MUS 606 – Historiography of Music
General histories of music including the philosophies and theories of music history from
classical antiquity to the present; the religious, naturalist and ethnical theories; the
comparative, organic and evolution theories; the developmental and naturalist theories; the
philosophies of origin, progress, change and continuity in music history; musical historicity
and historiographers especially in traditional societies: sources of and evaluation.
MUS 607 – Musical Instruments of Africa
A research course dealing with the study and discovery of the various systems of
classification of musical instruments of indigenous traditional societies of Africa and the
relationship of such systems to modern systems of taxonomy. An examination of the
structure, form and distribution of musical instruments in Africa, traditional ethnic
classification, modern systems of classification, basis of classification, geographical
distribution of musical instruments; local and generic names of musical structure, mode and
form of musical instruments and of each taxonometric group.
MUS 608 – Theory and Construction of Musical Instruments
A study of relevant theories and historical back-ground leading to inventions and
constructions of specific musical instruments; design, construction strategies and logistics of
production of musical instruments. Applied acoustics in sound production. Determinant
factors like the differential values between the Terzian of Pythagoras, Synthetic Komma for
temperament setting (Drum, Organ, Xylophone, etc), imaginative figuration, artistic and
architectural rendition and subsequent interpretation into three-dimensional form.
MUS 609 – Seminar in Music I
Seminar in Music as a course examines salient elements in various areas of specialization
with the following options:
(African Music)
Research Seminar concerned with defining and identifying norms that are germane to or are
in the domains of African music studies: Development of valid scientific mechanisms for
evaluating such studies; the domains of African musical studies, the conceptual and the
philosophical basis of African studies, the historical basis of African musical studies from
1500 AD to present. Analytical tools used in the study o African music; the historical,
ethnological, anthropological, sociological and geographical approach to the study of African
music, the field and laboratory approach, collecting, processing and evaluating data;
transcription and notation methods used in the graphic description of African music,
photographic and phonographic methods.
(Music Composition)
Problem of conceptualizing and realizing a literary music that is idiomatically African, with
regards to style. Discussion on pre-compositional consideration: style, medium, motives,
length, mood and character, tempo; range tessitura, climax, extra-musical factors, multi-
movement considerations, intended audience, relationship of composition to theory. Problems
of notation and instrumentation. Historical charts and commentaries, 20th –century music
(i.e. impressionist, atonal/serial, national/traditional etc). Structure form, transposing
instruments, typical ensembles, Orchestral evolution, Band instrumentation, some musical
performance terms (European and African).
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