Showing 84 courses for the subject Music Studies
A study of the range of musical experiences that define contemporary musical consciousness, from development in art, popular, and world musics across the 20th and 21st centuries, to the changing role of performers and performance. Historical, critica...
Music, Culture, Experience
MUSC106
An introductory study of musical experiences from a range of cultural perspectives. Trimester 3: Withdrawal with refund by 24/11/2017; withdrawal without refund by 13/12/2017, after which date the permission of the Associate Dean (Students) will be r...
Popular Music: An Introduction
MUSC120
An introduction to the study of twentieth- and twenty-first-century popular music, integrating case studies of various global popular musics and interdisciplinary discussion of a range of ideas and issues that emerge from their study.
Introduction to Jazz
MUSC125
Study of the cultural roots of jazz music, the political and social contexts in which it flourished, and the ongoing musical practices called jazz in the twenty-first century.
In this chronological survey of Western art music, students study some of the most famous musical works ever written, and are introduced to the key historical, cultural, social, and stylistic developments in the Western art music tradition. Students ...
Music in Global Contexts
MUSC150
An introduction to music in world cultures. A survey of examples from the Pacific, Asia, Africa and the Americas that examines music within its cultural context, and an introduction to the study of ethnomusicology.
An introduction to fundamental written skills in music and to basic forms used in Western music, including practise in aural perception.
Jazz Theory/ Musicianship 1
MUSC164
Development of theoretical knowledge and skills for improvisation, composition, transcription, transposition and analysis.
Jazz Theory/Musicianship 2
MUSC165
Study of the basic elements and procedures of jazz, including training in the fundamental skills of harmony, rhythm and keyboard.
Classical Theory/Musicianship 1
MUSC166
Study of the basic elements and procedures of common practice tonal music, including basic training in harmony and counterpoint, aural perception, and keyboard skills.
Classical Theory/Musicianship 2
MUSC167
Study of chromatic tonal harmony, including training in analysis, voice-leading procedures, model composition, melodic and rhythmic dictation, aural skills and keyboard skills.
Special Topic: Songwriting
MUSC201
A practical course in song-writing focused on the creation and performance or presentation of original songs, supported by analysis of relevant song repertoire, particularly in popular music, as well as study of key approaches to song and lyric compo...
Perspectives on Jazz
MUSC229
Study of a range of historical, analytical and critical perspectives on jazz as a global music. The course will explore a variety of musics labelled as “jazz” across a number of geographical settings and historical periods. It will consider current j...
Topic in Music History
MUSC230
Advanced study of selected instrumental music, considered from a range of historical, analytic and critical perspectives. Current offering: This course explores the development of the nineteenth-century symphony. It follows a roughly chronological jo...
Perspectives on Vocal Music
MUSC231
Study of a range of perspectives on vocal music considered historically, analytically or critically.
A study of select musical genres, composers and centres of composing and performing activity in the early modern period, from the birth of opera with Monteverdi to J.S. Bach and Handel.
A study of the major musical genres and centres of musical production throughout the eighteenth century in their intellectual and social context.
An historical and analytical study of nineteenth-century European music.
An historical study of selected developments in Western art music after 1900.
Film Music
MUSC247
An introduction to the practice and criticism of music in sound cinema from 1927 to the end of the twentieth century. Current offering: This course will explore the music's interaction with the visual, narrative, dramatic complexity of and other soni...
Popular Music Perspectives
MUSC248
Critical study of select popular music traditions, integrating topical case studies and interdisciplinary discussion of related scholarly issues.
Music in New Zealand Society
MUSC249
A study of music in select communities of Aotearoa New Zealand, considering the historical, cultural, and social contexts.
Music in Everyday Life
MUSC250
Introduction to the ethnography of music and performance in social and cultural contexts.
Perspectives on Music of Oceania
MUSC251
Study of a range of perspectives on select music cultures of Polynesia, Micronesia, and Melanesia considered in social and cultural contexts. 70% internal assessment, 30% final examination. Co-taught with MUSC 351.
Study of a selected topic in Ethnomusicology. 70% internal assessment, 30% examination.
Jazz Theory/ Musicianship 3
MUSC264
Development of theoretical knowledge and skills for improvisation, composition, transcription, transposition and analysis to an advanced standard.
Classical Theory/Musicianship 3
MUSC266
Study of advanced chromatic harmony and voice leading procedures, including advanced training in melodic and rhythmic dictation, aural perception, and keyboard skills.
