To see a complete list of courses offered and their descriptions, visit the online course catalog. The courses listed below are provided by the JHU Public Course Search. This listing provides a snapshot of immediately available courses and may not be complete.
Course registration information can be found on the Student Information Services (SIS) website.
All music ensembles in Homewood Arts Programs count toward the performance requirement for the minor.
This course uses composition and song-writing projects to introduce music fundamentals to students with little or no musical background. Topics will include rhythm and meter, pitch and intervals, scales, chords, and harmony, and how to read and write music in both traditional and popular presentations. We will cover standard classical music notation (score, Roman numerals, traditional theory terminology) as well as popular (lead-sheet notation and performance conventions). This course has no prerequisite.
Paradoxically accessible and esoteric, Maurice Ravel’s music resides in the canonical repertoire of practically every conservatory student. Yet Ravel’s relationship to his own musical training was fraught both as a pianist and composer. This course examines the life and works of the French composer. Beyond a survey of his compositional output, this seminar will examine the era that produced Ravel. France at the turn of the century, Ravel’s studies at the Paris Conservatory, and his relationship with his musical contemporaries will all be topics of discussion. Undergraduate music theory AS.376.211 or PY.710.111 must have been completed with no lower than a grade of C is a prerequisite for this course. Some exposure to the French language is recommended.
This First-Year Seminar focuses on the lives of Mozart, Beethoven, Schumann, and Chopin and the depictions of their lives in film during the 20th century. The seminar provides both an introduction to film analysis and music history biography. In the last module, we will examine the canon of Western art music composers and consider historiographical issues along lines of gender, race, and other American demographics within this inherited tradition--all toward a collaborative final project. Excursions to concerts and other events will be offered.
This course introduces written and aural music fundamentals including notation, scales, intervals, chords, rhythm, meter and sight-singing. Students will compose melodies and short pieces and complete listening projects. Course does not count towards the completion of the minor.
This course introduces written and aural music fundamentals including notation, scales, intervals, chords, rhythm, meter and sight-singing. Students will compose melodies and short pieces and complete listening projects. Course does not count towards the completion of the minor.
Introduction to basic principles of tonal music through listening, analysis and music making. Students study melody, harmony, voice leading, figured bass and dissonance treatment, and will also undertake short composition projects. Must have taken the qualifying examination or AS.376.111. Recommended to be taken concurrently with AS.376.221.
Introduction to basic principles of tonal music through listening, analysis and music making. Students study melody, harmony, voice leading, figured bass and dissonance treatment, and will also undertake short composition projects. Must have taken the qualifying examination or AS.376.111. Recommended to be taken concurrently with AS.376.221.
This course continues the written and aural work of the previous course but focuses on chromatic harmony while continuing the study of melody, counterpoint and figured bass. Prerequisite: AS.376.211 (Music Theory I). Recommended to be taken with AS.376.222 (Musicianship II).
An introduction to basic musicianship skills. The course is divided into performance skills (sight singing, rhythm reading, basic piano, and improvisation) and aural skills (recognition of pitch, chords, rhythms, melodies, and other musical structures). Topics include major and minor keys and simple time signatures. Emphasis is placed on developing effective practice techniques. Pre-requisite: AS.376.111 (Rudiments of Music Theory and Musicianship) or placement exam.
A continuation of the skills developed Musicianship I. The course is divided into performance skills (sight singing, rhythm reading, basic piano, and improvisation) and aural skills (recognition of pitch, chords, rhythms, melodies, and other musical structures). Topics include minor keys, chromatic melody and harmony, compound time signatures, and syncopation). As in Musicianship I, emphasis is placed on developing effective practice techniques. Pre-requisite: AS.376.221 (Musicianship I) or placement exam.
A survey of the stylistic features and social contexts of American popular music since the 1950s.
Students will be introduced to electronic music production techniques and software, and how both can be used to produce a wide range of genre specific results. Skills such as beat matching, intricate use of quantization, virtual instrument editing, automation, sampling, mixing, mastering, effect usage and use of plugins will be explored.
Students will be introduced to electronic music production techniques and software, and how both can be used to produce a wide range of genre specific results. Skills such as beat matching, intricate use of quantization, virtual instrument editing, automation, sampling, mixing, mastering, effect usage and use of plugins will be explored.
Introduction to Computer Music is an opportunity for people with no specialized training in music to explore electronic art music as a long-standing, if obscure, body of art, then to participate in creative work in the style. Participants will gain a heuristic understanding of forms of musical composition that operate outside the conventions of regular rhythm and harmony as they record and manipulate sound to sculpt it into original musical works. The lecture portion combines an historical overview of electronic music, rudiments of acoustics and musical perception, and instruction in compositional techniques and in using computers as creative musical tools. The laboratory portion, given at the Digital Media Center, serves as a workshop for creative exploration and for the completion of assigned creative projects including original works of digital sound art.
