Major
Department of Art, Music and Graphic Design
Professor: Toby Norris (Chair); Assistant Professor: Scott Glushien; Professor of Practice: Peter Clemente; Associate Professor of Practice: Lynn Simmons; Instructors, Lecturers: John Black, Paul Buono, Elissa Chase, Anne Harris, Susan Hong-Sammons, Bruce Hopkins, Jon Krasner, Emmanuel Manu Opoku, Gary Orlinsky, Joseph Ray, Peter Sulski, Margaret Tartaglia, Tyler Vance.
Mission Statement
The department aims to give students an understanding of the importance of rigorous practical and intellectual formation in stimulating creative thought and achieving creative expression. We also strive to help students appreciate Art and Music as significant dimensions of the human experience. Studying the history of the arts brings home the central role that they have played in the development of human thought, both within and outside the Judeo-Christian tradition. Practicing the arts encourages students to incorporate creative expression into their wider intellectual and personal development. In forming the human being more completely, the department fulfills a fundamental goal of Catholic education.
Programs of Study
Courses
ARD 115: GRAPHIC DESIGN I: FORM AND CONTENT
Credits 3This course offers an introduction to graphic design and visual communication. Students are introduced to the elements and principles of design as well as critical analysis and visual problem solving skills. The interrelationship between visual and verbal communication is explored along with the study of typography. In this course, the computer application Adobe Illustrator will be used as the design tool on Macintosh computers only. A working knowledge of basic Macintosh computer skills will be helpful but not necessary.
ARD 175: INTRODUCTION TO DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY
Credits 3This project-based studio course serves as an introduction to digital photography as it applies to the fine arts. Students will explore technical and aesthetic foundations of photography through the latest digital technology. Digital cameras, scanning, and image manipulation software will be covered as well as an examination of the history of photography and its role as a form of artistic expression. We will also read and discuss critical issues in photography and the history of photography. Students will be responsible for purchasing specialized paper and a studio fee applies.
ARD 215: GRAPHIC DESIGN II: MEANING AND MESSAGING
Credits 3This class offers a continuation of Graphic Design I. Students will further explore the use of typographic symbols as a crucial element to design. Design history and critical issues in design will be explored. Students will work on a series of projects that emphasize visual expression, composition, and problem solving. The computer application Adobe Illustrator will be used. Adobe InDesign will be introduced.
ARD 216: ILLUSTRATION
Credits 3This class is an overview of basic illustration techniques geared to the needs of the graphic designer. Assigned projects will cover the use of pen and ink, acrylic paint and the digital media programs Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator. The class will focus on pictorial communication and exposure to various genres of illustration. Strong design from conceptualization through execution is stressed.
ARD 217: TYPOGRAPHY
Credits 3This course covers principles of typeface selection and the use of typographical grids as well as families of type and historical usage. Typographical assignments are presented through themed projects. A variety of basic layouts and formats is introduced. Exercises are geared to develop sensitivity to the integration of typography with a variety of visual imagery. There is an emphasis on concept development and on the cultural associations of various typefaces. Students will be encouraged to integrate ideas and interests from other areas of study in their exploration of the expressive possibilities of type.
ARD 299, 399, 499: INDEPENDENT STUDY IN GRAPHIC DESIGN
Credits 3Each of these numbers designates a specific level of specialized study on a relevant topic that has been designed by the student in conjunction with a faculty member.
ARD 300: INTERNSHIP IN GRAPHIC DESIGN
Credits 3This course enables students to apply their academic knowledge and analytical skills in professional settings while earning academic credit. Students complete an internship (minimum 120 hours, paid or unpaid) and attend weekly seminar/classroom sessions to discuss and share observations about their internships. All students document their daily internship activity using a Blackboard log, and complete an online portfolio and resumé using LinkedIn and Behance. The semester culminates with an online portfolio/journal that documents workplace activity and reflects on the process of applying the design skills learned in the classroom.
