Fine Arts University Seminar

(3 Credit Hours) · Undergraduate

What is social justice, and how is it reflected in music? Can music really make a difference in the fight for a more equitable society? How do musicians and music scholars approach these and other related issues? In this course, we begin with big questions such as these, exploring the relationships between social justice and music—both as a sphere of cultural activity and as an object of study. We will work together to build a common vocabulary for discussing these themes, before moving on to more specific considerations of music and social justice in traditional, sacred, and popular genres. Together, we will examine the ways artists working within these genres have pushed back against injustice in the surrounding music community and in their broader societies. As a University Seminar, this course is writing intensive, with assignments ranging from short essays to a capstone project. In its focus on both formal and contextual characteristics of music, the course also satisfies the core curriculum Ways of Knowing requirement for Fine Arts and Literature.