Please visit Yale Course Search (http://courses.yale.edu) for the most up-to-date course information, including hours and locations of classes, for each term.
Key to course list
Courses designated “a” meet in the fall term only. Courses designated “b” meet in the spring term only. Courses designated “a,b” are offered in both the fall and spring terms.
Courses designated “a–b” are yearlong courses.
Courses designated NP are nonperformance courses.
Courses designated P/F will be graded on a Pass/Fail basis.
Courses designated Group A, B, or C qualify as distribution requirements in these groups.
Musicianship and Theory
MUS 500a, Fundamentals of Analysis and Musicianship 6 credits. NP. Intensive review of the fundamental elements of musical literacy, analysis, and musicianship in tonal and post-tonal contexts. To be followed by MUS 502. Enrollment by placement exam. Students in MUS 500 may not enroll concurrently in any course designated as a Group A. Does not fulfill the Group A requirement. Stephanie Venturino
MUS 501a, Analysis and Musicianship I 4 credits. NP. Introduction to analysis and musicianship in tonal and post-tonal contexts. To be followed by MUS 502. Enrollment by placement exam. Does not fulfill the Group A requirement. Seth Monahan
MUS 502b, Analysis and Musicianship II 4 credits. NP. Intermediate analysis and musicianship in tonal and post-tonal contexts. Enrollment by placement exam. Does not fulfill the Group A requirement. Stephanie Venturino, Seth Monahan
[MUS 603, Advanced Musicianship, Score Reading and Analysis 4 credits. NP. Group A. Looking to improve your musical memory, sharpen your aural processing, and hone your critical listening skills? Designed for students who have completed or have passed out of the Analysis and Musicianship core courses (MUS 500, 501, 502), this hands-on lab offers a space for students to develop comprehensive musicianship through individual and collaborative music-making. We focus on subjects rarely addressed in the musicianship classroom, including memorization, attentional focus, audiation, intonation, playing by ear, improvisation, timbre, blend, pulse, and aural analysis. Class sessions are highly interactive and centered on singing, playing, and creating music. Students are expected to engage in class activities using their voices and primary/secondary instruments—no keyboard experience necessary. Outside of class, students work on practice-based activities, which are performed live in class and during individual sessions with the instructor. Prerequisite: Students must have completed or have passed out of MUS 502. Not offered in 2024–2025]
MUS 610a, Introduction to Score Reading and Analysis 4 credits. NP. Group A. The basics of score reading, understanding of orchestral instruments, and analysis of form, style, and harmony from the Baroque and Classical periods. Developing clef, transposing, and score-reading skills at the keyboard. Permission of the instructor required. Prerequisites: some keyboard skills, regular daily access to a keyboard outside of Yale, ability to read both treble and bass clefs. William Boughton
MUS 648a, Approaches to Fin-de-siècle Song 4 credits. NP. Group A. This course uses the art song as a lens for exploring the seismic changes to musical style and expression that occurred in Europe between 1875 and 1915. Its concerns are, above all, analytical: through close engagement with dozens of individual songs (for voice and piano, orchestra, or chamber ensemble), we’ll chart the many new approaches to harmony, melody, form and text-setting that emerged in this critical period. But we’ll also take a keen interest in questions of method, asking of each new piece which analytical tools—among many—are the most illuminating and appropriate. In so doing, we’ll find that the richest approach demands a toolkit as creative and eclectic as the repertoire itself, along with analytical flexibility and a thoughtful ear. Our principal corpus will be songs set in German (Mahler, Wolf, Strauss, Berg, Schoenberg) and French (Fauré, Debussy, Ravel). But depending on student interest, we may branch into other repertories as well, including works by contemporary Russian, British, and/or Nordic composers (e.g., Mussorgsky, Vaughan Williams, Grieg, or Sibelius). Course requirements include weekly listening, reading, and analysis; occasional oral presentations; and a final analysis project on repertoire chosen by the student. Seth Monahan
MUS 710b, Intermediate Score Reading and Analysis 4 credits. NP. Group A. Developing score reading and analysis from MUS 610 of music from the Romantic and modern periods through playing, listening, historical perspective, and analysis. Continuing development of score-reading skills at the keyboard. Permission of the instructor required. Students must have access to a keyboard for practice and class participation. William Boughton
Composition
[MUS 505, Orchestration Through Contemporary Score Study 4 credits. NP. Group A. The study of advanced concepts in orchestral writing through the study of music of the past thirty years. Composers represented include: Henri Dutilleux, Jacob Druckman, John Adams, Tan Dun, Magnus Lindberg, Thomas Adès, Helmut Lachenmann, and Marc-Andre Dalbavie, among others. Not offered in 2024–2025]
[MUS 555, Composition for Performers 4 credits. NP. Group A. This class looks at music composition from various historical and philosophical perspectives, with an eye toward discovering models and ideas that allow us to write music for ourselves. With a special emphasis on the history of text setting, we write and play music for one another and critique it ourselves. All are welcome. Not offered in 2024–2025]
[MUS 620, Orchestration for Performers and Conductors NP. 4 credits. Group A. This course on the basics of orchestration is meant to introduce the performer and conductor to both the knowledge of instrumentation (the mechanics and use of individual orchestral instruments) and the general techniques of classical orchestration (through score study). We use Samuel Adler’s The Study of Orchestration as a primary text for the study of instrumentation, supplemented by having live players come in weekly to talk about the specifics of their instruments. In addition, we look at several traditional works from the repertory, including Mahler’s Symphony No. 5, Debussy’s La Mer, and Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring. Not offered in 2024–2025]
History and Analysis
MUS 511b, Music before 1750 4 credits. NP. Group B. An analytic and cultural survey of European music before 1750. Alongside detailed examination of notated repertoire representing the major styles, genres, and composers of the period, the course explores the roles of listeners and performers, the social contexts of music making, and the relationships among notated and vernacular music. Topics include the development of the modern notational system, the transmission of music as a result of social and power structures, vernacular traditions of music making, the place of music in relationship to changing world views and cosmologies, the relationship between music and language, the emergence of independent instrumental music, and the development of musical form. The course explores both music that was incorporated in the canon of Western music but also composers and musical traditions that were marginalized. Enrollment by placement exam. May be taken as an elective, space permitting. Markus Rathey
MUS 512a,b, Music from 1750 to 1900 4 credits. NP. Group B. An analytic and cultural survey of music from the European tradition between 1750 and 1900. Alongside detailed examination of notated repertoire representing the major styles, genres, and composers of the period, the course explores the roles of listeners and performers, the social contexts of music making, and the relationships among notated and vernacular musics. Topics include the development of dramatized functional tonality and chromatic harmony, the interplay of vocal and instrumental genres, the publishing marketplace and the evolution of musical gender roles, the depiction of exotic otherness in musical works, the rise of nationalism and its influence on the arts, and the origins of modern notions of classical music. Enrollment by placement exam. May be taken as an elective, space permitting. Paul Berry [F], Lynette Bowring [Sp]
MUS 513a,b, Music since 1900 4 credits. NP. Group B. An analytic and cultural survey of European and American music since 1900. Alongside detailed examination of notated repertoire representing the major styles, genres, and composers of the period, the course explores the roles of listeners and performers, the social contexts of music making, and the relationships among notated and vernacular musics. Topics include modernist innovations around 1910, serialism and neoclassicism in the interwar period, the avant-gardes of the 1950s and 1960s, minimalism and other postmodern aesthetics of the 1970s and beyond, and consideration of relevant traditions of popular music throughout the period. Enrollment by placement exam. May be taken as an elective, space permitting. Lynette Bowring [F], Robert Holzer [Sp]
[MUS 523, Phrase, Form, and Affect in the Classical String Quartet 4 credits. NP. Group A or B. A study of expressive potential and interpretive implication in the string quartets of Haydn, Mozart, and Beethoven. Through close historical and music-analytic engagement, the course helps the student develop a flexible and nuanced approach to the articulation of phrase groups, the interpretation of large-scale form, and the exploration of affect, style, and musical values. The goal is a detailed reckoning with the repertoire that, more than any other, has come to define the ideals of chamber music and the idea of classical music itself. Quartets are chosen in part according to students’ interests and current performance projects, and performance in class is encouraged. Among works addressed are Haydn’s Opus 20, 33, 64, and 76; Mozart’s K. 387, 421, 465, and 590; and Beethoven’s Opuses 18, 59, 95, and 132. Not offered in 2024–2025]