Methods of Music Analysis
MUSC267
Development of extended understanding of the procedures of tonal music common to composers of the 18th to early 20th centuries.
This hands-on course will familiarise students with the main stylistic features shared by music of the late-Romantic period and many contemporary Hollywood film scores. The course draws on key triadic post-tonal theories (especially Neo-Riemannian th...
Topic in Musicology
MUSC308
Advanced study of a selected topic in Musicology. 100% internal assessment.
Special Topic: Music Pedagogy
MUSC309
This course introduces and explores concepts of teaching and learning music, and provides an opportunity for students to gain practical experience of planning, delivering and evaluating musical learning within an educational context. This course will...
Advanced study of a selected topic within jazz studies. 100% internal assessment.
Studies in Jazz
MUSC329
Advanced study of select jazz repertoires from a range of historical, ethnographic, or critical frameworks. Current offering: Global Jazz. A critical exploration of a variety of musics labelled as “jazz” across a number of geographical settings and h...
Topic in Music History
MUSC330
Advanced study of a selected topic in music history. 70% internal assessment, 30% examination.
Topics in Instrumental Music
MUSC331
Advanced study of selected instrumental music, considered from a range of historical, analytic and critical perspectives. Current offering: This course explores the development of the nineteenth-century symphony. It follows a roughly chronological jo...
This course examines the various factors that shape the experience of opera, both by audiences and by singers, and how music criticism has interacted with those experiences. We will investigate how the terms of operatic communication - music and text...
Studies in 18th Century Music
MUSC336
Advanced study of selected music of the 17th and 18th centuries, considered from a range of historical, analytic and critical perspectives. 100% internal assessment.
Studies in 19th Century Music
MUSC337
Advanced study of selected music of the 19th century, considered from a range of historical, analytical, and critical perspectives. 100% internal assessment.
Study of selected topics in performance practice, with a scholarly research focus. Current offering: How does performance define meaning in the Western art music tradition? Study will include consideration of ideals such as the concept of the work, a...
Historical Performance Practice
MUSC340
An academic study of the resources, instruments, techniques and stylistic conventions relevant to the performance of music from Renaissance to modern times, with an emphasis on works of the 17th and 18th centuries.
An examination, expressed through critical and potentially creative work, of new conceptual approaches to sonic art and/or instrumental/vocal composition. 100% internal assessment.
Editing as Interpretation
MUSC342
Practical studies in early music notation and the critical editing of music.
Study of a selected interdisciplinary topic within Popular Music Studies considered from a range of historical, cultural, or critical perspectives. 2025 offering: Hip Hop Matters: Hip hop has grown from its roots as live party music in New York City ...
Approaches to the Study of Music
MUSC344
Advanced study in historical and recent developments in musicology and ethnomusicology, considering a variety of methodologies and approaches that may be applied to advanced study in music. 100% internal assessment.
Advanced study of selected music after 1900, considered from a range of historical, analytical, and critical perspectives. 100% internal assessment.
An in-depth study of current issues in film music criticism.
Study of selected topics in New Zealand music considered from a range of historical, cultural, or critical perspectives. Current offering: This course examines Western art music in Aotearoa New Zealand during the Colonial (1841–1907) and Dominion era...
Approaches to Popular Music
MUSC349
Advanced study of select popular music traditions, integrating topical case studies and interdisciplinary discussion of related scholarly issues. Hip hop has grown from its roots as live party music in New York City in the 1970s to become a global m...
Study of ethnomusicology and musicology theory and methods, and their application for advanced research into music. 100% internal assessment.
Study of select cultures from Polynesia, Micronesia, and Melanesia and in-depth consideration of music and dance practices from a range of historical, ethnographic, or critical frameworks.
Studies in Music of Asia
MUSC352
Study of select music cultures of Asia and in-depth consideration of musical practices from a range of historical, ethnographic, or critical frameworks.
Study of a selected topic related to Pacific Islands music, focused on particular cultural areas and considered from a range of historical, cultural, or critical perspectives.
Advanced study of a selected topic in ethnomusicology.
Topic in Ethnomusicology
MUSC356
Advanced study of a selected topic in Ethnomusicology. 100% internal assessment.
Advanced materials and analytical techniques relating to selected Western art music repertoire after 1900.
Music Pedagogy
MUSC372
This course introduces and explores concepts of teaching and learning music, and provides an opportunity for students to gain practical experience of planning, delivering and evaluating musical learning within an educational context. This course will...