ARD 315: GRAPHIC DESIGN III: ADVANCED STRATEGIES
Credits 3Each student will develop a visual vocabulary through assigned readings, class discussion, projects, and through experimentation. This will set the groundwork that reinforces one’s critical, analytical, and perceptual skills. This course will present students with a variety of complex design problems. Students will apply their growing knowledge of the interaction between typography and other visual forms to these specific problems. Research and methodology are vital components of this course and of design in general, and their importance will be stressed. Students will undertake a variety of design projects, as well as a class presentation on a designer of historical importance.
ARD 317: MOTION GRAPHIC DESIGN
Credits 3Visual design and technical strategies will be developed to effectively work with moving type and images in a timeline, from storyboards through production to distribution. The history of moving images and motion graphic design will be introduced to support contemporary theories and practices. Working with time-based, sequential processes will increase visual communication strategies and conceptual abilities, while developing skills needed to convey information as successfully as possible. Being able to create animated graphics, kinetic typography, and video projects, as well as work with sound, will help students to better prepare for an ever-expanding graphic design field. Adobe Photoshop, Adobe After Effects, and Final Cut Pro will be used.
ARD 318: GRAPHIC DESIGN FOR THE WEB
Credits 3This course introduces students to graphic design for website creation. Students will learn to think critically about web design and apply basic conceptual design principles to website development. The focus of the course will be applying design elements such as color, typography, layout, the grid and hierarchal design to the technological aspect of web design. While the aesthetics of web design will be of primary importance, the technological process will also be studied. Students will learn the latest web languages such as HTML 5, CSS, and JavaScript, develop concepts for web sites, and follow a design process in realizing them. Research and methodology are vital components of this course. Each student will develop two website design projects, as well as a number of smaller design projects. One of these projects will cover embedding animation, movies, and sound into a web site. At the end of this course students will have a working knowledge of web design, and will be able to build and host a site of their own.
ARD 352: SPECIAL TOPICS IN GRAPHIC DESIGN
Credits 3Special topics in graphic design are offered occasionally. These courses respond to special interests evinced by students, outgrowths of topics addressed in an intermediate course, or interests of the faculty.
ARD 401: SENIOR SEMINAR IN GRAPHIC DESIGN
Credits 3The seminar, offered in the Spring semester, is devoted to an advanced project in Graphic Design as a culmination of a program of study for the major in Graphic Design. This project is completed by an exhibition of student work. Students are responsible for materials related to their senior project.
ARH 125: HISTORY OF WESTERN ART
Credits 3How long have humans been creating art? What makes the Mona Lisa the Mona Lisa? Why is Picasso so famous? This course answers such questions by surveying the development of art in the West from prehistoric times to the present day. Through illustrated lectures and in-class discussion we will consider what purposes art serves, why it changes, and how artistic change is linked to political and social developments. At the same time, close study of individual works will introduce the skills needed to identify works of art and decode the imagery they contain.
ARH 126: HEALTHY PERSPECTIVES: REFRAMING ART HISTORY
Credits 3Art history trains a person in looking closely at an image. The cognitive skills gained from art history – observing and describing art objects – easily lend themselves to the health care arena and the helping professions by enhancing the ability to communicate and interpret. Astute observation is particularly important for health care professionals because it aids in physical examinations, diagnoses, and empathetic responses. This course is the traditional art history survey reinvented with special attention to students who plan to go into a career in health care or the helping professions.
ARH 140: ART IN ROME
Credits 3This course, exclusive to the Rome campus, examines the history and society of Rome and its architectural and artistic expression as it developed over a period of 3000 years. Students study key examples of architecture, monuments and art from Classical Rome through to the Renaissance and Baroque, and the modern period. Much of the course is taught on site with visits to churches, palaces and museums.
ARH 160: ART ANCIENT AND MODERN: THE QUESTION OF BEAUTY
Credits 3This course surveys the history of Western Art from the Greek world to the present day, using the question of beauty as a unifying theme. The first class each week will introduce the art or architecture of the period; the second will use readings from period sources to understand how beauty was perceived and defined in that period. The course will have a particular emphasis on theories of beauty that recur in successive historical periods: beauty and mathematics, beauty and function, beauty and color, beauty and mimesis, beauty and effect.
