WCSU Graduate Catalog 2024-2025 : SCHOOL OF VISUAL, PERFORMING & COMMUNICATION ARTS

Master of Music Course Descriptions

MUS 500 Introduction to Research in Music   1  SH

This course provides students an introduction to graduate music research methods (Historical, Qualitative, Quantitative). This course explores the tools to review, evaluate, and complete research in various modalities. In addition to an emphasis on design and analysis, students will gain an extended vocabulary necessary to complete this research, and develop writing in various styles (APA, Chicago/Turabian).

MUS 502 Repertoire and Arranging for the Jazz Educator    3 SH

In this course, a broad repertoire for small and large jazz ensemble will be presented. Students will engage with the repertoire in several ways: through copious listening, transcription and memorization of seminal small group arrangements, study and analysis of important large ensemble compositions and arrangements, through producing original arrangements for large and jazz ensembles in various styles, and coaching and conducting student groups in performance of those arrangements.

MUS 505 Jazz Rhythm Section Lab  

All students, regardless of instrument, will gain valuable experience performing on the primary rhythm section instruments of the jazz ensemble: piano, bass and drums. The first half of the semester will consist primarily of rotating group lessons on each instrument, given by each instrument’s applied jazz instructor. During this lesson phase, rudimentary instrumental technique, tone production, jazz vocabulary and equipment issues will be emphasized. The second half of the semester will consist primarily of students performing together in-class on the rhythm section instruments. Areas of focus during this phase will include rhythmic cohesion, functioning as accompanist vs. soloist, group interplay and the contributions of great rhythm sections in jazz history. By the close of the semester, students will be able to provide accompaniment on all the rhythm section instruments over the blues, “I Got Rhythm” changes, jazz standards and modal jazz repertoire..

MUS 506 Special Topics in Jazz Pedagogy    2  SH

This course explores the intersection between the practical and the theoretical aspects of jazz pedagogy. Topics will include the history of jazz music in American schools, conducting a large jazz ensemble, coaching a small jazz ensemble, private instruction, philosophy of jazz pedagogy, sociological and psychological aspects of music teaching and learning, and giving an effective masterclass/clinic. Students will interface with the immediate community of learners and performers and will participate in the annual WCSU Jazz Festival as performers and junior clinicians.

MUS 507 Jazz Styles and Analysis    3  SH

The improvisational and compositional language of jazz’s greatest innovators from 1900 to the present day will comprise the subject matter for this course. The music of Jelly Roll Morton, Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington, Charlie Parker, John Coltrane, Wayne Shorter and many others will be explored through listening, research, and analysis. Students will select a topic in consultation with the instructor and produce a research document at the conclusion of the course.

MUS 509 Performing Organizations    1 SH

This course offers the study and performance of instrumental or choral works with the WCSU Wind Ensemble, Concert Choir, or Chamber Ensemble. Admission is by audition only; one semester hour of credit is the maximum allowable credit earned in one semester. No more than three semester hours of credit are acceptable toward the M.S. degree. Prerequisite: permission of the department. Any semester.

MUS 510 Applied Music    1 SH

Work on a major or minor instrument may be undertaken for credit. Each student is expected to maintain progress commensurate with graduate-level study. Instructors’ fees are to be paid by the student and are higher than the regular semester-hour rate. No more than three semester hours in applied music are accepted toward the M.S. degree. A student may enroll for one semester hour of credit per major or minor instrument per semester or second summer session. Prerequisite: permission of the department.

MUS 517 The Blues: Musical, Cultural and Historical Contexts      2 SH

The sound and feeling of the blues is inherent in much of what we consider American music – gospel, jazz, rock and roll, country, funk, rhythm and blues, funk and hip hop. Much more than a song form or a genre of music, the blues informs us of American history through the lens of the African-American experience and speaks to us through its many manifestations of musical expression, as well as its poetry. In any serious study of the pedagogy and performance of the music we call jazz, it is imperative that the educator have a firm foundation in the blues and its location as a foundational element of American music.

MUS 519 Summer Intensive Small Jazz Ensemble     1 SH

This course is offered as an option to fulfill the ensemble requirement for the Jazz Pedagogy degree. In addition to the rehearsal and performance of standard and original repertoire, improvisational strategies and techniques specific to the repertoire will be presented. Students will collaborate with the instructor to select repertoire, produce original arrangements for the group.

