of individual instruments, including extended contemporary techniques and writing arrangements for chamber ensemble and for orchestra. Special attention is given to problems of combining voice and instruments. The arrangements written for this class are performed by the Composers' Ensemble at Princeton and the Princeton University Orchestra, and problems of performance involving notation, rehearsal, and conducting are dealt with.
MUS 545 Contexts of Composition (also
GSS 545
) An examination of the proliferating variety of relations between composers and composition, in film, theater, and dance; technologically based systems and collaborative situations. Extended meanings of composition, including new applications made possible by technology and recording and the exploration of musical extensibility of subjects such as meditation, games, ritual, social action, and cognitive science.
MUS 549 Topics in Tonal Theory Topics such as theoretical models, analytical procedures, and the relationship of each to theories of composition and performance, may be covered.
MUS 550 Current Topics in Theory and Analysis The presentation and examination of an important work of current interest in theory and analysis and original research of faculty members and graduate students are explored.