Deepening Musical Understanding through Form and Analysis

Deepening Musical Understanding through Form and Analysis:

 

This course is carefully designed for both performers and composers who are interested in delving deeper into the intricacies of musical elements and their interaction, a process that shapes what we understand as “form”. Based on the renowned work of theorist and analyst, Jan LaRue, this program will provide students with an enriched understanding of musical structure and composition.

 

What You Will Learn

For Performers: This course will instill a profound understanding of the pieces you’re studying, enhancing your aesthetic decisions as a musician. It will provide a more in-depth view of composers’ stylistic choices, improving your interpretation and performance.

For Composers: The course will structure your thought processes, fostering a higher level of interconnectedness between the elements that make up your music. You’ll gain a more detailed view of your pieces and acquire strategies to streamline your composition process.

Towards the end of the course, we introduce the Schenkerian method of analysis. This approach offers a unique perspective into the underlying structure of music, enhancing narrative crafting for composers and providing performers with nuanced insight into a work’s thematic progression. The Schenkerian method is more than just a technique; it’s a paradigm shift in understanding music, optimizing creativity and elevating performances.

 

Skills Acquired

1. Analyze the relationship between the technical details and aesthetics of any piece, regardless of the style.
2. Discover ways in which music theory can be relevant to enjoying, communicating, composing, and performing music.
3. Gain confidence in musical self-analysis to help you develop your own musical ideas and performance.

 

Course Materials

The course content is primarily based on Jan LaRue’s analytical approach detailed in his book “Guidelines to Style Analysis”. The Schenkerian method of analysis is explained through three books: “Structural Hearing”, “The Study of Voice Leading in Composition”, and “Free Composition”.

Join us as we embark on this journey, exploring the true sophistication of music’s inherent design, and empowering you to appreciate, create, and perform music with a deeper understanding and heightened proficiency. Deepening Musical Understanding through Form and Analysis.

 

Calendar of Lessons

Find out more about the syllabus of this course and properly understand the main units and topics.

This course has been designed in 24 lessons, scheduled on Sundays between May to December. Excluding bank holidays and Half-terms.

 

 

June 4th

June 11th

June 18th

June 25th

July 2nd

July 9th

July 16th

September 3rd

September 10th

September 17th

September 24th

October 1st

October 8th

October 15th

October 22nd

November 5th

November 12th

November 19th

November 26th

December 3rd

December 10th

December 17th

January 7th

January 14th