About the Class

 Course Description and Objectives: MU268: Music of Latin America

Instructor: Peter Janson
UMB Performing Arts website: http://www.umb.edu/academics/cla/dept/performing_arts/
Instructor's Performance Website: http://www.peterjanson.com, or follow the links from umb.edu to academics to liberal arts to performing arts to performing arts website.


Course Description:
This course is an introductory-level online course designed for the general student. It takes both historical and regional approaches to the wide range of local, national, and international styles of music to be found in Latin America.

Course subject matter is generally limited to music that has surfaced and developed in Latin America and not as it has developed in the continental United States. This course does not cover pop music at all, it deals with origins (aboriginal and earliest settlers), traditional folk styles, and art music styles (sometimes called classical music) that are the foundations of Latin American music. Readings focus primarily on the mandatory textbook (with audio CDs), Oxford Music On-line (accessed through the UMass Boston Healey Library) and will be supplemented by various links as well as the Latin American audio selections available from the Naxos catalog and elsewhere.


Course Objectives:
With regular attendence (check-in), proper preparation, and a certain degree of openmindedness, it is hoped that students will begin to develop the following knowledges, skills, and understandings by the time they complete the course:

Knowledges:
1. Knowledge of the various music styles that are inherently found in Latin America.
2. Knowledge of the basic forms and genres of the traditional music and art music of Latin America.
3. Knowledge of major Latin American composers and their works.

Skills:
1. Ability to analyze musical works through the development of research and listening skills.
2. Ability to identify styles and specific works through the development of listening skills.
3. Ability to put one's impressions into writing.
4. Ability to obtain pertinent information from the required textbook and CDs, and through pursuit of information and music through connecting links and online searches.

Understandings:
1. Achievement of an understanding of the continuum of musical thought and development as it exists in Latin America.
2. Understanding of the diversity of thought regarding musical composition and performance.

This is an actual portion of the syllabus provided by instructor Peter Janson, if you are interesting on taking this class, please ask your adviser how you can sing up for the class.