REL 171
Music and Spirituality Spring 2015
Division II
Cross-listed MUS 171
This is not the current course catalog

Class Details

Across cultures and across millennia, music has served to enable, inspire, and express the spiritual life experiences of communities and individuals. Why is this so? In what contexts and through what means can making and hearing music acquire a spiritual dimension? This course will take a topical approach to exploring music’s spiritual power, considering such areas as the function of music in ritual practices from various cultures and times, the use of music to tell sacred stories, and the role of music created in the face of death and its aftermath. Our primary focus will be on music from Christian traditions from medieval to modern times, enriched by conversations with musicians immersed in the music of other world faith traditions. We will explore connections between music and spirituality through a wide variety of composers and styles, including plainchant and Renaissance sacred choral music; classics by Bach, Mozart, Beethoven, and Brahms; American hymnody and spirituals; Igor Stravinsky and Arvo Pärt; John Coltrane and Dave Brubeck; and selected artists from the world of contemporary popular music.
The Class: Format: lecture/discussion
Limit: 19
Expected: 15
Class#: 4112
Grading: no pass/fail option, no fifth course option
Requirements/Evaluation: evaluation will be based on class participation, several brief writing assignments, a midterm paper, and a final project with presentation
Extra Info: may not be taken on a pass/fail basis; not available for the Gaudino option
Prerequisites: none
Enrollment Preferences: students with a demonstrated interest in music or religion
Distributions: Division II
Notes: meets Division 1 requirement if registration is under MUS; meets Division 2 requirement if registration is under REL
This course is cross-listed and the prefixes carry the following divisional credit:
REL 171 Division II MUS 171 Division I

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