Students will further extend their vocabulary of scales, chords and rhythms found in today’s popular music idioms. Class activities include the regular transcription, dissection and discussion of popular musical works and frame these against their historic precedents. The course promotes students’ proficiency in shifting between written and aural skill sets and supplements these with practical approaches to the organization and presentation of more esoteric musical material for performance in mainstream or academic settings. This course continues to investigate the options and logistics students require for capturing and transmitting musical ideas. Cultural, professional and pedagogical aesthetics are explored with an understanding that today’s popular music is built on a rich foundation of both physical scientific constants and the intellectual artistry of our classical forebears.
This course consists of a two-hour music theory and aural awareness lecture per week and a one-hour tutorial focusing on the practical application of theory and aural skills and is conducted primarily via the Logic DAW.
Though all handouts and assignments will be online at the end of each week, students are required to take notes during classes as many of the topics taught encourage further discussion that may be relevant to testing in future assessments. CANVAS is also used to upload relevant articles, examples and links to popular music as it is released. Communication outside lecture times will be via Canvas and University email addresses. Please check regularly for class notices. Course resources will also be posted on Canvas. For information Webmail go to: Main University Homepage – For current students – “Student IT Essentials”.
Students in MUS 284 will also benefit from spending time every week practising ear-training and revising theoretical concepts.