A collaborative performance project, focused on Jazz or cross-genre music involving Jazz, utilising acoustic and/or electronic instruments, and performed to a professional standard in a live or studio setting. Collaborations may also involve composer...
Topic in Performance
NZSM427
Advanced study of a selected topic in performance, with a focus on practical application. 100% internal assessment.
Topic in Music Studies
NZSM430
Advanced study of a selected topic within music.
Approaches to Music Research
NZSM431
Advanced study in the historical development of musicology as a discipline, considering a variety of methodologies and approaches that may be applied to advanced study in music.
Editing as Interpretation
NZSM438
Advanced practical studies in early music notation and the critical editing of music. 100% internal assessment.
An examination, expressed through advanced critical and potentially creative work, of new conceptual approaches to sonic art and/or instrumental/vocal composition. 100% internal assessment.
Operatic Criticism
NZSM445
A detailed exploration of one or more critical approaches to opera in relation to a particular selection of operatic works. 100% internal assessment.
Advanced study of a selected topic in musicology. Current offering: Drawing upon works from the Western art music tradition dating from around 1600 up until modern times (but with an emphasis on 17th and 18th-century repertoire), this course examines...
Advanced study of a selected topic within jazz studies. This course is an advanced study of shifting and negotiated notions of form, style, historical narrative, institutional location, and political economy surrounding the performance of jazz and im...
Advanced study of approaches to music ethnography, considering research methodologies involving the use of interviews, recordings, and performance in their appropriate historical, ethical, and critical contexts. Course will include the application of...
Advanced study of historical and recent developments in ethnomusicology and musicology, considering a variety of methodologies and approaches that may be applied to advanced study in music. 100% internal assessment.
Advanced study of a selected topic related to Pacific Islands music, focused on particular cultural areas and considered from a range of historical, cultural, or critical perspective. 100% internal assessment.
In depth study and application of critical methods as applied to music in film. 100% internal assessment.
Advanced materials and analytical techniques relating to selected Western art music repertoire after 1900. 100% internal assessment.
Music Therapy Principles
NZSM470
Development of the conceptual skills and knowledge to understand the work of a music therapist in a therapeutic team and to identify and respond to varied needs of clients and associated caregivers. (Note: this course does not entitle students to pra...
Jazz Research
NZSM471
Advanced critical and analytical study of jazz, developing competency in a range of research methods. 100% internal assessment.
Approaches in Music Education
NZSM472
A critical exploration of the variety of methodologies, perspectives and materials employed in the field of music education internationally. This course will be of value to musicians with an interest in education as well as those whose aspiration is ...
Music Pedagogy
NZSM474
A broad introduction to the methodologies, practices and applications of music pedagogy for advanced musicians. This course will be of value to musicians with an interest in education as well as those whose aspiration is to become a career music educ...
Scholarly Project
NZSM494
Supervised advanced research of a music topic appropriate to the student's course of study, to include a major written component of a scholarly nature. A proposal outlining the intended work for this paper must be approved by the Director of the NZSM...
Minor Independent Project
NZSM495
Supervised independent study of a music topic appropriate to the student’s course of study. A proposal outlining the intended work for this paper must be approved by the Director of the NZSM prior to the enrolment deadline.
Independent Project
NZSM496
Supervised independent study of a music topic appropriate to the student's course of study. A proposal outlining the intended work for this paper must be approved by the Director of the NZSM prior to the enrolment deadline.
Special Topic
NZSM501
This course will focus on a subject determined by the student and their supervisor. Please contact music@vuw.ac.nz for more information.
A detailed examination of a large-scale research project recently or currently undertaken by a music therapy staff member; exploration of methodologies, methods, and ethical issues frequently encountered in music therapy research; and the development...
Musicology
NZSM591
A thesis on an approved topic which may include a supplementary research component relevant to the topic of the thesis (comprising 25% of the final grade).
Musicology
NZSM597
A written thesis on an approved topic (90 points).
Development of a research proposal that lays out the appropriate scope, context, and aims for a line of enquiry to be explored through an exegesis and either a portfolio of creative work in composition or sonic arts or creative work in performance cu...
Special Topic
NZSM651
Exploration of an area of learning specific to the research interests and activity of a music academic staff member.
Special Topic
NZSM652
Exploration of an area of learning specific to the research interests and activity of a music academic staff member.
Showing results 1 - 84 of 84 results
Showing 1 - 84 of 84 results for Music Studies