[MUS 547, Text, Form, and Narrative in Instrumental Music 4 credits. NP. Group A or B. This course surveys major instrumental genres in Western traditions, from the early seventeenth century to the present, in search of sensitive and flexible approaches to the relationship between notated instrumental music and the programmatic titles, texts, and implied narratives that accompanied it, both on the score and in the minds of receptive listeners. Beginning with the earliest published sonatas and proceeding through detailed score study of examples from both small- and large-scale genres (sonata, suite, concerto, symphony, string quartet, concert overture, keyboard miniature, and symphonic poem), the course addresses a wide range of repertoire via historically grounded case studies and occasional forays into contemporary narrative theory. The goal is a fluid and stylistically sensitive approach to musical storytelling through harmony, affect, and form. Composers addressed include Marini, Froberger, Biber, Kuhnau, Corelli, Vivaldi, Bach, Haydn, Beethoven, Mendelssohn, Schumann, Berlioz, Liszt, Hensel, Brahms, Rimsky-Korsakov, Strauss, Dukas, Dvorˇák, Debussy, Schoenberg, Still, Messiaen, Gubaidulina, Takemitsu, and Léon. Course requirements include weekly listening and short readings, occasional oral presentations (three to six minutes), a final project (a five to eight-page paper, a curated performance, or a model composition), and a final oral examination on topics chosen by the student. Not offered in 2024–2025]
MUS 560a, Research and Editions 4 credits. NP. Group B. The goal of this course is to discover and evaluate performing editions and recordings of musical compositions that, in the students’ opinions, best exemplify a composer’s intent by developing library research skills in order to locate and critically evaluate library resources that will guide and support the student’s needs. Students select a composition from the standard repertoire that is relevant to them, as well as a composition by a living composer from an underrepresented population; identify and evaluate performing editions (three maximum) and recordings (three maximum) of each that represent the most authoritative version as well as the least; maintain a research journal by way of weekly course assignments and essays; build an annotated bibliography of resources used; and provide documented findings to support the evaluations and articulate the reasons for their selections clearly, and to compare the amount and types of resources that are available for research for each of the two compositions selected, both in writing and as a final presentation to the class. Ruthann McTyre
MUS 566a, Studies in German Opera from Mozart to Zimmermann 4 credits. NP. Group A or B. The class examines the musical and dramatic structure of selected Singspiele and operas in the German language. Works by Mozart, Weber, Wagner, Richard Strauss, Berg, Schoenberg, Krenek, and Zimmermann are examined in detail. This is not intended to be a history of German opera, but rather a detailed examination of the organizational features of specific monuments of the literature. Students are required to make presentations in a seminar format throughout the term. There is a midterm, a paper, and a final examination. Paul Hawkshaw
MUS 573b, Introduction to Jazz, Race, and Gender 4 credits. NP. Group B. An introduction to jazz from its roots in African music, through its development in New Orleans (1900–1917), to its evolutionary expansion throughout the United States. The course includes a study of jazz’s artists/styles from the 1880s through the 1970s; an examination of the social, racial, gendered, and economic factors that gave rise to jazz styles; and how jazz developmental patterns are represented in today’s popular music. This introductory course may be redundant for students who have already had significant studies in jazz history. Students with some knowledge of jazz history may want to take this course to help them develop their own curriculum in preparation for teaching a similar course in the future. Course work is done through a combination of online work, short essays, group discussion, and reading assignments. Thomas C. Duffy
[MUS 574, The Music of Anton Bruckner 4 credits. Group A or B. This course has been designed to coincide with the Yale Philharmonia performance of the Seventh Symphony and the biennial meeting of the American Bruckner Society at YSM in April 2023. Participants will investigate the composer’s style and its precedents in both his sacred and secular music. The influence of Wagner, Mendelssohn, Beethoven and especially Schubert will be discussed in detail, as will the composer’s career-long preoccupation with revising his own music. Course Requirements: midterm and final examination; paper due second last class; listening and reading assignments each week. Not offered in 2024–2025]
[MUS 582, French Sounds: Music from Debussy to Dalbavie 4 credits. NP. Group A or B. What makes French music of the past century—despite its stylistic diversity—sound distinctly French? This course, covering the evolution of music in France from the fin de siècle to the turn of the millennium, addresses this question from analytical, theoretical, and historical angles. Course modules focus on French approaches to tonality, harmony, resonance, pitch organization, melody, ornament, rhythm, timbre, and sound qualities. Students also explore connections between French music and other subject areas, including visual art, dance, and philosophy. Repertoire covers a wide variety of styles and instrumentations; composers include Claude Debussy, Maurice Ravel, Cécile Chaminade, Lili Boulanger, Edgard Varèse, André Jolivet, Germaine Tailleferre, Darius Milhaud, Maurice Ohana, Olivier Messiaen, Henri Dutilleux, Pierre Boulez, Gérard Grisey, Éliane Radigue, Betsy Jolas, and Marc-André Dalbavie, among others. Brief excerpts of scholarly prose help students relate score study to broader musical, historical, cultural, and political trends. Authors of secondary readings include Gurminder Bhogal, Katherine Bergeron, Alexandra Kieffer, Damien Blättler, Arnold Whittall, Barbara Kelly, Jane Fulcher, Deborah Mawer, Jonathan Bernard, Julian Johnson, Caroline Rae, Robert Hasegawa, and Amy Bauer, among others. Course requirements include weekly listening, reading, and analytical work; occasional oral presentations and discussion board assignments; and a final analysis project based on student-selected repertoire. Not offered in 2024–2025]
MUS 583a, The Orchestra from Monteverdi to Haydn 4 credits. NP. Group A or B. Underpinning the modern symphony orchestra are familiar expectations and traditions, many of them dating back to the Romantic era. This course examines the period before the standardization of the orchestra: the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, during which time the orchestra evolved from a loose and variable collection of instruments through to an ensemble on the cusp of becoming the modern symphony orchestra. Lynette Bowring
MUS 587b, Reframing Post-Tonality: Twentieth and Twenty-First Century Countercanons 4 credits. NP. Group A. What might we discover by looking at contemporary repertoire through the lens of lesser-known composers and compositional processes? What happens if we shift our focus from traditional tools for post-tonal analysis—pitch-class set theory and twelve-tone theory—to embrace broader, more descriptive methods? This course grapples with these questions head-on, offering a “countercanonical” approach (Damrosch 2006) to the analysis of twentieth- and twenty-first-century art music. In addition to considering problems of tonal-atonal boundaries and canonicity, students develop tools and strategies for post-tonal analysis that can directly aid performance decisions. Topics include modes, scales, pitch organization, rhythm, repetition, timbre, tuning, and gesture. Repertoire covers a wide variety of styles and instrumentations; composers include Ruth Crawford Seeger, Roque Cordero, Kaija Saariaho, Unsuk Chin, Sky Macklay, Anna Thorvaldsdottir, Julius Eastman, George Lewis, Dai Fujikura, Pamela Z, and Tanya Tagaq, among others. Brief excerpts of scholarly prose help students relate score study to broader musical, historical, cultural, and political trends. Course requirements include weekly listening, reading, and analytical work; occasional discussion board and VoiceThread posts; and a final project centered on student-selected repertoire. Stephanie Venturino
MUS 588b, Soundwalks: A Practice Guide to Field Recording and Acoustic Ecology 4 credits. NP. Group A. This is a discussion, listening, and creative-practice-based class exploring the diverse role of field recordings in the compositional process. We survey the vast musical landscape of “found sounds,” their aesthetics, politics, and musical contexts, as well as gain a foundational fluency with some of the technological tools involved in working with recorded sound. This class requires zero prior experience with music technology. Listening, discussion, and some primary source reading will be alternated with several “tech sessions” in which we explore tools and techniques used by composers surveyed. The class is framed by two creative projects presented in weeks eight and fourteen. Collaborating on the final project is strongly encouraged. Katherine Balch