ARH 223: RENAISSANCE ART AND ARCHITECTURE
Credits 3This course looks at one of the most celebrated eras of art history, the Renaissance. Focusing on Italy and Northern Europe, the course will look at art made from the fourteenth through sixteenth centuries. Material covered will include painting, sculpture, architecture, and fresco, from the devotional works of the Franciscans to the courtly art made for the Duke of Urbino, and works made for women as well as men. Looking critically at primary source material, such as the writings of Alberti and Vasari, the course will also consider the role of the artist and what is often seen as his rise in status, through examples like Botticelli, Michelangelo, Giotto and Dürer.
ARH 224: BAROQUE ART AND ARCHITECTURE
Credits 3Typically offered on the Rome campus, this course examines the emergence of Baroque art in the late Cinquecento and early Seicento (16th and 17th centuries) and follows the development of the Baroque style in sculpture, painting and architecture.
During the class students study artists including Caravaggio, Bernini and Borromini. Much of the course is taught on-site in Rome, the ‘cradle’ of the Baroque.
During the class students study artists including Caravaggio, Bernini and Borromini. Much of the course is taught on-site in Rome, the ‘cradle’ of the Baroque.
ARH 225: NINETEENTH CENTURY ART
Credits 3This course examines the art of Europe and the United States from the French Revolution to the end of the nineteenth century, starting with the Neoclassicism of Jacques-Louis David and ending with Impressionism and its impact on the art world. Topics covered will include the invention of photography and its effect on painting; the development of landscape painting in Germany, France and the United States, and the growth of the art market. French art will be the main focus of the course, but we will also be thinking about Francisco Goya in Spain, Romanticism in Germany, the Hudson River School in America, and the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood in England.
ARH 227: THE MEANING OF MODERN ART
Credits 3This course examines the development of modern art in Europe and the United States, focusing on the period between 1880 and 1950. Starting with Post-Impressionism, we trace the key movements in modern art (including Expressionism, Cubism, Surrealism and Abstract Expressionism), and consider some of the more traditional forms against which they defined themselves. In the process, we seek to understand how the terms ‘modern,’ ‘modernist,’ and ‘avant-garde’ came to be applied to art and artists, and to establish what art historians and cultural critics mean when they use them.
ARH 229: ART SINCE 1945
Credits 3The course examines the art produced between the end of World War II and the present day. Since the art of this period uses an extraordinary range of materials and approaches, many of them far outside the traditional practices of European art-making, we also try to answer some important questions: What does it mean to be an artist? What conditions must an object or event fulfill to qualify as a work of art? Are these artists even serious? You will emerge not just with an understanding of movements in art since the middle of the last century, but also with an awareness of the dramatic ways in which the entire concept of art has changed in the last 70 years.
ARH 299, 399 OR 499: INDEPENDENT STUDY IN ART HISTORY
Credits 3Each of these numbers designates a specific level of specialized study on a relevant topic that has been designed by the student in conjunction with a faculty member.
ARH 300: INTERNSHIP IN ART HISTORY
Credits 3This upper level, field-based course is designed for juniors and seniors to explore and develop professional opportunities and apply concepts and skills learned in their coursework in art history.
ARH 320: THE HIGH DAYS OF THE LOW COUNTRIES
Credits 3From the early 1400s to the late 1600s, the cities of the Low Countries (now Belgium and Holland) were the most exciting urban centers of Northern Europe. Bruges in the fifteenth century, Antwerp in the sixteenth, and Amsterdam in the seventeenth laid the foundations of modern capitalism and produced some of the most dazzling art of any period. This course examines how politics and religion shaped the Low Countries in this period of extraordinary growth, which produced artists of the caliber of Jan van Eyck, Pieter Bruegel the Elder, Peter Paul Rubens, Jan Vermeer, Judith Leyster, and Rembrandt van Rijn. The Worcester Art Museum has a superb collection of sixteenth- and seventeenth-century Northern European art, so we will visit multiple times during the semester.
