University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee
Peck School of the Arts - Department of Music
Music 100 Lec 001: Introduction to Classical Music, 3 cr, GER-A
Fall 2015
Dr. Timothy Noonan
Lecture: meets TR 9:30-10:45 a.m. in MUS 175, from September 3 to December 10
Office hour: W 10:00-11:00 a.m.
Office: MUS 131, phone 229-2286
E-mail: tpnoonan@uwm.edu; please put Music 100 in the subject line. Please direct e-mail regarding
participation to Treshani Perera at <tperera@uwm.edu>, and all other correspondence to me.
Prerequisites: none. This course is not open to music majors.
Textbook: Kristine Forney, Andrew Dell’Antonio, and Joseph Machlis, The Enjoyment of Music, 12th edition,
shorter version (New York: W. W. Norton, 2015; ISBN 978-0-393-93638-4). The UWM Bookstore quotes
the text at $118.40.
Materials Needed: You do not need to carry your textbook to class. You do need a pen and notebook, or
laptop, for taking notes. Please make sure all phones and other electronic devices are silent and put away
for the duration of each class.
Course Description: A guide to the enjoyment and understanding of classical music, including listening
experiences in the various styles and forms of music, through assigned reading, recorded music, and
participation at concerts.
Course Learning Outcomes:
1. To develop an understanding of the traditions and customs of classical music concerts and apply them
to a performance critique.
2. To gain a solid familiarity with the periods of music history, their dates, principal composers, and
representative genres.
3. To know the name, historical era, and characteristic works and styles of the most important
classical composers.
4. To become familiar with the main genres of classical music, be able to contrast the characteristics of
works from these periods, and be able to recognize them when listening.
5. To know the basic history and structures of opera.
6. To gain an understanding of contemporary classical music styles; to perceive classical music and opera
as living traditions.
UW System Shared Learning Goals:
1. Knowledge of Human Cultures including breadth of knowledge and the ability to thin beyond one’s
discipline, major, or area of concentration. This knowledge can be gained through the study of the
arts and humanities.
3. Effective Communication Skills including listening, speaking, reading, writing, and information literacy.
Arts GER (A) Definition: (a).1. “A branch of learning focusing on the conscious use of skill and creative
imagination in the production of artistic objects or performances that stress values that stand
outside conventional ideas of utility”
Criterion: (b). 1. demonstrate comprehension of historical, philosophical, theoretical, or
aesthetic perspectives commonly used in the understanding of a specific art;
Criterion: (b). 3. compare and contrast the expressive and formal features of different artistic
media and/or cultural traditions; this may be accomplished through an analytic study or as part
of an original artistic work.
Participation: We will record participation at every class meeting using a sign-in sheet. Be sure you sign in
every time you attend. I recommend that you date your notes; this is often helpful for verifying participation
later on. Participation is mandatory and worth 10% of the final grade. The instructor on an individual basis
excuses absences. Excused absences are granted for illness, family emergency, or personal exigencies.
Each unexcused absence will lower your grade by 5 percentage points. Please direct e-mail regarding
participation to Treshani Perera at <tperera@uwm.edu>.
Grading: Exams and quizzes are graded on a percent basis, with each question given equal weight. Concert
reviews are graded not on your opinions, but on the quality of your writing and the degree to which you
carried out the assignment as given.
Your final grade will be calculated thus:
mid-term exam
average of three quizzes
average of two concert reviews
final exam
participation/discussion
20%
20%
20%
30%
10%
Grading Scale:
A 93-100
B- 80-82
D+ 67-69
A- 90-92
C+ 77-79
D 63-66
B+ 87-89
C 73-76
D- 60-62
B 83-86
C- 70-72
F
0-59
Fractions between, e.g. 82.4, are rounded to the closest integer.
Time Commitment: I anticipate the student should commit three hours weekly for the lectures and discussion
and approximately six hours each week in reading, listening, outside assignments, and attending outside
concerts. This, of course, is an estimate and will vary from week to week.
University Policies:
If you will need accommodations in order to meet any of the requirements of this course, please see the
instructor as soon as possible. University Policies governing the conduct of this and other UWM courses can be
found at:
Protecting your hearing
http://www4.uwm.edu/psoa/music/upload/NASM_PAMAStudent-Hearing-Protection_Guide.pdf
Students with disabilities
http://www4.uwm.edu/sac/SACltr.pdf
Religious observances
http://www4.uwm.edu/secu/docs/other/S1.5.htm
Students called to active military duty
http://www4.uwm.edu/current_students/military.cfm
Incompletes
http://www4.uwm.edu/secu/docs/other/S31.pdf
Discriminatory conduct
http://www4.uwm.edu/secu/docs/other/S47.pdf
Academic misconduct
http://www4.uwm.edu/acad_aff/policy/academicmisconduct.cfm
Complaint procedures
http://www4.uwm.edu/secu/docs/other/S49.7.htm
Grade appeal procedures
http://www4.uwm.edu/secu/docs/other/S28.htm
Firearms and dangerous weapons
http://www4.uwm.edu/secu/docs/other/S24.5.pdf
Final examination policy
http://www4.uwm.edu/secu/docs/other/S22.htm
Weather - Class cancellations
see UWM Home Page or call 414 229-4444
Reading: The sections of the Machlis/Forney textbook that cover each week’s lecture topic(s) are listed in the
schedule below. You should try to read these portions of the book before the lecture, especially if you have
little prior familiarity with the material: your learning experience will be more effective if you have a
knowledge base upon which to build.
