School of Music Graduate Courses

Instructor: Dr. Alison McFarland
Cross-listed with music theory

The history of music theory I addresses the beginnings of music theory and analysis starting with the ancient Greeks where it was also allied with mathematics. The Greeks defined the meaning of theory for the Western world, and this course traces subsequent developments through the late Roman world, through the Medieval era and Renaissance ending about 1600. Topics include the Pythagorean ratios, mathematical derivation of the intervals, the use of Greek modes in the west, and all of the experiments leading to music notation. Theorists discussed include Aristoxenus, Boethius, Guido, Franco, Marchetto, Tinctoris, Glarean, and Zarlino. 

Instructor: Dr. Alison McFarland

The traditional view of the Middle Ages is that people were illiterate, miserable, overworked, and diseased.  That's why it acquired the title of The Dark Ages. It's true that literacy dropped in the wake of the fall of Rome, and there was lots of misery to go around what with war, Crusades, and the plague.  But this model fails to explain all the brilliant things that happened in the Age of Cathedrals and the music, art, architecture, and science that was produced.  In music, we see the invention of notation and polyphony, as well as materials that we use for analysis today. As we go through the unusual and intriguing music of this period we will examine aspects of the culture and see what was light about the dark ages.

Instructor: Dr. Alison McFarland

The Renaissance in art and literature was the rediscovery and use of the classical world of Greek and Roman antiquity, but there was little in that time to have a rebirth in music. So instead, Renaissance music is entirely new and innovative, and a break with the music of the middle ages. This era is when three critical things happened in music. First, planned large-scale compositions were developed like the Mass and motet, many of which are some of the most beautiful music ever written. Second, this era sees the foundations laid for tonal harmony and even chromatic harmony, and third, composers begin to set text meaningfully, and especially with the Italian madrigal, set some of the greatest poets of the age. 

Instructor: Dr. Alison McFarland

The Baroque is an eventful era that begins with the invention of opera and ends with JS Bach and Handel.  The genres of opera, oratorio, and cantata are only part of the story, however, because the years 1600 to 1750 also see the rise of instrumental music and the genres of sonata, concerto, and suite.  Some of the first major artworks that are still in the repertory come from this period. 

Instructor: Dr. Blake Howe

This course pursues the diversity of musical life in the eighteenth century, examining the styles, genres, forms, and performance practices that have retrospectively been labeled “Classical.” We will seek new critical and analytical readings of well-known composers from this period (C.P.E. Bach, Beethoven, Gluck, Haydn, Mozart, Pergolesi, Scarlatti) and introduce ourselves to the music of some lesser-known figures (Alberti, Dussek, Galuppi, Gossec, Hasse, Hiller, Piccinni, Rousseau, Schobert, Vanhal, and Vinci). Reading assignments mostly consist of short excerpts from eighteenth-century texts, and so another important component of this course is the examination and interpretation of primary sources. These include historical essays on philosophy and aesthetics, politics, performance practice, and music theory; historical encyclopedias and dictionaries; contemporary biographies and autobiographies; and letters, diaries, and travelogues. 

Instructor: Dr. Blake Howe

This course explores a variety of nineteenth-century musical practices, examining the styles, genres, forms, and musicians that have been considered—in at least some sense of the term—“Romantic.” Our focus is the interaction of Italian, German, French, and Russian musical traditions, though our journey also includes detours to England, the United States, Norway, Spain, and Bohemia. We concentrate on some of the most popular genres of the century—symphony (or symphonic poem), opera, and piano music—with briefer considerations of song, chamber music, concerto, ballet, and oratorio. Another important component of this course is the examination and interpretation of primary sources, particularly historical essays on aesthetics, criticism, and the diaries and travelogues of musicians. We will supplement these sources with recent historical and analytical studies by leading musicologists and theorists. 

Instructor: Dr. Brett Boutwell

MUS 7756 (Music of the Modern Era) surveys the history of Western classical music during the twentieth century from stylistic, aesthetic, philosophical, and historical perspectives. Students will be exposed to major stylistic trends by examining representative works by leading composers; as a result, listening-based exams determine a large component of the final grade in this course. Students will also study the cultural context surrounding the music’s composition, performance, and reception through readings and class discussion.