ARH 325: THUS SPOKE ZARATHUSTRA – NIETZSCHE AND THE AVANT-GARDE
Credits 3This course combines a close reading of Friedrich Nietzsche’s Thus Spoke Zarathustra with an examination of the book’s impact on the development of modern art. Thus Spoke Zarathustra describes how the prophet Zarathustra descends from his solitude in the mountains to tell the world that God is dead and that the Overman is his successor. In a series of encounters and conversations, Zarathustra expounds and refines his philosophical system, concluding that he himself is the Overman. In the course of his poetic parable, Nietzsche skewers the materialism and mediocrity of late-nineteenth century European society, and proposes that only the creative individual can blaze a path to a better future. Modern artists, out of sympathy with a world that rarely appreciated their work and fed by Romantic notions of the artist as a force for change in society, latched onto Nietzsche’s ideas with passionate enthusiasm, molding them into an image of the avant-garde artist as world-changer.
ARH 350: SPECIAL TOPICS IN ART HISTORY
Credits 3Special Topics courses in art history are offered occasionally. They respond to special interests evinced by students or the research interests of the faculty.
ART 101: DRAWING I
Credits 3This introductory course focuses on learning to see and learning to translate what is seen into two dimensions. Learning to see often requires overriding what the brain knows and learning to trust one’s growing skill at visual response. Translating visual information to the page involves developing skill with line, shape, space, form, and composition. The intent is to develop a broad visual vocabulary which allows communication of the subject matter with sensitivity in charcoal, pencil, ink, and collage. This involves working from life, including the figure, and using images to clarify and enrich what we do through references to art history. Students will be responsible for purchasing a supply kit.
ART 106: SCULPTURE I
Credits 3This course is an introduction to the concepts and the forms of three-dimensional design. It is based upon the recognition that the origins of and inspiration for much of design stems from nature. Projects will start with an idea, and then the appropriate medium will suggest itself. Students will be responsible for purchasing a supply kit.
ART 107: COLLAGE AND ASSEMBLAGE
Credits 3This course is an examination of collage and assemblage — art made from the found and collected debris of the contemporary world. Questions of memory, history, fragmentation, ecology, and language will be explored in the making of collages from found, recycled, and constructed images and objects. These things that resonate with the past might suggest a collective memory for humanity, but one that is hazy at best. We will consider the public culture of mass produced objects and the autobiographical symbolism of private mementos, as we raise questions about memory, history, recycling, and reuse in relationship to material culture. These issues will be addressed in the making of collages from recovered, recycled, and constructed images and objects and in-class discussions. In addition to studio work, assignments include readings, films, and in-class presentations. Students will be responsible for purchasing a supply kit.
ART 111: PAINTING I
Credits 3This course is an introductory investigation of painting. Using oil paint, students will thoroughly examine questions of composition and space, issues of light and color, and exploration of technical issues. In weekly in-studio and outside-of-class assignments, students will also consider both contemporary and historical approaches to painting. Students will be responsible for purchasing a supply kit.
ART 201: DRAWING II
Credits 3The course concentrates on the drawing as an object and on the physical activity involved in making it an expressive phenomenon. Students will explore a variety of materials, ideas, formal issues, and art history, as well as natural phenomena as sources for inspiration. Work with the human figure will emphasize context and environment, and encourage the student to develop more personal attitudes toward content.
ART 211: PAINTING II
Credits 3A continuation of ART 111, this course will deal with both figurative and nonfigurative approaches to painting. Depending upon the instructor’s preference, students will work with the figure, the landscape, still life, or a combination of the three. Students will be directed in more advanced painting problems using varied techniques and conceptual frameworks.
ART 299, 399 OR 499: INDEPENDENT STUDY IN STUDIO ART
Credits 3Each of these numbers designates a specific level of specialized study on a relevant topic that has been designed by the student in conjunction with a faculty member.
ART 300: INTERNSHIP IN STUDIO ART
Credits 3This upper level, field-based course is designed for juniors and seniors to explore and develop professional opportunities and apply concepts and skills learned in their coursework in studio art.
ART 301: DRAWING III
Credits 3This course focuses on the issue of personal expression in drawing, and includes a reevaluation of the elements of drawing from that point of view. Working problems take into consideration the individual’s inclinations as he/she begins to formulate his/her own rationale for making art. Specific artists will be studied with a focus on the nature of the expression in their work.
