Music in the Culture of the Renaissance (MUSI30011)

Undergraduate level 3Points: 12.5Not available in 2019

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Overview

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Through individual studies of selected musical centres and repertories, students will explore the nature, the role, and the functions of music in European society during the Renaissance. Using diverse materials, students will engage in a directed exploration of selected repertory, manuscript and printed sources, early notation, theoretical writings, performance practices, social history and current issues in scholarship and performance. Students will gain an enhanced experience of the musical life of the period, and develop critical skills that will assist them to evaluate recent musicological scholarship and modern performances.

Intended learning outcomes

  • Demonstrate knowledge of principal developments in Western music of the Renaissance (1400-1600), including composition, notation and printing

  • Develop an awareness of performance practice issues related to Western music of this period, both vocal and instrumental

  • Identify and analyse specific genres and works of Western music 1400-1600

  • Interpret the political, cultural, and religious factors that impacted on music at this time, with reference to relevant secondary literature

Generic skills

On completion of this subject students should have developed:

  • a capacity for independent critical thought

  • high-level cognitive skills

  • an openness to new ideas

  • knowledge, skills and practices which provide a basis for independent critical inquiry and research-based writing

Last updated: 4 April 2025