Instructor: Dr. Brett Boutwell

MUS 7757 (American Music) is a survey course offering an overview of music making in North America from the seventeenth century to the present day, primarily as practiced within the boundaries of the contemporary United States. The course considers music as a facet of culture, examining its role in the lives of Americans from different social backgrounds while considering the ways that U.S. history can be understood through the country’s music. The repertories under examination are as dissimilar as the nation’s inhabitants; as a result, students taking this course should be willing to respectfully engage with unfamiliar styles, typically without the aid of notation.

Instructor: Dr. Andreas Giger

This course is for musicology and music theory graduate students (major or minor) and serves as an introduction to the fields of American musicology, music theory, and ethnomusicology. It is neither a music history course nor a survey of analytical techniques; we offer specialized courses in these areas. But whereas this course (like all introductions to the field) will to some degree reflect the instructor’s own training and interests, we will branch into areas that are new to all of us. Some of the topics include: the history of our societies, descriptive research, textual scholarship, analytical methods, new musicology, engaged music theory, and ethics. 

Instructor: Dr. Andreas Giger

Giuseppe Verdi’s operas, long among the most popular in the repertoire, have attracted serious scholarly attention only since the 1960s, when the Istituto di studi ver­diani (now Istituto nazionale di studi verdiani) was established in Parma, Italy. The 1980s saw the publication of the first volumes of the monumental critical edition of Verdi’s works, the 1990s an explosive broadening of scholarly approaches, some informed by studies in other dis­ciplines (especially gender and criticism), others by yet unex­plored aspects intrinsic to the genre (staging, ballet, libretto, censorship, ornamenta­tion, and sketches). This seminar will be organized around scholarly approaches, each exemplified by a suitable opera: political context and performance practice (I Lombardi alla prima crociata), sketches and compositional process (La traviata), censorship (Un ballo in maschera), the French connection (Don Carlos), and staging (Otello), for instance. 

Instructor: Dr. Andreas Giger

When Leonard Bernstein died in October 1990, choreographer Jerome Robbins summed up his collaborator’s creative life as follows: “Here in America, we have lost one of the most vital makers and shakers of the musical world.… The scope and dimension of all his interests and the diversity of all that musical energy is gigantic, almost superhuman, and it will be missed.…” As a conductor, Bernstein had championed twentieth-century American composers and popularized the symphonies of Gustav Mahler. As a composer, he wrote numerous masterpieces of American Musical Theater (On the Town[1944], Wonderful Town [1953], Candide [1956], and West Side Story [1957]); three still largely underrated sym­phonies; an Oscar-nominated film score (On the Waterfront [1954]); and—later in his career—works drawing on modern styles, such as electronic music and rock (Mass [1970]) and aleatory techniques (Concerto for Orchestra [1989]). Finally, as an educa­tor, Bernstein was able to communicate musical meaning to a wider audience than could any of his contempo­raries, most notably in his television essays for Robert Saudek’s CBS (later ABC) Omnibus programs (1954–62), in his Young People’s Concerts(1958–72), and later in The Unanswered Question (1973)—the Norton Lectures he gave at his alma mater, Harvard University. In this Seminar, we will examine Leonard Bernstein’s achievements as a composer and musical thinker.

Instructor: Dr. Andreas Giger

If you love opera, it doesn’t get much better than Giacomo Puccini. But whereas audiences have loved (most of) his operas ever since their premieres, critics and scholars resisted until the late twentieth century. In this seminar, we will evaluate Puccini’s place in the history of turn-of-the-century Italian opera, understand his protracted trajectory toward critical acceptance, study the performance practice of the time, and, of course, study some of his masterpieces, focusing on one or two aspects per opera: form in Manon Lescaut, style in La bohème, verismo and performance practice in Tosca, reception in La fanciulla del West, and a synthesis of these elements in Turandot.

Instructor: Dr. Blake Howe

What does music sound like through the ears of another person? Through a series of historical case studies, we will examine the many kinds of relationships that listeners forge with music and the many ways they have described this relationship to others. Some listening experiences are cathartic; others, disturbing. Some listeners use music analytically; others, distractedly. Each class day will be a deep dive into the life and times of one particular listener or listening practice. By trying to understand how others perceive musical sounds, we are in a better position to consider our own listening habits and preferences. Topics include the Romantic listening of Wilhelm Wackenroder, the spiritual listening of Jalāl al-Dīn al-Rūmī, the vibrotactile listening of Helen Keller, the appreciative, reciprocal listening of Bo Ya, and much more. We will also read and discuss two book-length memoirs of listening: Stephen Kuusisto’s Eavesdropping and Han Hsu’s Stay True. 