[MUS 589, Approaches to the Classical Style 4 credits. NP. Group A or B. An examination of modern scholarship on eighteenth-century music, aimed at applying varying approaches to works composed between approximately 1730 and 1800. Among the thinkers and topics to be considered are Charles Rosen and James Webster on periodization; Daniel Heartz on the galant style; Leonard Ratner on rhetoric and topics; Eric Weimer and Janet Levy on texture; James Hepokoski and Warren Darcy on form; Leonard Meyer and Robert Gjerdingen on schemata; Elisabeth Le Guin on performance and the body; Julia Doe on the impact of the French Revolution; and Malcom Cole on racism during the Enlightenment. Not offered in 2024–2025]
[MUS 592, The Symphonies of Gustav Mahler 4 credits. NP. Group A or B. This course surveys the career-spanning creative output of Gustav Mahler (1860–1911), balancing close analytical investigations of individual works with wide-ranging considerations of their historical, philosophical, and critical contexts. Front and center is the music itself: its bold and idiosyncratic use of harmony and orchestral color; its daring, even radical eclecticism; its spiraling contrapuntal sophistication; and above all its rich and multidimensional narrative complexity. All reward close study. But around the music swirls a constellation of long-contested issues: the relevance of Mahler’s own programs and paratexts; the relation of art to lived experience; the capacity of instrumental music to tell stories or “narrate”; and the symphonies’ stance toward tradition at the dawn of musical modernism. So in grappling with each work, we also have to contend with reception traditions that are varied, complex, and at times irreconcilable. And yet each illuminates some vital aspect of a corpus that is as perplexing and self-contradictory as the man behind it, the absolute-music partisan whose symphonies were programmatic through and through. Course requirements include weekly listening, reading, and analytical work, three brief response papers (one to four pages), occasional oral presentations, and a final oral examination on topics chosen by the student. Not offered in 2024–2025]
MUS 598b, The Piano Trio: Texture, Form, Affect 4 credits. NP. Group A or B. A study of texture, form, and affect in trios for violin, cello, and piano from the origins of the genre until the present day. Beginning with examples from the late eighteenth century, the course charts a path through some of the most important developments of the next 250 years: chromatic harmony, formal and temporal experimentation, post-tonal idioms, and narrative and programmatic content. A parallel concern is the composer’s response to evolving instruments and changing performance practices. Repertoire is chosen in part according to students’ interests and current performance projects. Among composers addressed are Mozart, Haydn, Beethoven, Schubert, Wieck, Schumann, Brahms, Dvorˇák, Ravel, Clarke, Ives, Shostakovich, Maric, and Esmail. Course requirements include weekly listening and short readings, occasional oral presentations (four to six minutes), a final project (a five to eight-page paper, a curated performance, or a model composition), and a final oral examination on topics chosen by the student. Paul Berry
MUS 603b, The Sacred Concerto in the Seventeenth Century 4 credits. NP. Group B. When Ludovico da Viadana published his Cento concerti Ecclesiastici in 1602, a “new” musical style was born: the small-scaled sacred concerto. The course outlines the development of this style in the seventeenth century among composers like Monteverdi and Schütz, as well as its roots in the late sixteenth century in the compositions of Willaert and G. Gabrieli. Markus Rathey
MUS 605b, Poetry and Meaning in Vocal Music 4 credits. NP. Group A or B. This course surveys major vocal genres in the Western tradition, from the Middle Ages to the present, in search of sensitive and flexible approaches to the relationship between music and the poetry it sets. Among practicing musicians and scholars alike, vocal genres are commonly understood as transparent vessels for verbal meaning, which, itself, is often presented as straightforward and fixed. Yet any poem rewards a range of complementary, even contrasting interpretations, while composers in different genres and periods have developed an array of musical procedures that enhance, inflect, deflect, or entirely redefine the meanings that a given text can convey to receptive audiences. Beginning with the foundations of notated European music in chant and monophonic song, and proceeding through detailed score study of examples from essential vocal genres (motet, cyclic mass, madrigal, opera, cantata, oratorio, song, song cycle, and popular song), this course hones a variety of strategies for the analysis of texted music. Repertoire is chosen partly in response to student interest and current performance projects. Possibilities include chant and monophonic song by Hildegard von Bingen and Beatriz de Dia; motets by Vitry, Willaert, Palestrina, Poulenc, and Pärt; masses by Dufay and Josquin; madrigals by Arcadelt, Rore, Marenzio, Monteverdi, and Hindemith; cantatas by Bach and Stravinsky; songs by Franz Schubert, Benjamin Britten, Sam Cooke, Otis Redding, and Aretha Franklin; chamber and electro-acoustic works by Schoenberg and Babbitt; and opera and oratorio by Handel, Mozart, and Saariaho. Close readings of poetic texts go hand-in-hand with score study; brief excerpts from primary sources and scholarly prose provide historical context and conceptual cognates, including rhetoric, narrative, and the complex influences of gender, race, sexuality, and political identity on the composition and interpretation of vocal music. Paul Berry
MUS 612a, The Music of Igor Stravinsky 4 credits. NP. Group A or B. A survey of the relationship between Igor Stravinsky and the United States, from his first reactions to American culture in the 1910s to his visits here in the 1920s and 1930s to his immigration in the 1940s and his subsequent change in style in the 1950s and 1960s. Special attention will be devoted to the reciprocal influences exerted by the composer and his adopted country. Robert Holzer
[MUS 613, Baroque Afterlives 4 credits. NP. Group A or B. Although the baroque period ended in the mid-eighteenth century, its styles and idioms have since been a fertile source of inspiration for many musicians. Composers have bridged past and present with individuality and ingenuity, and sometimes with pastiche, parody, or humor, while performers have continued to reinterpret and adapt past repertoire. This course traces the afterlives of the baroque style in the musical cultures of the late eighteenth century through to the present day, engaging analytically with a range of repertoire including baroque-inspired classical and romantic works, neoclassical and related modernist works, and postmodern and non-classical reimaginings of the baroque style. It also considers arrangements and adaptations, changing performance styles, and some broader contexts and debates surrounding engagement with historical idioms. Not offered in 2024–2025]
[MUS 617, Music and Theology in the Sixteenth Century 4 credits. NP. Group B. The Protestant Reformation in the sixteenth century was a “media event.” The invention of letterpress printing, the partisanship of famous artists like Dürer and Cranach, and—not least—the support of many musicians and composers were responsible for the spreading of the thoughts of Reformation. But while Luther gave an important place to music, Zwingli and Calvin were much more skeptical. Music, especially sacred music, constituted a problem because it was tightly connected with Catholic liturgical and aesthetic traditions. Reformers had to think about the place music could have in worship and about the function of music in secular life. Not offered in 2024–2025]
[MUS 618, Intimacy, Love, and Devotion in Seventeenth-Century Music 4 credits. NP Group B. The musical developments in the early seventeenth century, the freer use of the dissonance in Monteverdi’s “seconda prattica,” the liberation of the solo voice through the introduction of the basso continuo, and finally the “invention” of opera as one of the leading genres for musical innovation provided the composer with a vast array of new possibilities to express human emotions in music. These developments in music went along with a paradigm shift in theology and piety in the seventeenth century; contemporary theologians emphasized the individual and their relationship with the divine. We can see a revival of medieval mysticism and metaphors of love and emotion are frequently used in religious poetry and devotional prose. Especially the image of bridegroom (=Christ) and bride (=believer) was popular and led numerous composers to setting sacred dialogues between the two “lovers” to music. This also implied a specific understanding of gender roles, which are directly reflected in both the poetry and in the music. In the realm of philosophy, René Descartes outlined in his Les passions de l’âme a modern concept of emotion and showed how artists could stir these emotions in their works of art. The course will examine the theological, philosophical, and musical developments in the seventeenth century and analyze the relationship between the musical, literary, philosophical and theological discourses during the Baroque. Not offered in 2024–2025]
MUS 626a,b, Performance Practice before 1750 4 credits. NP. Group B. How are we to perform music from the Baroque era (ca. 1600–1750)? The diverse styles of the instrumental and vocal music composed during this period elicit widely differing responses from instrumentalists and singers attuned to pre-Classical and Romantic performance practices. In this course, which is centered on both performance and discussion, we take in the many possibilities available to the performer of music composed in this period. The topics we explore include Baroque sound, rhetoric, ornamentation and improvisation, vibrato, text-music relationships, tempo and meter, rhythmic alteration, dynamics, pitch, temperament, editions, and basso continuo. We compare period instruments to their modern counterparts through live performance and recordings as well as discuss differences in national styles throughout this period. Arthur Haas, Daniel Lee
