MUTH 256 - Theory and Analysis of Post-2000 Pop Music

FC CNDP

4 credits
What exactly is a chorus and how is it different from a drop? What makes something “sound like 2011”? How do we describe, categorize, explain, and interpret recent pop music? In this course, we will survey theories of pitch (including melody and harmony), form, rhythm, text, and timbre in pop music released since 2000. Students will engage with peer-reviewed and public-facing music theory scholarship, analyze songs using prose and diagrams, and write brief stylistic model compositions.

Prerequisites: MUTH 232 Music Theory II.