Instructor: Dr. Blake Howe

This course surveys the life, works, and times of Franz Schubert (1797–1828), one of the most important composers of the nineteenth century. We begin by attempting to understand Schubert’s character and temperament, his life in a politically turbulent city, the social and cultural institutions that sponsored his musical career, and the circles of friends who supported and inspired his artistic vision. We turn to his compositions: the influence of predecessors and contemporaries (idols and rivals) on his early works, his revolutionary approach to poetry and song, the cultivation of expression and subjectivity in his instrumental works, and his audacious harmonic and formal practices. And we conclude with a consideration of Schubert’s legacy: the ever-changing nature of his posthumous reception, his impact on subsequent composers, and the ways in which modern composers have sought to retool, revise, and refinish his music. 

Instructor: Dr. Alison McFarland

The dominant genre in the Renaissance was the Mass, with hundreds written by the major composers of the era. The Mass is the first multi movement genre, the first to use complicated counterpoint, and the first genre to be heavily based on musical borrowing. We will study the continuously developing Masses from John Dunstable to Tomas Luis de Victoria.

Instructor: Dr. Alison McFarland

The music of the English Renaissance did not follow the path of Continental music at all. In a standard Renaissance class, we would begin with Leonel Power and John Dunstable and then completely forget about England until William Byrd at the end of the era. However, English Renaissance style is fascinating and worthy of study in its own right. This is the music of John Tavener, John Browne, Thomas Tallis, and Robert White, as well as the composers for viol consort, keyboard, and madrigal.  It is the music of the period of Henry VIII to Elizabeth and encompasses such events as the English Reformation and Shakespeare. 

Instructor: Dr. Alison McFarland

These two composers moved English music forward by using newly rediscovered English folksong, idioms from the English Renaissance, and other styles of nationalism.  They are often mentioned in the same breath, but they are quite different composers, and it is a shortcoming of the narrative of 20th century England that they are spoken of similarly.  This course examines the various types of music from each composer with the goal of using my own research and that of others to characterize how together and separately they came to define modern England.

Instructor: Dr. Alison McFarland

These two composers moved English music forward by using newly rediscovered English folksong, idioms from the English Renaissance, and other styles of nationalism.  They are often mentioned in the same breath, but they are quite different composers, and it is a shortcoming of the narrative of 20th century England that they are spoken of similarly.  This course examines the various types of music from each composer with the goal of using my own research and that of others to characterize how together and separately they came to define modern England.

Instructor: Dr. Alison McFarland

A great deal of the music of this eclectic composer was written for the expression of English nationalism. He also spent almost 20 years steeped in the ancient epics of India, and his interest has been mischaracterized in several different ways. This course depends heavily on my own research, and I offer a new narrative for Holst’s choices as the reflection of a citizen of the British Empire. 

Instructor: Dr. Brett Boutwell

A graduate music history seminar, this course examines points of convergence between music and visual art since 1900. In each weekly meeting, we will examine the work of a new pairing of two artists, one working with visual mediums and one with sound. Figures in the former category include painters, photographers, conceptual artists, and non-musical performance artists; those in the latter category include musical performers, composers, and sound artists. Our goal is to explore the potential of interdisciplinary analysis by asking how the study of visual art can inform the study of music and vice-versa. Readings will be drawn from the fields of social history, musicology, art history and criticism, and cultural theory.  In keeping with the course’s seminar format, students will present and discuss material in all class meetings, and each student will work independently on a research project through the duration of the semester.

Instructor: Dr. Brett Boutwell

First taking root in texts written during the 1950s, the theory that a thread of experimentalism runs throughout the history of U.S. composition from the time of Charles Ives to the present day is now taken as a commonplace in musicological discourse. Nevertheless, the historiographical construct of an “American Experimental Tradition” can appear to resist our scrutiny in certain respects. This graduate seminar examines the validity of the construct in two ways: first, by studying the music of several influential U.S. composers associated with the AET from the turn of the century to ca. 2000, and second, by parsing the term’s usage in writings by critics, composers, and scholars. The seminar therefore concerns both music history and historiography in equal measure.

English symphonic music is still in the concert halls, but rarely in the curriculum. This class encompasses a fascinating time, when the style of English music accelerates from a torpid early German Romantic imitation and then to a modern idiom including polytonality in less than 100 years. And once expressions of nationalism began, the general English audiences were extremely critical whether each composer in turn was truly representing the English nation. Scholars have struggled to model the culture to explain these developments, and at the present, we have competing narratives. We will examine symphonic music from about 1835-1930 in light of these various case studies.

