New York University
| The Music Department at NYU’s Faculty of Arts and Science focuses on sonic practice in relation to social, cultural and intellectual practices, and to questions of social justice (and injustices). Consistent with our location in a liberal arts context, we emphasize approaches to musical knowledge informed by a range of critical theories and contemporary practices drawn from such fields as anthropology, critical identity studies, cultural studies, history, linguistics, literary and film criticism, performance studies, science and technology studies, while encouraging each student to engage actively in the creation of musical and sonic experiences. We are committed to interdisciplinarity, both among the subfields devoted to the study and creation of music and sound represented both in and outside the department. While establishing scholarly awareness of and respect for the traditions and tools of subfields inherited from 20th-century thought and practice, the department fosters the development of creative thinkers and doers in the fields of music and sound who can take leadership roles in the ongoing redefinition of both music and sound studies in this century. |
| This course will introduce students to the premises and practices of ethnographic fieldwork, and give them an opportunity to undertake their own music-centered fieldwork project. | |
| Explores the underlying principles and inner workings of the tonal system, a system that has guided all of Western music from the years 1600 to 1900 | |
| This creative outlet will hone students’ technological skills and raise timely issues around authorship, listening, co-creating and performing. All voices, instruments and training levels welcome. | |
| This course is designed to introduce students to Contemporary music by way of playing, creating, and analyzing different genres in Jazz and other improvised forms of music. | |
| A broad intellectual history of the discipline, surveying landmark studies and important figures. Examines major paradigms, issues, and frameworks in ethnomusicology. | |
| Open only to music majors in the junior or senior years or others, with permission. | |
| Music majors and minors are eligible to participate in an internship, worth 2 or 4 points. For details on internship guidelines, please consult the department Web site. | |
| Provides a comprehensive introduction to the traditional and contemporary music of the Celtic areas of Western Europe: Ireland, Scotland, Wales, Brittany, and Galicia. | |
| This course immerses you in the sounds of jazz, focusing largely on music made in New York City, the undisputed global capital of the genre | |
| Students study principles of tonal music composition including 18th and 19th century harmonic, formal, and contrapuntal practices. Exercises in four-part voice-leading and species counterpoint are supplemented by analyses of music from around the world and from a variety of genres, including concert and popular music. | |
| Chromatic harmony as developed and practiced by composers of the 19th century and beyond. Introduction to score reading and principles of musical analysis applied to larger musical structures | |
| Analysis of music of the late 19th, 20th, and 21st centuries, and the creation of imitative compositional models based on works studied as well as on principles acquired earlier in the sequence | |
| This two-credit, half-semester course introduces students to music and sound archives and the questions of memory, historical evidence, and preservation they raise. | |
| Pragmatic instruction in field and laboratory research and analytical methods in ethnomusicology. Emphasizes the urban field site | |
| Students will study and learn to perform works from various periods of music, with a focus on interpretation and analysis. | |
| Explores various compositional techniques, with an emphasis on modern-day writing procedures. | |
Independent study with a faculty supervisor. Must have the approval of the director of graduate studies and the proposed supervisor. | |
| Independent study with a faculty supervisor. Must have the approval of the director of graduate studies and the proposed supervisor. | |
| Examination of techniques of music composition as they are applied to the creation of musical works. | |
| In the Ear of the Beholder: Meditating on Perceptions of Sonic Beauty What makes us turn to music in times of sorrow? Why do we fall in love over a song? What power do sounds hold to move us to tears? And are these universal? | |
| Musical culture gets overwhelmingly associated with leisure, not work. This musicology seminar explores the many forms of economic, affective, political, and interpretive labor that make music possible. | |
| Musical culture gets overwhelmingly associated with leisure, not work. This musicology seminar explores the many forms of economic, affective, political, and interpretive labor that make music possible. | |
| This course will explore the history of and artistic provocations for algorithmic music composition | |
| Students acquire a basic vocabulary of musical terms, concepts, and listening skills in order to describe their responses to musical experiences. | |
| This course will introduce students to Cuban music, from traditional popular music to the more contemporary sounds of Havana today. T | |
| This two-credit, half-semester music seminar teaches students to write historical research papers on music and sound, with the aim of preparing them for future independent studies, thesis projects, and other general academic and professional writing. |
Admissions Graduate
International Students
| Area of Specialization |