[MUS 628, The Operas of Verdi 4 credits. NP. Group A or B. A survey of the operas of Giuseppe Verdi. Special attention is given to the interaction of music and drama, as well as to the larger contexts of his works in nineteenth-century Italian history. Topics of study include Verdi as Risorgimento icon, analytic approaches to individual musical numbers, depictions of gender roles, exoticism and alterity, and reception history. Requirements include regular attendance and informed participation in classroom discussion, in-class presentations, short written assignments, and a final written project. Not offered in 2024–2025]
MUS 629b, History of Public Performance 4 credits. NP. Group B. Behind today’s performance industry lie centuries of intersections between musicians and a music-loving public. Performers from individual soloists to the members of professional orchestras engage in traditions and actions that reach back decades, or even centuries, and the behaviors and tastes of today’s listening public have been shaped by past generations of performers. This course traces the history of public performances and the relationships between audiences, musicians, and compositions across several centuries, contextualizing present-day traditions and attitudes, and revisiting those of the past. Topics covered include the establishment of concert halls and opera theaters; the development and behavior of professional orchestras, chamber groups, and soloists; audience and listener behavior throughout the ages; music journalism; the recording industry; and the dissemination of music in today’s online world. Lynette Bowring
MUS 634a, The History and Repertoire of the Wind Band 4 credits. NP. Group B. A study of the history and repertoire of the wind orchestra—an ensemble that includes the wind band, the wind ensemble, and the symphonic wind ensemble. The course begins with a historical overview of wind consorts in the Middle Ages and progresses to the wind band/ensembles of the twenty-first century. Repertoire studies include sections of the Gran Partita (Mozart), Serenade for Winds (Dvorˇák), Serenade for Winds (Strauss), Petite Symphonie (Gounod), First Suite (Holst), Lincolnshire Posy (Grainger), Symphony in B-flat (Hindemith), Music for Prague 1968 (Husa), and other pieces from the later twentieth and twenty-first centuries. This course has an online component and a pedagogical unit—students have to prepare a teaching unit at the end of the course, focusing on a wind band topic of their choosing. Thomas Duffy
[MUS 637, Pierrot Lunaire 4 credits. NP. Group A or B. This course combines performance of the work under study with analysis and contextualization. Students include the vocalist and five instrumentalists and three to five commentators who analyze Pierrot and contextualize it through harmonic and contour analysis, text study—both of the Giraud original and Hartleben translation—and its formal musical consequences. The class gives attention to recorded performances, especially those by Schoenberg, Weisberg, Boulez (two), Da Capo, etc. Close reading of articles by Schoenberg, Lewin, Sims, Shawn, and others inform the performance. Underlying premises include theories of phrase structure (Schoenberg, Caplin), contour (Friedmann), text setting (Schoenberg, Lewin), harmony, and pitch considerations (Forte, Lewin). Prerequisites for Yale College students: MUSI 211, one more advanced theory/analysis class, and one course in the required music history sequence. Prerequisites for Yale School of Music students: completion of the Analysis and Musicianship requirement and one music history course. Permission of the instructor required for all students. Not offered in 2024–2025]
[MUS 639, Staging Race in Eighteenth-Century Opera 4 credits. NP. Group B. Opera has always been more than simply entertainment. As a mirror of the society in which it was written, an opera can celebrate the undying love between two protagonists, postulate the lofty ideals of an enlightened brotherhood, or indulge in fantasies about European supremacy and the inferiority of people with a different skin color. This course explores aspects of race and racism in eighteenth-century opera by exploring in detail two exemplary works: Jean-Philippe Rameau’s Les Indes Galantes (The Amorous Indies, 1735) and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s Die Zauberflöte (The Magic Flute, 1791). The examination of the musical settings, the libretti, as well as the cultural context shows how the compositions encode contemporary understandings of race and of otherness in their works. As performers of these works, twenty-first-century musicians have to find ways to deal with these understandings. Can the pieces still be performed? Should they be performed with disclaimers or rewritten? The course looks at several modern productions of the operas by Rameau and Mozart that have tried to eliminate racist aspects or that have put the eighteenth-century pieces into a dialogue with a modern understanding of race and racial equality. Requirements include regular attendance and participation in classroom discussion, in-class presentations, and a final written project. Not offered in 2024–2025]
[MUS 649, The Passion in Eighteenth-Century Music 4 credits. NP. Group B. The Passion of Christ is not only a seminal text for the Christian faith but has also inspired countless composers to set the words to music. Especially during the eighteenth century, at a time when sacred music had adopted stylistic devices from the operatic stage to express human emotions, the tradition of passion composition reaches its dramatic peak. The course surveys the multitude of ways in which eighteenth-century composers and musicians have responded to the passion narrative. The topics range from liturgical chanting of the passion in different Christian traditions to Bach’s settings for the Lutheran liturgy, and from dramatic settings based on a text by opera librettist Metastasio to the function of music in Mexican passion plays in Nahuatl. Requirements include regular attendance and participation in classroom discussion, in-class presentations, and a final written project. Not offered in 2024–2025]
MUS 650a, Silenced Voices: Music, Race, and Gender in Early Music 4 credits. NP. Group B. Periods in music history are often classified with convenient labels such as “common practice,” “early music,” etc., and it is quietly assumed that everybody shares these labels. But if we ask more critically, it becomes apparent that the labels encode a specific view of music history that is based on the establishment of certain musical forms, the modern tonal system, and the concept of a musical work. The labels are not neutral, but they provide categories in which we approach musical traditions, and works or traditions that don’t fit into these categories are often neglected or ignored. Our labels, as well as the music they describe, do not exist independently but are embedded in a societal context. Music grows out of specific functions and reflects power relationships within society. Music not only reflects the social stratifications and power structures of the past but in some cases also perpetuates these ideas. This course challenges some of the common narratives about the history of early music. Focusing on four distinct areas, we explore early examples of music by Jewish composers, the role of women in the creation and performance of music, the history of African American music before the nineteenth century, and the amalgamation of Native American and western traditions. Each section begins with a critical assessment of the representation of these marginalized groups in western classical music and then shifts the focus to music written and performed by these groups. The goal of the course is not another Western appropriation of music by marginalized groups but rather a critical evaluation of the Western canon in dialogue with music that is commonly excluded from this canon. The course provides an overview of current scholarship and presents selected compositions. The final project for each student is the development of a concert program (with program notes) that reflects the issues raised in the course. Markus Rathey
[MUS 651, Women in Western Art Music 4 credits. NP. Group A or B. Women’s musical activities, creative voices, and varied methods of engaging with music form the focus in this broad survey of women in Western art music. In addition to hearing and discussing music by composers from Hildegard of Bingen through Caroline Shaw, the course considers the various roles women have played in the wider cultural history of Western art music: as professional and amateur performers, teachers and students, music printers and collectors, listeners, curators, and patrons. These topics are illustrated by case studies from recent research; the course also includes discussion of how histories of women in music have developed, alongside some influential studies from feminist musicology. Not offered in 2024–2025]