Instructor: Dr. Alison McFarland

The art song in England was one of the vehicles for a country finding its own voice.  Between the Elizabethans and the end of the 18th century, song in England comprised incidental music for plays, recycled Shakespeare songs, and parlor songs.  But the movement called English romantic poetry began with the 1798 publication of Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge. From that point until the mid 20th century, England featured a roster of poets unequaled elsewhere, including Blake, Keats, Shelley, Byron, Tennyson, Arnold, Browning, Hardy, Elliot, Manley Hopkins, Housman, Warlock, Thackeray, Rosetti, and Betjeman. 

Instructor: Dr. Andreas Giger

Opera, invented around 1600, has probably had a greater impact on society than any other genre. It has provided an artistic outlet at court, glorified kings, promoted nationalism, addressed social issues, and, of course, entertained people of all classes. Due to its interdisciplinary nature, it has influ­enced and been influenced by the history of literature, staging, and acting and has contrib­uted to the history of musical style (most notably by the invention of recitative and Wagnerian har­mony). This survey course will address an accordingly wide spectrum of issues, including historical and cultural context, librettos and versification, musical style, staging, and the business of opera. We will begin with the Florentine Camerata in the late 1500s and conclude with some master­works of the first half of the twentieth century. 

Instructor: Dr. Blake Howe

This course is an interdisciplinary investigation into the music and poetry of the nineteenth-century German lied. Each class, we will focus our attention on one song, using it as an entry point into broader discussions of style, analysis, compositional process, social history, reception, and performance practice. We will examine the poetry of Chamisso, Eichendorff, Geibel, Goethe, Heine, Heyse, Klopstock, Mörike, Müller, and Rückert; and the music of Beethoven, Berg, Brahms, Bronsart, Cornelius, Franz, Hensel, Jensen, Lang, Liszt, Loewe, Mahler, Reichardt, Schröter, Schubert, Schumann, Wieck-Schumann, Wolf, and Zelter. We will also use the assigned repertoire to survey the voices and performance practices of the great lied artists of the twentieth century. 

Instructor: Dr. Blake Howe

An introduction to the history of film music. We start the semester with a brief introduction to various theoretical approaches to film music and film sound, learning important terminology along the way. We then launch a historical survey, beginning with the accompaniment of silent film in the early twentieth century and concluding with an examination of present-day film music. An important goal of this course is to acquaint students with the study of primary sources. This includes the direct analysis of film production materials (shot-by-shot diagrams, recording logs, cue sheets) and the interpretation of composer interviews, notes, and essays. Secondary sources will be assigned to provide students with a general introduction to the current state and scope of film music scholarship.

Instructor: Dr. Blake Howe

All musical scores contain some elements that a composer prescribes and others left for a performer to fill in. By using primary sources like treatises, iconography, transcriptions, and recordings, performers today can learn more about the historical performance traditions that governed the ways in which these indeterminate elements of music might have been executed. In this course, students will be exposed to a variety of performance traditions throughout the history of music. We will learn about these traditions by reading about them, discussing them, and reenacting them through classroom performances and workshops. This course does not teach performance technique, nor will it teach you everything you need to know about the performance practice of a specific style, but it will give you the perspective and skills to further explore these resources on your own. 

Instructor: Dr. Andreas Giger

The symphony emerged in the early eighteenth century and soon became the genre in which composers attempted to realize their highest ambitions in instru­mental expression. Perhaps better than any other genre, the symphony reflects the interests and con­cerns of the respective periods, such as the rise of public concerts, the development of particular instruments, the issues surrounding program music, looming wars, and new harmonic systems. In this course, we will investigate a select set of symphonies from a variety of angles: on the one hand, we will explore the historical context in which the symphonies were written; on the other, we will strive to enjoy and appreciate them both as self-contained musical works of art and representatives of a composer’s style. We will focus on the established masterworks of the Classic and Romantic periods and on those of the early twentieth century. 

Instructor: All Theory Faculty in Rotation
Offered every fall and spring semester, occasionally in summer. 

Study and application of significant contemporary methods of music analysis for both tonal and post-tonal repertoire. Prepares students for additional graduate courses in music theory; as such, it should be taken in the student’s first year of study. Required of all DMA candidates. 

