Sex, Death and the Ecstatic in Music (MUSI40058)

HonoursPoints: 12.5Not available in 2025

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Overview

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An examination of examples of Western music from Hildegaard to the present, including “popular” songs, which contain one or all of the themes of sex, death, and the ecstatic in their compositional circumstances, title, pre-compositional intent, or lyrics (if song or aria).

Consideration of these works will be viewed through perspectives from key cultural theories of the late-twentieth and early twenty-first century.

Students attend a weekly seminar, with discussion of set readings and musical works.

Delivery

This subject is co-delivered with MUSI30015 Sex, Death and the Ecstatic in Music.

Intended learning outcomes

On completion of this subject, students should be able to:

  • describe and analyse contemporary attitudes toward music;
  • articulate elements of sex, death, and/or the ecstatic in music;
  • contextualise work within broad social and cultural considerations.

Generic skills

On completion of this subject, students should be able to:

  • communicate effectively, in oral, written and digital forms;
  • respond openly and imaginatively to new ideas;
  • articulate, integrate and adapt knowledge from different domains.

Last updated: 4 March 2025