The primary focus of this performance/theory course is designed to help students acquire and develop basic language for improvisation in a collaborative environment. Throughout the semester, the course will develop these skills through songs drawn from standard jazz repertoire, examining improvised solos by master musicians, and understanding the application of fundamental theory concepts in performance situations. Enrolled students should be comfortable with theory rudiments such as note reading, scales, and intervals. No textbook is required, but students should have access to an instrument (singers are welcome).
The study and performance of instrumental chamber music, by audition/permission of instructor only. Sight-reading skills will be evaluated. This course is one credit, will meet for one hour once a week, and has a final performance at the end of the semester. Pre-formed groups preferred, but single auditions accepted with the understanding that a group may not be readily formed for registration.
What is a Broadway musical? Why aren’t there more smash hits like Hamilton? And what can American musical theater teach us about our own lives? In this introductory course, students will explore these questions and more, learning about the history and craft of significant 20th and 21st-century musicals in the interdisciplinary context of society, politics, economics, and technology. Students will apply their knowledge by collaboratively creating and performing an original short work of musical theatre and, if practicable, will attend a performance in the Baltimore-Washington area or in neighboring cities as far away as New York.
This course will explore the many genres of traditional and popular music that have emerged among the peoples and cultures of the Caribbean region and its Diaspora. We will examine the social, political, and economic issues that have shaped the region’s music and how that music may have intersected with migration, colonization, ethnicity, race and tourism. Using a “participant observation” approach, students will read about, listen to and research a variety of musical experiences within the relevant sociopolitical context. Students should expect to fully participate in discussions about the assigned readings and music, and should be prepared to conduct their own research and share their own or newly acquired knowledge of contemporary and “historical/traditional” musical themes, and local and regional artists. Our collective goal will be to enjoy as well as to think critically about music, culture and performance and within a more informed understanding of the complex, multi-varied and multi-vocal context—know as “The Caribbean”.
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart wrote his first opera in 1767 at the age of 11. By the time of his death at age 35, he had written 22 full-length operas. Many of these operas are still performed today in opera houses around the world. In this course, we will discuss the enduring popularity of these works. We will discover how these operas were created, delving into the many important collaborations Mozart had with singers, librettists, impresarios, and patrons. We will analyze the words and music of the operas and how they combine to create three-dimensional characters for which his operas are known, such as the melancholy but determined Countess in The Marriage of Figaro, or the cowardly but loyal Papageno in The Magic Flute. Cultural norms have shifted dramatically between Mozart’s time and ours, and we will examine how Mozart’s operas have been received from their premieres through to today. We will think about how the operas have been translated, adapted, and circulated to different audiences in different eras and locations. Finally, we will reflect on our position as modern audience members, watching recent productions of the operas which reinterpret the works in alternative settings or times and studying the ways in which opera companies promote Mozart’s works.
Fall 202517 |
Summer 20252 |
| Course # (Section) | Title | Day/Times | Instructor | Location | Term | Course Details |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AS.001.117 (01) | FYS: Composer Biographies in Film | TTh 4:30PM - 5:45PM | Ahn, Suhnne | Gilman 277 | Fall 2025 | This First-Year Seminar focuses on the lives of Mozart, Beethoven, Schumann, and Chopin and the depictions of their lives in film during the 20th century. The seminar provides both an introduction to film analysis and music history biography. In the last module, we will examine the canon of Western art music composers and consider historiographical issues along lines of gender, race, and other American demographics within this inherited tradition--all toward a collaborative final project. Excursions to concerts and other events will be offered. |
| AS.376.111 (01) | Rudiments of Music Theory and Musicianship | MWF 9:00AM - 9:50AM | Prescott, Jordan | Shriver Hall 028G | Fall 2025 | This course introduces written and aural music fundamentals including notation, scales, intervals, chords, rhythm, meter and sight-singing. Students will compose melodies and short pieces and complete listening projects. Course does not count towards the completion of the minor. |
| AS.376.111 (02) | Rudiments of Music Theory and Musicianship | TTh 9:00AM - 10:15AM | Ahn, Heather Hyoeun | Shriver Hall 028G | Fall 2025 | This course introduces written and aural music fundamentals including notation, scales, intervals, chords, rhythm, meter and sight-singing. Students will compose melodies and short pieces and complete listening projects. Course does not count towards the completion of the minor. |
| AS.376.211 (01) | Music Theory I | MWF 10:00AM - 10:50AM | Prescott, Jordan | Shriver Hall 028G | Fall 2025 | Introduction to basic principles of tonal music through listening, analysis and music making. Students study melody, harmony, voice leading, figured bass and dissonance treatment, and will also undertake short composition projects. Must have taken the qualifying examination or AS.376.111. Recommended to be taken concurrently with AS.376.221. |