MUS 652a, American Mavericks in Concert Music, 1900–1970 4 credits. NP. Group A or B. This course looks at the arc of American experimentalism over the course of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries and is offered over two terms (though each of the two courses may be taken without the other as a prerequisite). John Cage wrote that “an experimental action is one the outcome of which is not foreseen.” The musicologist David Nicholls distinguishes experimentalism from the avant-garde thus: “…very generally, avant-garde music can be viewed as occupying an extreme position within the tradition, while experimental music lies outside it.” A vibrant strain of experimental American thought, often free of the sense of a directional “lineage” found in European modernism, is full of iconoclastic and passionate thinking, and worthy of study. This first term of the course deals with experimental music in the United States from 1900 through roughly 1970 and includes a broad swath of composers and ideas. Christopher Theofanidis
MUS 653b, American Mavericks in Concert Music, 1970–Present 4 credits. NP. Group A or B. This course looks at the arc of American experimentalism over the course of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries and is offered over two terms (though each of the two courses may be taken without the other as a prerequisite). John Cage wrote that “an experimental action is one the outcome of which is not foreseen.” The musicologist David Nicholls distinguishes experimentalism from the avant-garde thus: “…very generally, avant-garde music can be viewed as occupying an extreme position within the tradition, while experimental music lies outside it.” A vibrant strain of experimental American thought, often free of the sense of a directional “lineage” found in European modernism, is full of iconoclastic and passionate thinking, and worthy of study. This second term of the course focuses on music from the early 1970s to the present. Christopher Theofanidis
[MUS 654, Radical Piano Miniatures 1800–2000 4 credits. NP. Group A or B. A study of compositional innovation in single-movement works for solo piano. Beginning with Beethoven’s bagatelles and Schubert’s impromptus, the course charts a path through some of the most important developments of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, including chromatic harmony, serial and other post-tonal idioms, the emergence of texture as a central compositional preoccupation, and the changing capabilities of the piano itself. Repertoire is chosen in part according to students’ interests and current performance projects. Examples include works of Beethoven, Schubert, Field, Chopin, Liszt, Wieck, Schumann, Brahms, Scriabin, Debussy, Schoenberg, Stravinsky, Gershwin, Cowell, Cage, Ligeti, Adams, Lachenmann, and Rihm. Course requirements include weekly listening and short readings, three brief response papers (one to three pages), occasional oral presentations, and a final oral examination on topics chosen by the student. Not offered in 2024–2025]
[MUS 658, Music History through Yale’s Collections and Spaces 4 credits. NP. Group B. Yale’s museums, galleries, and libraries hold many fascinating objects that shed light on music history. This course provides an opportunity to encounter these objects through an in-person, often hands-on experience. Approximately half of the course’s meetings are held in locations outside of the YSM classrooms—the Morris Steinert Collection of Musical Instruments, the Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library, Yale’s art galleries—where students study items such as historic instruments, rare manuscripts, music prints, archival materials from famous musicians and composers, and visual art related to music. There are also meetings in Yale’s performance spaces to discuss the history of music studies and performance at Yale. The remaining class meetings at YSM lay the groundwork for these visits, broaden the discussion to include objects in other collections around the world, and consider some wider intellectual contexts and conversations within which these collections can be placed. Not offered in 2024–2025]
[MUS 662, “Brother, Can You Spare a Dime?” Music in the Great Depression 4 credits. NP. Group B. The crash of the New York Stock Exchange in October 1929 ushered in the worst economic depression in history. For the next decade, much of the world’s population was unemployed. Yip Harburg summarized the plight of these people in his 1932 popular song “Brother, Can You Spare a Dime?” Despite the hardships of the depression, the popular music industry in fact expanded exponentially during the 1930s due to AM radio and affordable movies, the panacea of the poor. Big band, ragtime, jazz, the blues, country, gospel, folk songs, and a new type of folk protest music all came to enjoy unprecedented popularity around the world. The depression era also saw the completion of important masterpieces of the twentieth-century canon—Berg’s Lulu, Stravinsky’s Symphony of Psalms, and Gershwin’s Porgy and Bess, for example. Composers of western “art” music reacted to the popular styles in different ways. Some like Kurt Weill absorbed and worked with them; others such as Henry Cowell pursued a more modernist agenda. Composers on both sides of the coin often had specific political or social agendas. This class examines the impact of the Great Depression on a spectrum of composers and performers from Russia, Europe, and North and South America. In addition to those already mentioned, Louis Armstrong, Béla Bartók, Marc Blitzstein, Benjamin Britten, Ruth Crawford Seeger, Benny Goodman, Woody Guthrie, Roy Harris, Lead Belly, Florence Price, Sergei Prokofiev, Bessie Smith, Erwin Stein, Heitor Villa-Lobos, and Anton Webern are among those whom we discuss. There are reading and listening assignments for each class and a midterm examination. An oral presentation and final paper are also required. Not offered in 2024–2025]
[MUS 669, The Literary Voice of Langston Hughes in American Music 4 credits. NP. Group B or C. This course is designed to help each student contextualize the lineage, life, and legacy of Langston Hughes within the broader understanding of American history and American musical culture from the Civil War to present; identify the variety of social, cultural, racial, ethnic, gendered, and migratory contexts that inform our collective musical identity and our individual artistic aesthetics; identify the broad swath of composers inspired by Hughes’s writing and/or connected to Hughes directly and evaluate representative compositions for how Hughes’s literary style takes on musical form; communicate in both written and verbal form their unique perspective on the music, composers, and topics discussed; and integrate their knowledge/understanding/perspective on the music inspired by Hughes’s literary contributions to create concert programming reflective of humanity’s inherent diversity. Students complete weekly readings, viewings, and/or listening on Hughes’s life in preparation for class discussion, and research major events in American history (e.g., the Civil War, Reconstruction, WWI, the Great Migration, etc.) to situate class discussions in their historical context. Assignments include five two-page responses to reflection questions based on the composers, compositions, and historical events discussed in class; a ten-page research paper on a topic inspired by the course content in consultation with the instructor (topics that connect the course material to a student’s individual performance, composition, or research interests are encouraged); and a group presentation in the form of a Concert Proposal. The proposal will include the proposed program (including at least one composition using Hughes’s words or inspired by Hughes’s writing), publicity materials, personnel, venue, budget/funding, and a sample performance of a work from the program. Not offered in 2024–2025]
MUS 670a, A Parallel Canon: A Survey of Black Composers in the Western Classical Tradition from Joseph Bologne to Wynton Marsalis 4 credits. NP. Group B or C. This course is designed to broaden a student’s knowledge of music in the Western classical tradition beyond what is commonly understood to be “the canon.” Students examine the lives and works of Black composers beginning with Joseph Bologne, George Bridgetower, and Samuel Coleridge-Taylor in Europe and the UK, as well as Florence Price, William Grant Still, Margaret Bonds, George Walker, Adolphus Hailstork, Julius Eastman, Wynton Marsalis, et al. in the United States for their connection to or divergence from the musical tradition/convention as well as the context that propelled their creative journeys. Students complete weekly readings, viewings, and/or listening on various composers and musical works for class discussion, and research major events in history (e.g., French Revolution, Industrial Revolution, the American Revolution, the Civil War, Reconstruction, WWI, the Great Migration, etc.) to situate class discussions in their historical context. Assignments include four three-page papers on composers, compositions, and historical events discussed in class (topics that connect the course material to a student’s individual performance, composition, or research interests are encouraged) as well as the submission of a sample concert program integrating knowledge of the standard canon with the course material. This concert program is the basis of the oral final exam. Albert R. Lee
MUS 674a, Analysis of Western Music (1199–1939) from the Composer’s Perspective 4 credits. NP. Group A or B. This course is designed to provide composers (and others interested in composition) with the opportunity to evaluate and analyze important musical compositions from a creator’s point of view. Works of music have been analyzed by theorists, musicologists, ethnomusicologists, performers, and audiences for their own purposes. The goal of this course is to explore the decisive musical choices that remain after accounting for the contexts and constraints of theory, history, and sociology. We attempt to address the significance and character of what, given the histories and theories of music, is finally “composed” by a composer. Selected compositions from 1199 to 1939 are discussed and analyzed. Martin Bresnick