ART 311: PAINTING III
Credits 3This course explores advanced problems in painting. Students will be directed in a more in-depth examination of the extensive possibilities of the oil painting medium. Both abstract and figurative approaches will be explored. Emphasis is on thematic self-direction and group critiques. The focus of the course shifts annually to reflect the perspective of the faculty member teaching it.
MUS 101: FUNDAMENTALS OF MUSIC AND MUSICIANSHIP
Credits 3This course focuses on learning to read music notation, the fundamentals of basic music theory, and the study of technique and repertoire in one of two performing mediums: piano or guitar. Upon completion of this course, the student should have acquired the ability to read music, an introductory-level technical facility in piano or guitar, and a thorough foundation in the fundamental elements of music theory, including basic aural skills.
MUS 111: APPLIED WOODWIND INSTRUCTION
Credits 1Students may elect to take applied music lessons in which they work one-on-one with an instructor. Emphasis is placed on developing musicianship and technique through varied repertoire and technical exercises. Material ranges in difficulty from beginning to advanced depending on the student’s ability. There are 10 one-hour lessons per semester, students may receive one credit per semester, and the course can be repeated for further credit.
MUS 120: MUSICAL TRAILBLAZERS AND TRADITIONS
Credits 3From hip-hop to pop, rock, classical, and beyond, this course surveys outstanding musical artists across diverse genres and epochs. The class will explore the lives and legacies of musicians who either established the state of the art or who have shattered boundaries to attain new heights of expression. This course encourages students to engage deeply with music – to understand its significance and the social and historical factors that have influenced each artist and his/her musical world.
MUS 121: APPLIED PERCUSSION INSTRUCTION
Credits 1Students may elect to take applied music lessons in which they work one-on-one with an instructor. Emphasis is placed on developing musicianship and technique through varied repertoire and technical exercises. Material ranges in difficulty from beginning to advanced depending on the student’s ability. There are 10 one-hour lessons per semester, students may receive one credit per semester, and the course can be repeated for further credit.
MUS 123: HISTORY OF WESTERN MUSIC
Credits 3Following a brief study of the vocabulary and basic materials of music, this course will cover the historical development of music in the West from the Middle Ages to the present day. Major composers and their works will be studied and connections among history, culture, and musical language will be explored. The course will focus on the enhancement of active listening skills and musical understanding.
MUS 125: WORLD MUSIC
Credits 3This course is a survey of musical traditions from around the world, including an examination of the cultures and philosophies that shape them. Students learn about the field of ethnomusicology, and the integral role music plays in the lifeways of the world's peoples.
MUS 126: GLOBAL POP
Credits 3A category of ethnomusicology, Global Pop explores musical traditions from a variety of nations with an emphasis on the popular music industry in each. This course examines the forces that enable the movement of music and musicians around the world and that give global music its persuasive power. Topics include music as expressive culture, music production, ethnicity and identity in pop music, music as symbol, cross-cultural collaborations in popular music, and music as a force that transcends sociological, political and national boundaries.
MUS 131: APPLIED FLUTE INSTRUCTION
Credits 1Students may elect to take applied music lessons in which they work one-on-one with an instructor. Emphasis is placed on developing musicianship and technique through varied repertoire and technical exercises. Material ranges in difficulty from beginning to advanced depending on the student’s ability. There are 10 one-hour lessons per semester, students may receive one credit per semester, and the course can be repeated for further credit.
MUS 140: VOCAL HEALTH AND PEDAGOGY
The voice is the most important tool for communication both in singing and in speaking. Students in this course will learn the process of phonation, healthy vocal hygiene, and valuable techniques for the use of the vocal instrument. They will cover topics relating to muscle tensions, airflow, the relation of Song to Speech, the basics of Anatomy and Physiology of the Vocal instrument and common disorders of the voice. This course is valuable for all professional or non-professional voice users. A professional voice user is one who depends on their voice for their career. They can include singers, actors, teachers and public speakers.