| AS.376.211 (02) | Music Theory I | T 12:00PM - 1:15PM | Perry, Lisa Marie | Shriver Hall 104 | Fall 2025 | Introduction to basic principles of tonal music through listening, analysis and music making. Students study melody, harmony, voice leading, figured bass and dissonance treatment, and will also undertake short composition projects. Must have taken the qualifying examination or AS.376.111. Recommended to be taken concurrently with AS.376.221. |
| AS.376.212 (01) | Music Theory II | TTh 9:00AM - 10:15AM | Rickelton, Michael T | Shriver Hall 104 | Fall 2025 | This course continues the written and aural work of the previous course but focuses on chromatic harmony while continuing the study of melody, counterpoint and figured bass. Prerequisite: AS.376.211 (Music Theory I). Recommended to be taken with AS.376.222 (Musicianship II). |
| AS.376.221 (01) | Musicianship I | TTh 1:30PM - 2:20PM | Fishbein, Joshua Henry | Shriver Hall 028G | Fall 2025 | An introduction to basic musicianship skills. The course is divided into performance skills (sight singing, rhythm reading, basic piano, and improvisation) and aural skills (recognition of pitch, chords, rhythms, melodies, and other musical structures). Topics include major and minor keys and simple time signatures. Emphasis is placed on developing effective practice techniques. Pre-requisite: AS.376.111 (Rudiments of Music Theory and Musicianship) or placement exam. |
| AS.376.222 (01) | Musicianship II | TTh 2:30PM - 3:20PM | Fishbein, Joshua Henry | Shriver Hall 028G | Fall 2025 | A continuation of the skills developed Musicianship I. The course is divided into performance skills (sight singing, rhythm reading, basic piano, and improvisation) and aural skills (recognition of pitch, chords, rhythms, melodies, and other musical structures). Topics include minor keys, chromatic melody and harmony, compound time signatures, and syncopation). As in Musicianship I, emphasis is placed on developing effective practice techniques. Pre-requisite: AS.376.221 (Musicianship I) or placement exam. |
| AS.376.242 (01) | History of Rock and Roll | TTh 10:30AM - 11:45AM | Rickelton, Michael T | Shriver Hall 104 | Fall 2025 | A survey of the stylistic features and social contexts of American popular music since the 1950s. |
| AS.376.244 (01) | Electronic Music Production | T 10:30AM - 1:00PM | Patrick, Wendel | Shriver Hall 028G | Fall 2025 | Students will be introduced to electronic music production techniques and software, and how both can be used to produce a wide range of genre specific results. Skills such as beat matching, intricate use of quantization, virtual instrument editing, automation, sampling, mixing, mastering, effect usage and use of plugins will be explored. |
| AS.376.244 (02) | Electronic Music Production | Th 10:30AM - 1:00PM | Patrick, Wendel | Shriver Hall 028G | Fall 2025 | Students will be introduced to electronic music production techniques and software, and how both can be used to produce a wide range of genre specific results. Skills such as beat matching, intricate use of quantization, virtual instrument editing, automation, sampling, mixing, mastering, effect usage and use of plugins will be explored. |
| AS.376.250 (01) | Introduction to Computer Music | MWF 10:00AM - 10:50AM | Burt, Samuel B | 3003 N. Charles DMC Computer Lab | Fall 2025 | Introduction to Computer Music is an opportunity for people with no specialized training in music to explore electronic art music as a long-standing, if obscure, body of art, then to participate in creative work in the style. Participants will gain a heuristic understanding of forms of musical composition that operate outside the conventions of regular rhythm and harmony as they record and manipulate sound to sculpt it into original musical works. The lecture portion combines an historical overview of electronic music, rudiments of acoustics and musical perception, and instruction in compositional techniques and in using computers as creative musical tools. The laboratory portion, given at the Digital Media Center, serves as a workshop for creative exploration and for the completion of assigned creative projects including original works of digital sound art. |
| AS.376.258 (01) | Jazz Improvisation and Theory | MW 1:30PM - 2:45PM | Sims, Ian K | Shriver Hall 028G | Fall 2025 | The primary focus of this performance/theory course is designed to help students acquire and develop basic language for improvisation in a collaborative environment. Throughout the semester, the course will develop these skills through songs drawn from standard jazz repertoire, examining improvised solos by master musicians, and understanding the application of fundamental theory concepts in performance situations. Enrolled students should be comfortable with theory rudiments such as note reading, scales, and intervals. No textbook is required, but students should have access to an instrument (singers are welcome). |
| AS.376.299 (01) | Advanced Chamber Music | F 3:30PM - 4:30PM | Yoo, Shirley S | Shriver Hall 028G | Fall 2025 | The study and performance of instrumental chamber music, by audition/permission of instructor only. Sight-reading skills will be evaluated. This course is one credit, will meet for one hour once a week, and has a final performance at the end of the semester. Pre-formed groups preferred, but single auditions accepted with the understanding that a group may not be readily formed for registration. |
| AS.376.303 (01) | Musical Theater on Broadway and Beyond | T 4:30PM - 7:00PM | Wang, Derrick | Shriver Hall 104 | Fall 2025 | What is a Broadway musical? Why aren’t there more smash hits like Hamilton? And what can American musical theater teach us about our own lives? In this introductory course, students will explore these questions and more, learning about the history and craft of significant 20th and 21st-century musicals in the interdisciplinary context of society, politics, economics, and technology. Students will apply their knowledge by collaboratively creating and performing an original short work of musical theatre and, if practicable, will attend a performance in the Baltimore-Washington area or in neighboring cities as far away as New York. |