Instructors: Dr. Inessa Bazayev or Dr. Olivia Lucas
Offered every two years

This course prepares graduate students to become teachers of music theory and aural skills at the post-secondary level. We will survey teaching techniques and current research in the field of music theory pedagogy. Students will demonstrate their learning through teaching demonstrations as well as written work and curriculum development exercises. Students will also create a portfolio of documents needed to apply for, interview for, and succeed in jobs that require the teaching of music theory. 

Instructor: Dr. Jeffrey Perry 
Offered every two years

Graphic analysis of tonal music using tools derived from Schenker, Schachter, Westergaard, and others; their effect on musical thought and performance in this century. 

Instructor: Dr. Jeffrey Perry
Offered as needed

Open to students who successfully complete MUS 7704. Readings in analytical literature and further application of linear analytical techniques.

Instructors: All theory faculty in rotation
Offered Occasionally

Readings and practice in various approaches to the analysis of music of the tonal era (ca. 1600-1900). 

Instructors: All theory faculty in rotation
Offered Occasionally

Survey of post-tonal analytical techniques and repertoire. 

Instructor: Dr. Alison McFarland

History of technical writings on music, ca. 500-1600; acoustics, notes and scales, intervals, tuning systems, modes, counterpoint, mensuration, musical poetics, speculative theory.

Instructor: Dr. Robert Peck
Offered every other year

Music theory from ca. 1600 to 1900; development of species counterpoint and figured bass theory; the rise of harmonic theory and rhythmic/phrase analysis; 19th-century expansions of harmonic theory and formal analysis. 

Instructor: All theory faculty in rotation
Offered every fall and spring semester. Topics will vary.

These seminars are advanced courses that offer deep investigation in one of the instructor’s areas of expertise. They typically require a final project or paper comprising independent research. At least one MUS 7921 is offered every fall and spring semester, but instructors and topics will vary. A selection of topics regularly offered appears below. 

Instructor: Dr. Robert Peck
Varied offering

Recent developments in the field of mathematics and music with focus on set-, group-, and graph-theoretical approaches to music analysis.

Instructor: Dr. Inessa Bazayev
Varied offering

This course explores analytical methods that inform performance decisions. Special attention is given to theories of form and gesture, and repertoire will mostly be drawn from the 18th and 19th centuries. 

Instructor: Dr. Inessa Bazayev
Varied offering

Analysis and criticism of Russian 19th-century nationalist school (i.e., the Kuchkists) and their influence on Soviet composers. The seminar also discusses literary texts used in these works and the way in which they were transformed into Soviet propaganda. 

Instructor: Dr. Inessa Bazayev
Varied offering

Analysis and criticism of the music of Sergei Prokofiev (1891-1953) in the context of Russian, Soviet, and Western scholarship.

Instructor: Dr. Inessa Bazayev
Varied offering

The aim of the seminar is to show stark parallels between both country’s artistic aims within drastically different political circumstances. The course is driven by critical, historical, and theoretical writings in both the Soviet Union and America. 

Instructor: Dr. Olivia Lucas
Varied offering

This seminar teaches methods for analyzing extreme metal’s sounds, in addition to ways of understanding its social, political, and cultural context. 

Instructor: Dr. Olivia Lucas
Varied offering

This course explores ways of understanding the temporality of musical experience. Areas of focus will include theories of rhythm and meter developed for Euroclassical music (both tonal and post-tonal), non-Western perspectives on musical temporality, and study of temporal issues that arise in the analysis of popular music. Students will not only become familiar with the theoretical models themselves but will also practice their application through analytical and performance activities.

Instructor: Dr. Olivia Lucas
Varied offering

In-depth study of sonata form, with central focus on 18th and 19th century expressions, but continuing into its 20th century legacy. The class covers multiple approaches to and interpretations of this significant instrumental form, both historical and contemporary. 

Instructor: Dr. Jeffrey Perry
Varied offering

A study of connections between music, poetry, and other media in the 19th, 20th, and 21st centuries. Often cross-listed with Comparative Literature 7150. 

Instructor: Dr. Jeffrey Perry
Varied offering

Experimental music in the U.S. and the U.K. in the 20th and 21st centuries, and its precursors: Ives, Cowell, John Cage and the New York School, Cornelius Cardew and the Scratch Orchestra, and others. Intersections with Fluxus and similar art movements. Emphasis on analysis through realization of scores. 