[MUS 675, Sacred to Socially Committed: A Survey of the Mass 4 credits. NP. Group B. As a musical fountain of devotion and worship, the mass has been an abiding source of inspiration for composers over many centuries. The innumerable settings within the Western Christian world attest to rich and varied practices, while offering glimpses into the composer and the context in which sung masses were created. The course surveys the mass from the sixteenth through the twentieth century, as set in Europe, the United States, and Latin America. Canonical works are explored in addition to those from theatrical, folkloric, and jazz traditions. Both Latin and vernacular masses allow us to examine musical style, genre, composers, liturgical texts, historical and cultural contexts, and performance practices. Not offered in 2024–2025]
[MUS 688, Dvorák’s Prophecy: The Origin, Evolution, and Legacy of Negro Spirituals in American Music 4 credits NP. Group B or C. Framed by Antonin Dvorˇák’s 1893 pronouncement about the import of “negro melodies” to the establishment of a “great and noble school” of American classical music, students examine the lineage of Negro Spirituals in the context of both American classical music and American popular music. Students learn to identify types of spirituals in their original form; distinguish spirituals from other genres of American music that employ sacred/religious texts (ex: hymns, gospel); explore the broad array of composers who set spiritual melodies in solo vocal, choral, chamber, and orchestral music; develop and communicate in written and verbal form their unique perspective on the music, composers, and topics discussed; and integrate their knowledge, understanding, and perspective on the music to prepare performance of representative works. Students complete weekly readings, viewings, and listenings for class discussion, as well as contextualize spirituals within major events of American history (e.g., the American Revolution, the U.S. Constitution, the Civil War, Reconstruction, WWI, the Great Migration, etc.). Assignments include: four two-page responses to reflection questions based on the composers, compositions, and historical events discussed in class; a seven to ten-page research paper on a topic inspired by the course content in consultation with the instructor (topics that connect the course material to a student’s individual performance, composition, or research interests are encouraged); and a group presentation in the form of a class performance of a work that uses spirituals as its source material. Not offered in 2024–2025]
MUS 691a, Yale Song Lab 4 credits NP. Group A. Yale Song Lab is a one-semester course designed to foster collaboration between composers and vocalists, co-presented by faculty members Christopher Theofanidis and Adriana Zabala. It is open to all YSM and ISM composers, vocalists, collaborative pianists, and to the greater student body by permission. Through the study of contemporary song and music drama repertory, the composing and workshopping of original works written during the semester, and the rehearsal, interpretation, and ultimate performance of those works, students participate in the creative process from the ground up: composers understanding the singers’ perspectives and the singers understanding the composers’ perspectives, each informing the other in vital dialogue. It is our hope that the process that unfolds fosters a dynamic collaborative energy that is a powerful point of reference for the students in their ongoing relationship to the art. Adriana Zabala, Christopher Theofanidis
MUS 693a, Bach Among the Theologians 4 credits NP. Group B. Johann Sebastian Bach has occasionally been called “The Fifth Evangelist,” and his music is often viewed as an expression of deep theological insight and devotion. But what does that actually mean? How does Bach’s music relate to the religious and devotional traditions of his time? Was Bach indeed exceptional in that regard? The course explores the religious landscape of Bach ‘s time and demonstrate how Bach’s music relates to the contemporary trends in theology and private devotion. The basis for the course is a new Theological Bach Reader (translated and edited by Markus Rathey), which makes accessible important theological documents from Bach’s religious environment. The first half of the course provides a broad overview of central theological topics and their representation in Bach’s music. In the second half, we explore selected cantatas and their relationship to the sermons and devotional texts from theologians who served with Bach in eighteenth-century Leipzig. Markus Rathey
MUS 694b, “Baroque” Music and “Baroque Music”: The Baroque as Term, Concept, and Historical Period 4 credits NP. Group B. An exploration of the musical meanings that have attached themselves to the word “Baroque,” from its eighteenth-century use as a term of opprobrium, to its adoption as an ever more neutral chronological marker a century later, to its rejection by some contemporary scholars. Readings and musical repertory range widely, the latter to be chosen from pieces composed between the fifteenth century and the present day. Emphasis is also placed on rethinking some familiar music from 1600–1750. Robert Holzer
MUS 852a, D.M.A. Seminar I 4 credits. NP. Group B. Required of all D.M.A. candidates during their first year in residence. The study of a specific topic or topics provides candidates with expanded opportunities for research. Stephanie Venturino
MUS 853a, D.M.A. Seminar II 8 credits. NP. Group B. Required of all D.M.A. candidates during their second year in residence. An introduction to the problems and methodology of musicology and theory. In consultation with individual advisers, candidates identify a thesis topic and begin writing. D.M.A. written comprehensive examinations take place during this term. Robert Holzer
MUS 854b, D.M.A. Colloquium 4 credits. NP. Group B. Required of all D.M.A. candidates during the spring term of their second year in residence. Class meetings and sessions with advisers aimed at completing the thesis. These are normally due the last Friday of March, and public presentations take place in April. D.M.A. qualifying oral examinations take place at the end of this term. Seth Monahan
Special Studies
MUS 521a, English Language Skills 4 credits. NP. Group C. This course is designed for students who have basic or intermediate English skills and is intended to address writing skills, grammar, vocabulary, reading comprehension, and spoken English. Classes are composed of teacher/student discussions, writing exercises, reading comprehension exercises, fluency exercises, student presentations, and vocabulary tests. Serena Blocker
MUS 559a,b, Jazz Improvisation I 2 credits. NP. Group C. In this course students study basic, intermediate, and advanced concepts of jazz improvisation and learn the essentials of the jazz language through solo transcription and analysis. Students learn how to use vocabulary (or musical phrases) and a variety of improvisational devices and techniques over common chords and chord progressions. Upon completion of the course students have a deeper understanding of what it takes to become a great improviser, what to practice and how to practice it, and how to go about expanding their jazz vocabulary in order to naturally develop a unique improvisational voice. Students are required to bring their instruments to class; additionally, a basic understanding of jazz nomenclature and some experience improvising are advised. Grades are based on completion of two to three solo transcription assignments (with one being committed to memory), two melody composition assignments, several small projects and assignments, one to two quizzes, class attendance, and each student’s personal development. Wayne Escoffery
[MUS 562b, Music in Art 4 credits. NP. Group C. This course addresses specific topics in musical iconography, i.e., the manner in which artists and sculptors of different periods have used music for symbolic purposes. An objective of the course is to consider the degree to which the portrayal of music in the visual arts reflects a particular society’s attitude toward music. From this, one can draw conclusions about the function of music within that society. Not offered in 2024–2025]
MUS 578b, Music, Service, and Society 4 credits. NP. Group C. What are the impacts of music on the conditions of a society? How have music and musicians been present and catalytic to important historical moments? How can we think about reinvigorating the participation of musicians in the public sphere, the public square? How do we think about the roles and activities of musicians in today’s world? What are the potentials for artists and arts practices to positively influence the direction of our society? What are the mechanisms for artistic voices to play a role in activating conversation and transforming experience? How can we think about invigorating the participation of musicians in the public sphere? Through texts and discussion, we reconceive the roles artists can play in the communities in which they work. We explore the concept of the social imagination—the ability to imagine different scenarios, different futures for people in the world, and in our communities. Sebastian Ruth