MUS 141: APPLIED VOCAL INSTRUCTION
Credits 1Students may elect to take applied music lessons in which they work one-on-one with an instructor. Emphasis is placed on developing musicianship and technique through varied repertoire and technical exercises. Material ranges in difficulty from beginning to advanced depending on the student’s ability. There are 10 one-hour lessons per semester, students may receive one credit per semester, and the course can be repeated for further credit.
MUS 151: APPLIED PIANO INSTRUCTION
Credits 1Students may elect to take applied music lessons in which they work one-on-one with an instructor. Emphasis is placed on developing musicianship and technique through varied repertoire and technical exercises. Material ranges in difficulty from beginning to advanced depending on the student’s ability. There are 10 one-hour lessons per semester, students may receive one credit per semester, and the course can be repeated for further credit.
MUS 161: APPLIED GUITAR INSTRUCTION
Credits 1Students may elect to take applied music lessons in which they work one-on-one with an instructor. Emphasis is placed on developing musicianship and technique through varied repertoire and technical exercises. Material ranges in difficulty from beginning to advanced depending on the student’s ability. There are 10 one-hour lessons per semester, students may receive one credit per semester, and the course can be repeated for further credit.
MUS 171: APPLIED ORGAN INSTRUCTION
Credits 1Students may elect to take applied music lessons in which they work one-on-one with an instructor. Emphasis is placed on developing musicianship and technique through varied repertoire and technical exercises. Material ranges in difficulty from beginning to advanced depending on the student’s ability. There are 10 one-hour lessons per semester, students may receive one credit per semester, and the course can be repeated for further credit.
MUS 181: APPLIED STRINGS INSTRUCTION
Credits 1Students may elect to take applied music lessons in which they work one-on-one with an instructor. Emphasis is placed on developing musicianship and technique through varied repertoire and technical exercises. Material ranges in difficulty from beginning to advanced depending on the student’s ability. There are 10 one-hour lessons per semester, students may receive one credit per semester, and the course can be repeated for further credit.
MUS 191: APPLIED BRASS INSTRUCTION
Credits 1Students may elect to take applied music lessons in which they work one-on-one with an instructor. Emphasis is placed on developing musicianship and technique through varied repertoire and technical exercises. Material ranges in difficulty from beginning to advanced depending on the student’s ability. There are 10 one-hour lessons per semester, students may receive one credit per semester, and the course can be repeated for further credit.
MUS 193: CHORALE
Credits 1Concert choir which performs choral literature from the Renaissance to the 20th century. There will be several major performances during the year with orchestra, and there will be tours every two years. Audition required.
MUS 195: BAND
Credits 1Ensemble for winds, brass, and percussion rehearses once a week and performs at concerts and University functions.
MUS 196: JAZZ ENSEMBLE
Credits 1Jazz Ensemble offers the opportunity to explore and engage in the art of jazz performance. This ensemble studies and performs blues and jazz from the modern jazz period, swing era, bebop era, and other style periods of jazz. Students will be given experiences in the stylistic performance of small group jazz. Instrumentalists interested in jazz who play wind, brass or rhythm section instruments are encouraged to enroll. Other instrumentalists and singers should consult the instructor before enrolling. Students will rehearse weekly and perform each semester.
MUS 197: String Camerata
Credits 3MUS 201: MUSIC THEORY I
Credits 3After a review of the basic concepts of notation, scales, intervals, and triads, the student will study the various structural elements of music. Topics covered will include cadences, non-harmonic tones, harmonic rhythm, melodic organization and structure, voice-leading in four-part chorale writing, and transposition.
MUS 233: MUSIC IN THE UNITED STATES
Credits 3This course forms a study of American Music of the last three centuries with particular emphasis on 20th-century trends, including Modern American Classical music, Blues, Jazz, Musical Theatre, Rock and Roll, and Popular music. Influences of Native American, African, and European music will be highlighted, and connections among history, culture, and musical language will be explored. The course will emphasize the enhancement of active listening skills and musical understanding.