Instructor: Composition Faculty Rotation
Offered every 2 years

The objective of this course is to introduce advanced techniques of orchestration and build a solid foundation of knowledge of the instruments of the orchestra and wind ensemble through direct observation and guided practice. The course will focus primarily on developing practical skills, such as transposition, arranging, orchestral score and part preparation, analysis, and principles of engraving notation.

Instructor: Composition Faculty Rotation
Offered every 2 years

This class is a graduate seminar whose focus is the exposition of compositional techniques used by composers of the late 20th and early 21st century. The course will review a wide variety of works and compositional aesthetics, including but not limited to minimalism, total serialism, chance and aleatoric music, music from non-Western cultures, and technology-enabled music. 

Pre-requisite: MUS 4745

Advanced techniques in digital sound synthesis and composition; analysis/resynthesis techniques, granular synthesis, physical modeling, interactive computer music performance and algorithmic composition using computers; survey of representative music from the genre.

Pre-requisite: MUS 7745

Advanced techniques in digital sound synthesis and composition; analysis/resynthesis techniques, granular synthesis, physical modeling, interactive computer music performance and algorithmic composition using computers; survey of represen

The history of electroacoustic music; developments in technology, aesthetics and style since ca. 1900 to present; survey and analysis of representative music from the genre.

In this doctoral-level course, students will be introduced to the principles, methods, and practices of scholarly research in music. Topics include a broad spectrum of paradigmatic approaches, including historical, philosophical, quantitative, and qualitative methodologies. Students will evaluate existing literature across diverse musical disciplines and develop skills in scholarly writing and research design. Emphasis is placed on formulating research questions, constructing effective arguments, and understanding the ethical considerations of music scholarship. This course serves as a vital bridge between musical artistry and academic inquiry, equipping students with the tools necessary to contribute meaningfully to the evolving landscape of music research.

This course is a survey of the field of music psychology, application of the scientific method in music research, and the fundamentals of experimental design. Through readings, discussions, and academic writing, students will develop their understanding of topics such as the neurophysiology of hearing, perception of musical pitch, time, and rhythm, the development of expertise and music practice, the psychology of music performance, and foundations of cognitive neuroscience in music. Students will evaluate published empirical work, learning how to interpret research findings, culminating in an original experiment they design.

This course is a survey of the historical, philosophical, sociological, and current issues in music education. Throughout the semester, students will synthesize concepts in order to develop a solid epistemological and philosophical grounding of music education. The purpose of this course is to provide a holistic perspective on the music education landscape to connect these foundational concepts to future research and practice.

This course examines the role of teaching and the teacher in diverse higher education settings, elements of effective teaching in varied musical circumstances, and to prepare students for the higher education job market. The required readings and projects, such as crafting job materials including a Curriculum Vitae, designing an original course syllabus, and more, are designed to help prepare students for their role as a college teacher, prompt thinking about what effective teaching looks like, and reflect on their own teaching.

This course provides an in-depth exploration of quantitative research methods as applied to the field of music education. Topics include research design, measurement, statistical analysis, and data interpretation, with a focus on empirical approaches to investigating issues in music teaching and learning. Students will engage with experimental and quasi-experimental designs, survey methods, and descriptive and inferential statistics. Using real-world examples from the field of music education, students will learn to formulate research questions, select appropriate methodologies, analyze data using software tools, and effectively communicate research findings.

This course is an introduction to principles and procedures of qualitative inquiry in music and music education. Through reading, writing, discussion, and application—culminating with the development of an original qualitative research proposal—students will learn how to craft research questions appropriate for qualitative inquiry; select and apply theoretical frameworks; locate relevant scholarly material, synthesize information, and compose literature reviews; generate, analyze, interpret, and report qualitative data; evaluate published qualitative research; and apply conventions of clear and effective academic writing.

Students in this course will think about teaching in addition to putting skills into practice. They will analyze traits that define effective studio teachers, incorporate those traits into their own teaching, and teach fundamental skills on stringed instruments such as setup, posture, bow hold, shifting, and more. Students will envision their own private studio setting including the development of a personal business plan. Students will analyze repertoire for technical and pedagogical elements, culminating in a project tracing a pedagogical “arc” from Suzuki book 1 to a movement of a major concerto for their instrument.

Faculty may offer one-time courses based on their research and/or teaching interests. 

Offered every other spring; next offered Spring 2026

Course Description Coming Soon!

Offered every third fall; next offered Fall 2025

Course Description Coming Soon!

Offered every third fall; next offered Fall 2026

Course Description Coming Soon!