MUS 621a, Careers in Music: Collaborative Leadership to Advance Creativity, Innovation, and New Opportunities in the Arts 2 credits. NP. Group C. This course equips students with the mindset and leadership capacities to take on the challenges facing the arts in today’s world. Students work on collaborative semester-long projects that advance creativity, innovation, and new opportunities in the arts. Students learn personal leadership elements of values, strengths, and mission statements. They learn and implement the design-thinking framework to create, pitch, and implement innovative artistic projects in an environment that encourages taking risks and learning from experience. Students hear from leaders in the field with different models for advancing creativity, innovation, and new opportunities in classical music today. Students learn how to collaborate and build emotional intelligence within a diverse artistic team. The semester culminates with group project presentations. Astrid Baumgardner
[MUS 659, Jazz Improvisation II 2 credits. NP. Group C. This class is not for beginners; it is for the intermediate and advanced player with some experience improvising. The goal is to build on each student’s existing improvisational abilities, and the course work is somewhat tailored to the needs of the students enrolled. Students study intermediate and advanced concepts for improvisation and learn the essentials of the jazz language through solo transcription and analysis. There is ample time spent learning important jazz compositions and a focus on using improvisational devices and techniques learned in class on these compositions. Much of class time is spent playing through exercises and patterns, playing ideas in twelve keys, and implementing the learned class material into solos over standard jazz compositions. Open to all students. Enrollment is limited to twenty and is by assessment during the first class. Not offered in 2024–2025]
MUS 673b, Leadership Strategies for Music Presenters 4 credits. NP. Group C. The course explores the conceptual, managerial, financial, and entrepreneurial elements of presenting classical and popular music. Guest lecturers include artists, educators, and executives from the domestic and international professional arts and business communities. Class sessions are supplemented with case studies, and each student prepares a comprehensive proposal for a major venture. Enrollment is limited to ten students (five each from YSM and SOM). This cross-listed course is a School of Music course and follows the YSM academic calendar. Robert Blocker
MUS 689b, The Artist as Entrepreneur: Identifying and Developing Career Pathways in a Multicultural, Multiethnic, Multiracial World 4 credits NP. Group C. This course is designed to build a conceptual bridge from the life of a student musician to that of a professional artist. In this course students develop an artist statement that identifies the various ways they make music, the motivation and inspiration behind their music making, their aspirational goals for how they might maintain and expand their pursuits in the future, and the related interests and passions already developing adjacent to their musical abilities. Through a variety of readings and class discussion, students build a foundational understanding of entrepreneurship and use that knowledge to establish a framework for identifying potential career paths. The artist statement serves as the inspiration for the development of a career plan detailing how they wish to pursue an entrepreneurial path in and/or adjacent to music. Students engage in self-reflection and analyze a series of case studies to further support the development of both the artist statement and career plan as a template for post graduate career pursuits. Albert Lee
MUS 690a,b, Independent Study Project 2 credits per term. NP. Second- or third-year students with the consent of the deputy dean may elect, for one term only, to pursue individual study in specialized areas of interest, under the supervision of faculty members. An outline for proposed individual study must be submitted in the term prior to the term in which the project will take place, i.e., projects proposed for fall term are to be submitted in April and spring-term proposals are due in December. Forms are available in the office of the registrar. Limit one per term. Faculty
MUS 999a–b, D.M.A. Dissertation 0 credit. Faculty
Performance
MUS 515a,b, Improvisation at the Organ I 2 credits. This course in beginning organ improvisation explores a variety of harmonization techniques, with a strong focus on formal structure (binary and ternary forms, rondo, song form). Classes typically are made up of two students, for a one-hour lesson on Mondays. The term culminates with an improvised recital, open to the public. In this recital, each student improvises for up to seven minutes on a submitted theme. Prerequisite: Successful completion of Keyboard Harmony for Organists or permission of the instructor. Jeffrey Brillhart
MUS 529a, Introduction to Conducting 4 credits. Learning the basic beat patterns through to mixed meter in repertoire ranging from the Baroque to post-Classical. Developing expressive baton technique and aural and listening skills. Assignments include preparation of scores, weekly practice in conducting exercises, and score-reading skills. A playing ensemble is made up of participants in the class. Final examination in score reading, analysis, and conducting. Permission of the instructor required; enrollment limited. William Boughton
MUS 530b, Intermediate Conducting 4 credits. Development of techniques covered in MUS 529 through the Romantic and modern periods. Developing score reading at the keyboard. Building memory of scores. Developing knowledge of orchestral instruments. A playing ensemble is made up of participants in the class. Prerequisite: MUS 529. Permission of the instructor required; enrollment limited to ten, determined by audition. William Boughton
MUS 531a–b, 631a–b, 731a–b, Repertory Chorus—Voice 2 credits per term. A reading chorus open by audition and conducted by graduate choral conducting students. The chorus reads, studies, and sings a wide sampling of choral literature. Jeffrey Douma
MUS 532a–b, 632a–b, Repertory Chorus—Conducting 2 credits per term. Students in the graduate choral conducting program work with the Repertory Chorus, preparing and conducting a portion of a public concert each term. Open only to choral conducting majors.
MUS 533a–b, 633a–b, 733a–b, Seminar in Piano Literature and Interpretation 4 credits per term. Required of all piano majors. This course focuses on the performance of, and research topics relevant to, keyboard repertory. On a rotational basis, students perform chosen repertoire determined by the department; additionally, students make short oral presentations based on assigned topics that are closely linked to the repertoire. Organized outlines and bibliographies are required components of the presentations. Weekly attendance is required. Piano faculty and guests
MUS 534b, Collaborative Piano—Instrumental 2 credits. A course for piano majors, intended to broaden their experience and to provide them with the skills necessary to prepare sonatas and accompaniments. A number of selected instrumental sonatas are covered, as well as the problems involved in dealing with orchestral reductions and piano parts to virtuoso pieces. Sight reading and difficulties related to performing with specific instruments are also addressed. Students are encouraged to bring works to class that they are preparing for recitals. Elizabeth Sawyer Parisot
MUS 535a–b, 635a–b, 735a–b, Recital Chorus—Voice 2 credits per term. A chorus open by audition and conducted by graduate choral conducting students. It serves as the choral ensemble for four to five degree recitals per year. Jeffrey Douma
MUS 537b, Collaborative Piano—Voice 2 credits. A course designed for pianists, focusing on the skills required for vocal accompanying and coaching. The standard song and operatic repertoire is emphasized. Sight reading, techniques of transposition, figured bass, and effective reduction of operatic materials for the recreation of orchestral sounds at the piano are included in the curriculum. Faculty
MUS 538a–b, 638a–b, 738a–b, Cello Ensemble 2 credits per term. An exploration of the growing literature for cello ensemble emphasizing chamber music and orchestral skills as well as stylistic differences. Performances planned during the year. Required of all cello majors. Ole Akahoshi
MUS 540a,b, 640a,b, 740a,b, Individual Instruction in the Major 4 credits per term. Individual instruction of one hour per week throughout the academic year, for majors in performance, conducting, and composition. Faculty
MUS 541b, 641b, 741b, Secondary Instrumental, Compositional, Conducting, and Vocal Study 2 credits per term. P/F. All students enrolled in secondary lessons can receive instruction in either voice or piano. In addition, YSM keyboard majors may take secondary organ or harpsichord, and YSM violinists may take secondary viola. Any other students who wish to take secondary lessons in any other instruments must petition the director of secondary lessons, Kyung Yu, by email (kyung.yu@yale.edu) no later than Aug. 30, 2024, for the fall term and Jan. 10, 2025, for the spring term. Students who are not conducting majors may take only one secondary instrument per term. YSM students who wish to take secondary lessons must register for the course and request a teacher using the online form for graduate students found at http://music.yale.edu/study/music-lessons; the availability of a secondary-lessons teacher is not guaranteed until the form is received and a teacher assigned by the director of lessons. Secondary instruction in choral conducting and orchestral conducting is only available with permission of the instructor and requires as prerequisites MUS 565 for secondary instruction in choral conducting, and both MUS 529 and MUS 530 for secondary instruction in orchestral conducting. Students of the Yale Divinity School, David Geffen School of Drama, and School of Art may also register as above for secondary lessons and will be charged $200 per term for these lessons. Questions may be emailed to the director, Kyung Yu (kyung.yu@yale.edu).