Listening: This course is about listening to music. You must listen to the assigned recordings until you know
them well. It will be best to have heard the music once or twice before we discuss it in class, and then to
listen to it again afterward, keeping in mind the points we made about it. You will need to be able to
distinguish and identify specific pieces of music on the exams and quizzes.
Exams and quizzes: We will have two exams: one at mid-term and one during final exam week. There will
also be three quizzes, one in the first half and two in the second half of the course. Exams and quizzes will
test both recall of factual information and your knowledge of recorded excerpts. If you miss a quiz or the
mid-term, you must take responsibility for arranging a make-up time within two class days (i.e., one week)
of the test date; if you do not, you will get a zero.
Discussion: Different people react to music differently, and we will consider music of a wide variety of styles.
You are always encouraged to voice your opinions in class when you have a reaction, positive or negative,
to the music we study. Always try to be aware of WHY you like or dislike a piece of music; such matters
are worth thinking about.
Written assignments: During the course you will be required to attend two classical concerts and write reviews
of them. These written reviews will satisfy your GER Assessment. Please turn them in to me as soon as
you finish them; the final due date is Tuesday, November 17, and no reviews will be accepted after that
date. Please hand in your ticket stub and the printed program with your review, if possible. See me if you
are unsure whether a particular concert is appropriate for this assignment.
Please follow these guidelines in preparing your reviews:
1. No handwritten reviews, and no e-mail reviews. One side of the paper, double-spaced.
2. 1-2 pages long.
3. Attend the entire concert. If you cannot stay for the whole performance, select a different one. For
purposes of your reviews, you are expected to hear and comment on an entire concert. Most concerts
will be over less than two hours after the start time, and many are considerably shorter.
4. Proofread, spell check, etc.; poor writing will lower your grade.
GER Assessment elements reviewed:
1. All identifying information regarding the pieces included in the concert.
Such as: Context of the concert presentation - where, when, who played or sang, works
performed, etc.
2. Identify the music you heard by composer and title and speak to details presented in the music
to include terms, concepts, and historical context as discussed in class.
3. Discuss the presentation of the music to include performance details such as arrangement of the
performers, ensemble makeup, presence of conductor or not, or the overall impact of the
performance; did they play (or sing) well or badly, did they use distracting mannerisms, did
they handle themselves well on stage, etc.
4. Which piece did you like the most, and the least, and why? Identify contrasting characteristics
in the work or performance that may have contributed or detracted from your enjoyment.
What, if anything, did this music mean to you and tell your opinion of it.
If there are many different works on the program, discuss a few that struck you the
most, making it clear to me that you attended the whole concert.
Assessment Rubric:
4 = all elements are thoroughly understood, discussed and supported for multiple pieces.
3 = elements are discussed and supported for understanding for one major work.
2 = some elements discussed with limited supporting details
1 = few elements discussed showing limited understanding of expected content
Extra Credit: There is no extra credit in this class; no substitutions for the course requirements described in this
syllabus will be allowed.
Semester Schedule
Week 1: September 3
topic: course introduction
Machlis: pp. 4-19, 26-38
Week 2: September 8, 10
topics: attending classical concerts; elements of music I
Machlis: pp. 4-7; 8-53
Week 3: September 15, 17
topics: elements of music II; Music in the Middle Ages
Machlis: pp. 60-78
Listening:
Hildegard of Bingen, Alleluia, O virga mediatrix (Gregorian chant, p. 67)
Perotin?, Gaude Maria virgo (organum, p. 72)
Machaut, Ma fin est mon commencement (chanson, p. 77)
Explanation of the listening list:
“Hildegard of Bingen, Alleluia, O virga mediatrix (Gregorian chant, p. 67)”
O virga mediatrix is the title of the composition, an Alleluia written by Hildegard of Bingen; it
is an example of Gregorian chant. The Listening Guide for this piece in our textbook is at p. 67.