MUS 520 Form and Analysis    3 SH

This course offers an analysis of the structural and tonal materials of music, with emphasis on understanding music so that it can be performed or taught with better interpretation.

MUS 522 Twentieth-Century Compositional Techniques    3 SH

Through theoretical analysis, recordings, original composition, philosophy, and live performance, this course will present various compositional techniques of the twentieth century.

MUS 523 Conducting    3 SH

This course will review the fundamentals and special problems of conducting; advanced training and experience in choral and instrumental conducting; and advanced application of score reading.

MUS 527 The Structure of Music    3 SH

This course represents a study of the techniques of music structure as it relates to style over the last eight centuries.

MUS 528 Pedagogy of Improvisation      3 SH

Theoretical and practical applications of improvisational vocabulary will be presented in this course. Application of the course material will bolster each student’s competence as an improviser and as a teacher of improvisation, as it relates to a range of musical idioms. Areas of focus will include expansion of the tonal improvisational vocabulary through chromaticism, exploration of non-functional harmony, advanced solo transcription and analysis and exploring the various types and uses of the pentatonic and octatonic scales.

MUS 533 Choral Techniques and Materials    3 SH

This course is designed for directors of choral groups from fifth through twelfth grades and college, community and church choirs. The course deals with problems of tone quality, intonation, diction, rhythm, repertoire selection, interpretation, and the conductor’s rehearsal and manual techniques.

MUS 534 Instrumental Techniques and Materials    3 SH

This course will examine techniques and materials for instrumental music instruction in public schools. Lecture-demonstration on brass, percussion, and woodwind instruments by resident and visiting performer-teachers will be included. Classical and jazz techniques will be covered in each instrumental area. The computer as a “tool” for instrumental music education will be presented, including musical and nonmusical (management) uses for the computer. Designed for music teachers currently teaching in public schools.

MUS 535 Contemporary Strategies in Elementary Music Education    3 SH

This course surveys current trends and practices in music education from preschool through grade six. Particular attention will be given to the methods and materials of Dalcroze, Orff, Kodaly, and Suzuki. Simulated experiences, combined with seminars, lectures, and discussions, will serve as the focal point of the course. Designed for music teachers currently teaching in the field.

MUS 536 Topics in Music Education    3 SH

This course represents an opportunity for students to pursue in greater depth topics introduced in other courses or topics not covered in present courses in music education. The subject matter would change each time the course is offered. Topics might include specific music education methodologies, ensemble management, program development, or updates in the field.

MUS 539 – Music History Reviewy Music    0 SH

Music History Review focuses on the undergraduate music history curriculum. In this course, students will review western music history from the Medieval period to the Modern period. Students will be able to articulate through writing, examinations, and informal assessments the salient details of the various musical styles represented throughout Europe since the 12th century and how social and cultural elements shaped these styles.

MUS 540 – Topics in Music History    3 SH

This course represents an opportunity for students to pursue in greater depth highly specialized music history topics. The subject matter will change each time the course is offered. Topics might include a specific composer or group of composers, a country’s musical history, or a survey of a specific genre/tradition.

MUS 545 Topics in Music Literature    2 SH

This course represents an opportunity for students to pursue in greater depth topics introduced in other courses or topics not covered in present courses in music literature. The subject matter would change each time the course is offered. Topics might include specific historiographical methodologies, ensemble repertoire, performance style, or updates in the field.

MUS 590 Music Department Seminar    3 SH

This seminar course is for students fulfilling the nonthesis requirements for the M.S. in Music Education degree. This culminating seminar includes a review of content in music education, music literature, and structure and organization of music courses and written comprehensive examination.

MUS 591 Independent Thesis Research in Music    6 SH

This course is designed for students fulfilling the thesis requirements for the M.S. in Music Education degree and who have submitted an acceptable thesis outline and choose to work independently on thesis research and writing. Individual conferences with the thesis adviser are scheduled as needed. Credit will be granted upon submission of one copy of an approved final draft of the thesis and the appropriate number of copies of the thesis abstract.

MUS 598 Faculty-Developed Course

This experimental course is offered by the Music Department as a means of determining its value to the total department program or in response to a particular request of a group from students.

MUS 599 Student-Developed Study

This vehicle is designed to provide the student with an opportunity to develop his/her own learning experience. A student will design a project and secure a faculty sponsor. This vehicle may be utilized more than one time.