MUS 542a–b, 642a–b, 742a–b, The Yale Philharmonia and New Music New Haven 2 credits per term. Participation, as assigned by the faculty, is required of all orchestral students. In addition to regular participation in Yale Philharmonia, students are assigned to New Music New Haven, to groups performing music by Yale composers, and to other ensembles as required. Faculty
MUS 543a–b, 643a–b, 743a–b, Chamber Music 2 credits per term. Required of instrumental majors (except organ) in each term of enrollment. Enrollment includes participation in an assigned chamber music ensemble as well as performance and attendance in chamber music concerts. Faculty and guests
MUS 544a–b, 644a–b, 744a–b, Seminar in the Major 2 credits per term. An examination of a wide range of problems relating to the area of the major. Specific requirements may differ by department. At the discretion of each department, seminar requirements can be met partially through off-campus field trips and/or off-campus fieldwork, e.g., performance or teaching. Required of all School of Music students except pianists who take 533, 633, 733. Faculty
MUS 546a–b, 646a–b, 746a–b, Yale Camerata 2 credits per term. Open to all members of the university community by audition, the Yale Camerata presents several performances throughout the year that explore choral literature from all musical periods. Members of the ensemble should have previous choral experience and be willing to devote time to the preparation of music commensurate with the camerata’s vigorous rehearsal and concert schedule. Felicia Barber
MUS 556a, Liturgical Keyboard Skills I 2 credits. In this course, students gain a deeper understanding of and appreciation for musical genres, both those familiar to them and those different from their own, and learn basic techniques for their application in church service playing. Students learn to play hymns, congregational songs, service music, and anthems from a variety of sources, including music from the liturgical and free church traditions, including the Black Church experience. Hymn playing, with an emphasis on methods of encouraging congregational singing, is the principal focus of the organ instruction, but there is also instruction in chant and anthem accompaniment, including adapting a piano reduction to the organ. In the gospel style, beginning with the piano, students are encouraged to play by ear, using their aural skills in learning gospel music. This training extends to the organ, in the form of improvised introductions and varied accompaniments to hymns of all types. We seek to accomplish these goals by active participation and discussion in class. When not actually playing in class, students are encouraged to sing to the accompaniment of the person at the keyboard, to further their experience of singing with accompaniment, and to give practical encouragement to the person playing. Prerequisite: graduate-level organ and piano proficiency. Walden Moore
MUS 558b, Liturgical Keyboard Skills II 2 credits. This course continues work begun in Liturgical Keyboard Skills I and delves more deeply into the hymnic and liturgical repertoire of American and European classical traditions. Students will jointly lead an extended choral liturgy as a final project. Prerequisite: MUS 556. Richard Webster
MUS 571a–b, 671a–b, 771a–b, Yale Schola Cantorum 1 credit per term. Specialist chamber choir for the development of advanced ensemble skills and expertise in demanding solo roles (in music before 1750 and from the last one hundred years). Enrollment required for voice majors enrolled through the Institute of Sacred Music. David Hill
MUS 615a,b, Improvisation at the Organ II 2 credits. This course explores modal improvisation, focusing on the composition techniques of Charles Tournemire and Olivier Messiaen. Students learn to improvise five-movement chant-based suites (Introit-Offertoire-Elevation-Communion-Pièce Terminale), versets, and a variety of free works using late-twentieth-century language. Classes typically are made up of two students, for a one-hour lesson on Mondays. The term culminates with an improvised recital, open to the public. In this recital, each student improvises for up to seven minutes on a submitted theme. Prerequisite: MUS 515. Jeffrey Brillhart
MUS 677a, Continuo Realization and Performance 4 credits. Acquisition of practical skills necessary for a competent and expressive performance from thorough-bass. Learning of figures, honing of voice-leading skills, and investigation of various historical and national styles of continuo playing as well as relevant performance practice issues. Class performances with an instrumentalist or singer. Open to pianists, harpsichordists, organists, and conductors. Arthur Haas
MUS 678b, Advanced Continuo Realization and Performance 4 credits. Practical and theoretical application of national and period styles from the entire Baroque era, 1600–1750. Students prepare and perform both unrealized and unfigured basses of vocal and instrumental sacred and secular literature from early Italian music through to the late Baroque and the empfindsamer style. Musical examples are supplemented with primary and secondary source readings. Prerequisite: MUS 677 or permission of the instructor. Arthur Haas
MUS 715a,b, Improvisation at the Organ III 2 credits. This course explores the improvisation of full organ symphony in four movements, Tryptique (Rondo-Aria-Theme/variations), improvisation on visual images, text-based improvisation, and silent film. Classes typically are made up of two students, for a one-hour lesson on Mondays. The term culminates with an improvised recital, open to the public. In this recital, each student improvises for up to ten minutes on a submitted theme. Prerequisite: MUS 615. Jeffrey Brillhart
Voice and Opera
MUS 504a, 604a, 704a, Acting and Movement for Singers 2 credits per term. Acting and stage movement tailored specifically for singers. Studies include techniques in character analysis and role preparation. Emphasis is placed on stage presence and movement problems as applied to specific roles, and on transferring the class experience to the stage. Required. Faculty
MUS 506a–b, 606a–b, 706a–b, Lyric Diction for Singers 2 credits per term. A language course designed specifically for the needs of singers. Intensive work on pronunciation, grammar, and literature throughout the term. French, German, English, Italian, Russian, and Latin are offered in alternating terms. Required. Faculty
MUS 507a–b, 607a–b, 707a–b, Vocal Repertoire for Singers 2 credits per term. A performance-oriented course that in successive terms surveys the French mélodie, German Lied, and Italian, American, and English art song. Elements of style, language, text, and presentation are emphasized. Required. J.J. Penna
MUS 508a–b, 608a–b, 708a–b, Opera Workshop 3 credits per term. Encompasses musical preparation, coaching (musical and language), staging, and performance of selected scenes as well as complete roles from a wide range of operatic repertoire. Required. Gerald Martin Moore, coaching staff, and guest music and stage directors
MUS 509a–b, 609a–b, 709a–b, Art Song Coaching for Singers 1 credit per term. Individual private coaching in the art song repertoire, in preparation for required recitals. Students are coached on such elements of musical style as phrasing, rubato, and articulation, and in English, French, Italian, German, and Spanish diction. Students are expected to bring their recital accompaniments to coaching sessions as their recital times approach. Faculty
MUS 594a,b, Vocal Chamber Music 1 credit. This performance-based class requires a high level of individual participation each week. Grades are based on participation in and preparation for class, and two performances of the repertoire learned. Attendance is mandatory. Occasional weekend sessions and extra rehearsals during production weeks can be expected. Students are expected to learn quickly and must be prepared to tackle a sizeable amount of repertoire. James Taylor
MUS 595a–b, 695a–b, Performance Practice for Singers 2 credits per term. A four-term course cycle exploring the major issues and repertoire of Western European historically informed performance, including issues of notation, the use of modern and manuscript editions, and national performance styles. Includes a survey of solo and chamber vocal repertoire (song, madrigal, cantata, opera, oratorio, motet) from the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, with a focus on ornamentation, practical performance issues, and recital planning. The sequence is designed to provide the foundation to a practical career in historical performance. Open to conductors and instrumentalists with permission of the instructor. Jeffrey Grossman
MUS 622a–b, Acting for Singers 1 credit per term. Designed to address the specialized needs of the singing actor. Studies include technique in character analysis, together with studies in poetry as it applies to art song literature. Class work is extended in regular private coaching. ISM students are required to take two terms in their second year. Faculty
MUS 623a,b, Early Music Coaching for Singers 1 credit. Individual private coaching in early repertoire, focusing on historically informed performance practice, in preparation for required recitals and concerts. Students are coached on such elements of musical style as ornamentation, phrasing, rubato, articulation, and rhetoric, and in English, French, Italian, German, Latin, and Spanish diction. Students are expected to bring recital and concert repertoire to coaching sessions as performance times approach. Jeffrey Grossman
Yale Institute of Sacred Music
MUS 519a–b, 619a–b, 719a–b, ISM Colloquium 1 credit per term. NP. P/F. Participation in seminars led by faculty and guest lecturers on topics concerning theology, music, worship, and related arts. Counts as one NP in the fourth term. Required of all Institute of Sacred Music students. Martin Jean
Department of Music
YSM students are encouraged to explore appropriate intermediate and advanced undergraduate courses and graduate courses offered by the Department of Music. Permission of the instructor may be required for enrollment.