Week 4: September 22, 24
topic: music in the Renaissance
Machlis: pp. 79-94
Listening:
Josquin, Ave Maria . . . virgo serena (motet, p. 88)
Palestrina, Pope Marcellus Mass: Gloria, p. 93
Arcadelt, Il bianco e dolce cigno (madrigal, p. 81)
Farmer, Fair Phyllis (madrigal, p. 84)
Week 5: September 29, October 1
First Quiz Thursday
topic: Baroque music I
Machlis: pp. 102-107, 113-122
Listening:
Purcell, excerpts from Dido and Aeneas (opera, p. 116)
J. S. Bach, Cantata no. 140, BWV 140, movements 1 and 4, p. 120
Week 6: October 6, 8
topic: Baroque music II
Machlis: pp. 123-127, 134-146
Listening:
Handel, Messiah, nos. 18 and 44 (oratorio, p. 128)
Handel, Water Music, Suite in D, Alla hornpipe, 6. 137
Vivaldi, “Spring” from The Four Seasons, first movement (violin concerto, p. 141)
J. S. Bach, Contrapunctus I from The Art of Fugue, BWV 1080, p. 1446
Week 7: October 13, 15
Mid-Term Exam Thursday
topic: the forms and genres of the Classical period
Machlis: pp. 150-158, 166-170
Listening: none
Week 8: October 20, 22
topics: Haydn, Mozart
Machlis: pp. 158-165, 173-175
Listening:
Haydn, String Quartet in C major, op. 76 no. 3 (“Emperor”), second movement, p. 160
Haydn, Symphony no. 100 in G major (“Military”), second movement, p. 164
Mozart, Eine kleine Nachtmusik, K. 525, first and third movements (serenade, p. 170)
Mozart, Piano Concerto in G major, K. 453, first movement, p. 174
Week 9: October 27, 29
topics: Mozart opera, Beethoven
Machlis: pp. 187-196, 176-186
Listening:
Mozart, Don Giovanni, K. 527, excerpts (opera, p. 190)
Mozart, “Dies irae” from Requiem, K. 626, p. 195
Beethoven, Piano Sonata in C-sharp minor, op. 27 no. 2 (“Moonlight”), first movement,
p. 178
Beethoven, Symphony no. 5 in C minor, op. 67, p. 183
Week 10: November 3, 5
Second Quiz Thursday
topics: the Romantic era, Schubert, Mendelssohn, Robert Schumann, Clara Schumann, American music
Machlis: pp. 200-216
Listening:
Schubert, Erlkönig (Lied, p. 209)
Robert Schumann, “Im wunderschönen Monat Mai” from Dichterliebe (Lied, p. 212)
Foster, Jeanie with the Light Brown Hair (parlor song, p. 216)
Week 11: November 10, 12
topics: Chopin, Liszt, Berlioz, Grieg, Dvořák, Brahms
Machlis: pp. 217-221, 231-246
Listening:
Chopin, Mazurka in B-flat minor, op. 24 no. 4, p. 220
Berlioz, Symphonie fantastique, fourth movement, p. 235
Grieg, Peer Gynt Suite no. 1, Op. 46, excerpts, p. 241
Brahms, Symphony no. 3 in F major, op. 90, third movement, p. 245
Week 12: November 17, 19
Reviews due Tuesday
topics: Verdi, Wagner, Puccini, Tchaikovsky
Machlis: pp. 247-253, 256-261, 266-270, 262-264
Listening:
Verdi, excerpts from Rigoletto (opera, p. 250)
Wagner, Die Walküre, act III excerpts (opera, p. 259)
Puccini, “Un bel di” from Madame Butterfly (opera, p. 269)
Week 13: November 24
topics: classical music since 1900, Debussy, Mahler, Schoenberg
Machlis: pp. 276-281, 291-303
Listening:
Debussy, Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun (symphonic poem, p. 280)
Schoenberg, “Der Mondfleck” from Pierrot Lunaire (song cycle, p. 302)
Week 14: December 1, 3
Third Quiz Thursday
topics: Stravinsky, Berg, Copland, Bartók
Machlis: pp. 304-309, 315-320, 340-346, 354-357
Listening:
Stravinsky, Le sacre du printemps, excerpts (ballet, p. 307)
Berg, Wozzeck, act III, scene iv (opera, p. 318)
Copland, excerpts from Appalachian Spring (ballet, p. 345)
Bartók, Concerto for Orchestra, fourth movement, p. 357
Week 15: December 8, 10
topics: Cage, Reich
Machlis: pp. 368-371, 386-387, 414-418
Listening:
Cage, Sonata V from Sonatas and Interludes for Prepared Piano, p. 370
Reich, Electric Counterpoint, p. 387
Adams, Doctor Atomic, excerpts (opera, p. 417)
Final Exam: Monday, December 21, from 10:00 a.m. until noon, in our regular room. Please do not
request an alternate exam time.