MUS 240: ADVANCED STUDIES I: VOICE
Credits 3This class develops the student’s knowledge of the fundamentals of healthy vocal production through lectures, readings, vocal exercises and repertoire Students review the basics of healthy vocal production and develop the techniques learned in MUS 140. Topics include further study of the anatomy and physiology of the vocal instrument, including vocal fold function, dynamics of both the singing and speaking voice, application of correct vocal technique to various styles and types of repertoire, and individual assessment of the voice. This course is usually held simultaneously with MUS 340.
MUS 250: ADVANCED STUDIES I: PIANO
Credits 3This is a course for pianists in the advanced beginner to intermediate stage. Course includes continuation of technique and fundamentals from MUS 101, scales and arpeggios in two octaves, introduction to sight reading and chording, and repertoire of greater difficulty than that encompassing five-finger position. Introduction of actual repertoire from the classical masters as well as more contemporary repertoire. This course is usually held simultaneously with MUS 350.
MUS 260: ADVANCED STUDIES I: GUITAR
Credits 3This is an intermediate course in acoustic guitar technique and musicianship. A development of MUS 101 (Fundamentals of Music: Guitar), class topics include 2-octave scales, left and right hand technique, and an introduction to bar chords. These topics will be applied to various musical repertories including pop, folk, acoustic rock, and classical. This course is usually held simultaneously with MUS 360.
MUS 299, 399 OR 499: INDEPENDENT STUDY IN MUSIC
Credits 3Each of these numbers designates a specific level of specialized study on a relevant topic that has been designed by the student in conjunction with a faculty member of music.
MUS 300: INTERNSHIP IN MUSIC
Credits 3This upper level, field-based course is designed for juniors and seniors to explore and develop professional opportunities and apply concepts and skills learned in their coursework.
MUS 301: MUSIC THEORY II
Credits 3A course in traditional harmony and analysis, Music Theory II explores the language of tonal music from both written and aural perspectives. The course goal is to develop a thorough understanding of the techniques and materials of musical composition and to apply this knowledge to the music of diverse repertories. Topics to be covered are: seventh and ninth chords, secondary dominants and other chromatic chords, harmonic progression, voice leading, harmonization and non-harmonic tones, musical texture, modulation, and musical form.
MUS 330: CONDUCTING
Credits 3This course is designed to provide the student with the fundamental skills of conducting and is geared primarily toward majors and minors who will conduct musical groups in schools and churches. Skills developed will include beat patterns, sight singing, ear training, score reading, and preparation. Students will be assigned a laboratory ensemble to conduct in rehearsal and performance.
MUS 340: ADVANCED STUDIES II: VOICE
Credits 3This class continues to build upon the information learned in MUS 140 and MUS 240. Students delve deeper into the physiological functions of the voice including muscles of the larynx, increased breathing capacity, prevention of vocal abuse, voice misuse, proper resonance and maintaining an consistent efficient vocal production. Topics include healthy singing for Pop Musicians, projecting the voice for stage work and public speaking, and methods to keep the voice healthy and productive throughout the life cycle. This course is usually held simultaneously with MUS 240.
MUS 350: ADVANCED STUDIES II: PIANO
Credits 3This course continues to build on the foundation of previous piano experience. Topics will include major and minor scales in three octaves, arpeggios, technical studies, accompanying folk and popular music from chord symbols, transposition, and the study of more advanced classical repertoire. This course is usually held simultaneously with MUS 250.
MUS 360: ADVANCED STUDIES II: GUITAR
Credits 3This is an advanced course in guitar technique and musicianship. Class topics include scales in all keys (with metronome application), slurs, position studies, and arpeggios. Focus is given to chord progressions involving multiple positions and bar forms, guitar solos, and improvisatory concepts so as to prepare the student for ensemble opportunities. These topics will be applied to various musical repertories including pop, folk, acoustic rock, and classical. This course is usually held simultaneously with MUS 260.
MUS 400: SPECIAL TOPICS IN MUSIC
Credits 3Special topics in Music are offered occasionally by the department. The courses respond to special interests evinced by students, outgrowths of topics addressed in an intermediate course, or research interests of the faculty. These courses are sometimes interdisciplinary in nature and may be offered without prerequisites.