General Undergraduate
The following require no previous knowledge of music.
MUS 307 African American Music
An introduction to the music of African Americans. We will consider
the musical, historical, social, and cultural issues of the African
American experience in the United States. Our goal is to understand
both the extraordinary diversity and essential continuity of black music
in a range of genres from the sacred, popular, and concert traditions.
Students will master a rudimentary music vocabulary and learn the basic
tools of critical listening.
MUS 307 Clifford Antone's History of the Blues
In this course, Austin music icon Clifford Antone appears as distinguished
guest lecturer to discuss the blues from his singular perspective.
A recipient of The National Blues Foundation’s "Lifetime Achievement Award"
for his contributions to the blues, Antone has presented an array of blues talent, from
Muddy Waters to Willie Nelson, and B.B. King to Stevie Ray Vaughan.
In conjunction with musicologist Kevin Mooney, a specialist in the music of Texas,
Antone will draw a cultural and social map of American popular music,
following the Mississippi River on a journey from New Orleans to Chicago,
then over the Appalachians to New York, and back into the Deep South,
finally arriving in Austin, home of Antone’s legendary blues club.
MUS 307 Jazz Appreciation
Jazz Appreciation is an introduction to and discussion of jazz for non-music
majors. The main goal of the course is to enable students to appreciate
and understand the performance of jazz in the common practice. Emphasis
is placed on central figures and specific genres of jazz in the twentieth
century. Elements of music and basic aural skills are also addressed.
Some of the artists discussed in class are Miles Davis, John Coltrane,
Count Basie, Duke Ellington, Charles Mingus and Louis Armstrong. Class
activities include lectures, listening, videos and live music demonstrations.
MUS 307 Music of Texas
A historical survey of the music, musicians, and institutions associated
with the state of Texas and its region. Particular attention will be
given to music and identity issues as they relate to musical life in
Texas. Focusing on the ethnic and cultural diversity of the state and
the efforts of its residents to define themselves through their music,
this course will examine the changing definitions of Texas music from
various ethnic and historical perspectives. Lecture topics will include
discussions of such popular, folk, and classical musics as Texas blues,
ragtime, jazz, and rock western swing, Hollywood's portrayal of Texas,
and the singing cowboy; Texas classical music traditions women and Texas
music as well as Texas-Mexican and African American musical traditions.
MUS 307 Rock ’n’ Roll
Rock and Roll is undoubtedly the most popular music ever to have existed.
At first thought to be a musical style appropriate for only the younger
generation, the mixed-generation audiences that exist at rock concerts
today and the existence of “classic rock” radio stations
have proved its staying power. This course surveys the development of
rock music from its beginnings to the present, but with emphasis on
the first half of its history. It will be concerned with the musicians
and groups that have been most influential in rock’s history and
with the social, political and cultural currents that have been at work
in that history. The course will begin with a short overview of the
fundamentals of musical style to equip students who are new to the academic
study of music with the tools necessary for understanding stylistic
influences in the development of a musical tradition.
MUS 307 Asian American Musics
This course will explore the concept of Asian American Music from three
perspectives. First, we will study Asian musics in the Americas, focusing
on Hindustani music and Javanese gamelan music.
We will also explore folk, devotional and popular musics from Asia that are
maintained and modified within Asian diasporas in the US, Canada, Trinidad,
and elsewhere. Second, we will examine representations of Asian musics and
cultures in the mainstream U.S. media. From Tin Pan Alley to Hollywood, the
fantasy of “the orient” has played a key role in popular music cultures in the US.
Third, the remainder of the course will focus on Asian Americans making music. We
will consider Asian American musicians in jazz, hip-hop, and rock as well as emerging
genres within contemporary Asian American youth subcultures.
MUS 307 Pleasure and Politics in American Popular Music
This course tries to make sense of the multiple ways people used popular music to quench desires and to
engage in political action. The course is designed around two basic goals. First, it will introduce you
to the general history of popular music in the twentieth century United States. How did we get here? When we begin the
course, blackface minstrelsy is still a stark presence on the nation's stages, most of the music people hear comes
directly from live musicians, and the record industry is controlled by a handful of companies. By the end of the course, we
will arrive at a time in which rock and roll is a nostalgia trip, records are more often used for making music than
listening to it, and the music industry is controlled by a handful of companies. The second goal
of the course is to introduce you to the various ways scholars, musicians, and fans have tried to interpret
and explain popular music. We will read a wide variety of authors, each offering up a different approach to
capturing the pleasure and politics of popular music after the sounds have floated off into the air.
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General Undergraduate
Upper Division
Graduate Seminars |
