Studying at York
Critical Thinking & Listening - MUS00198I
- Department: Music
- Credit value: 20 credits
- Credit level: I
- Academic year of delivery: 2024-25
- See module specification for other years: 2023-24
Module summary
In this module, we build on the Stage I ‘Listen to This!’ module through rigorous contemplation of live and recorded music informed by current critical musicology theory.
Module will run
| Occurrence | Teaching period |
|---|---|
| A | Semester 1 2024-25 |
Module aims
This module includes two elements: a weekly seminar series called ‘Critical Musicology’, and the music department’s weekly concert series. Critical Musicology investigates the ways in which music interacts with society and politics. It encourages us to question our assumptions about music and the way in which we study it. In this module, we will investigate some key concepts of critical musicology, for example the development of musical canons, how music history is conceived and written, whether music means anything, ideology, music-related difference and otherness (including questions surrounding gender, sexuality, race and disability) and ethics in music. In this way, you will be encouraged to
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consider music from new angles;
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think about the wider social contexts of music;
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examine how ideas about music are related to values and identities.
The module also incorporates the music department’s weekly concert series, which you are expected to attend in order to apply ideas from critical musicology to issues connected with live music-making.
Module learning outcomes
By the end of this module you should be able to:
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demonstrate familiarity with a number of critical musicology topics;
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be in a position to evaluate complex ideas, reflect on your own ideas about music and engage critically with processes of musical perception;
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be able to listen and respond to live music from a variety of periods and genres in a critically informed way;
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have gained knowledge about performing issues, by listening to and watching experienced performers, and by connecting performance with critical musicology theory.
In this module you will also demonstrate the following learning outcomes for independent work:
- Demonstrate techniques of detailed critical listening such as transcription and/or ‘close readings’ of aural sources – LO B12
Indicative assessment
| Task | % of module mark |
|---|---|
| Essay/coursework | 100 |
Special assessment rules
None
Additional assessment information
An essay of 3000 words that applies selected theory from the ‘Critical Musicology’ seminar to repertoire encountered in the concert series.
Indicative reassessment
| Task | % of module mark |
|---|---|
| Essay/coursework | 100 |
Module feedback
You will receive written feedback in line with standard University turnaround times.
Indicative reading
Beard, David and Kenneth Gloag. (2016) Musicology: The Key Concepts. Second edition. New York, NY; Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge.
Clayton, Martin, Trevor Herbert, and Richard Middleton, ed. (2003). The Cultural Study of Music: A Critical Introduction. New York; London: Routledge.
Cook, Nicholas and Mark Everist, ed. (1999) Rethinking Music. Oxford and New York: Oxford University Press.
Cook, Nicholas. (1998) Music: A Very Short Introduction. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Harper-Scott, J.P.E. and Jim Samson, ed. (2009) An Introduction to Music Studies. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Scott, D. (2000) Music, Culture, and Society: a Reader. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Small, Christopher. (1998) Musicking: the Meanings of Performing and Listening. Hanover: University Press of New England.
Williams, Alastair. (2001) Constructing Musicology. Aldershot: Ashgate.