Revised postgraduate programme specification 2012/13
School of Oriental and African Studies
The following information forms the programme specification at the School of
Oriental and African Studies, University of London. It gives definitive
information relating to a programme of study and is written for a public
audience, particularly prospective and current students. It is also used for other
purposes such as initial programme approval, and is therefore produced at the
start of the programme development process. Once approved, it forms the baseline information for all statements relating to the programme and is updated as
approved amendments are made.
CORE INFORMATION
Programme title
Final award
Intermediate awards
Mode of attendance
Ethnomusicology
MMus
N/A
Full time, part time (2 yrs), part time (3
yrs)
N/A
N/A
Feb 2011
UCAS code
Professional body accreditation
Date specification created/updated
WHY CHOOSE THIS PROGRAMME?
Why study at SOAS?
SOAS is unique as the only higher
education institution in the UK
specialising in the study of Africa, Asia
and the Middle East. The School also has
the largest concentration of specialist
faculty concerned with the study of these
areas at any university in the world.
SOAS is consistently ranked among the
top higher education institutions in the
UK and the world and it also offers a
friendly, vibrant environment for students
in a diverse and close-knit community.
What is special about this programme?
This programme offers training in
ethnomusicology as well as in-depth
understanding of selected musical
traditions of Africa and Asia. Optional
courses allow students to pursue
additional interests as well. The
Department of Music has been highly
rated for teaching and research in all
recent assessment exercises, and is
regularly ranked amongst the top Music
departments in the UK in Good
University Guides. Music students have
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access to the large Main Library of the
School which holds numerous books,
journals and recordings relevant to the
study of ethnomusicology and world
music, as well as the nearby British
Library Sound Archive and other London
libraries and museums. The SOAS
Library holds copies of standard
reference works on music, such as the
current edition of the New Grove
Dictionary of Music and Musicians. The
Grove dictionary and the RILM database
can also be accessed on line from
computer terminals in the Library or
elsewhere on the SOAS network.
Listening facilities are provided in the
Library, and most CDs are available on
short loan. Among special items in the
Department’s collections are: field
recordings, films and slides; a large
working collection of musical
instruments from Asia and Africa;
extensive staff collections relating to
specific research interests
Who would it suit?
Candidates should normally have an
upper second class degree in music or a
related discipline, or significant
equivalent experience. The programme is
available over one calendar year fulltime, or two or three calendar years parttime. The programme may serve four
purposes: to provide training and
preparation for research degrees
appropriate to the “training year” of the
AHRC postgraduate scheme; to serve as a
“conversion year” to ethnomusicology,
for students with training mainly or
entirely in the Western tradition, or with
training in other appropriate disciplines;
to serve as a “stand alone” course for
students who wish to deepen their
knowledge of the field, but have no
expectation of direct future research or a
professional career in ethnomusicology;
to give students the basic tools to teach
ethnomusicology.
The MMus programme involves taking
three courses and writing a 10,000-word
dissertation. In addition to these formal
Programme structure
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elements, students are expected to attend
regular postgraduate and public seminars
and may also participate in performance
ensemble classes and other activities.
Students are assessed through unseen
examinations and aural examinations,
coursework and a dissertation.
Coursework may be in the form of
essays, radio programmes, audio or
audio-visual projects, or exercises in
transcription and analysis. The
proportions of these different types of
assessment will depend on course options
chosen.
Assessment summary
ENTRY REQUIREMENTS
Minimum good second class honours (or equivalent)
SOAS has general minimum entrance requirements for registration for a postgraduate
taught degree and these can be viewed at
http://www.soas.ac.uk/admissions/pg/howtoapply/
PROGRAMME AIMS
To introduce the aims and methods of Ethnomusicology as a discipline, and the music
of one or more major culture-areas of Asia and Africa in their cultural contexts. The
programme is designed to be either an end qualification in its own right or to prepare
the student for a research programme (MPhil or PhD).
PROGRAMME LEARNING OUTCOMES
A Knowledge & Understanding
1. How to assess data and evidence critically from audio, audio-visual, live
performances, transcriptions, notations, books, articles, manuscripts and digital
sources; how to address problems of conflicting sources and conflicting
interpretations, locate materials, use research sources (particularly research library
catalogues and sound archives) and other relevant sources.
2. To obtain a thorough grounding in the theoretical and thematic focus of
ethnomusicology and related disciplines so as to develop appropriate techniques for
music research.
3. To obtain a solid knowledge of the music of a specific culture or region in Asia or
Africa.
4. To acquire additional relevant knowledge and experience to enhance 2 and 3 above,
in, for example, language, culture, history, or performance practice, or in a second
specific culture or region in Asia or Africa.
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B Intellectual (thinking) Skills
1. Students should become precise and cautious in their assessment of evidence, and
to understand through practice what audio and audio-visual recordings, live
performance events, transcriptions, notations and written documents (including
internet resources) can and cannot tell us.
2. Students should question interpretations, however authoritative, and reassess
evidence for themselves.
3. Students should acquire sensitivity towards the perspectives of Asian and African
musicians and music scholars, and become aware of and think through the problems
involved in matching European academic frameworks with Asian and African
understandings. They should at all times be cognisant of ethical dimensions in their
work, maintaining best practice as defined both by UK universities and the relevant
international ethnomusicological bodies.
4. Students should develop intellectual understandings of music, and of the music of a
specific cultural or regional tradition, including understandings based on performance,
analysis, transcription, and fieldwork.
C Subject-based practical skills
The programme aims to help students with the following practical skills:
1. Communicate effectively in writing.
2. Retrieve, sift and select information from a variety of sources.
3. Present seminar papers.
4. Listen and discuss ideas introduced during seminars.
5. Practice research techniques in a variety of specialized research libraries and
institutes.
6. Develop, as appropriate, skills relevant to music, such as fieldwork skills, audio and
audio-visual recording skills, transcription and analysis skills, and skills in the
preparation of radio programmes.
D Transferable Skills
The programme will encourage students to:
1. Write good reviews, essays and dissertations.
2. Structure and communicate ideas effectively both orally and in writing.
3. Understand unconventional ideas.
4. Study a variety of written and digital materials, in libraries and research institutes
of a kind they will not have used as undergraduates.
5. Present (non-assessed) material orally.
6. Develop, as appropriate, skills relevant to music, such as performance skills,
fieldwork skills, audio and audio-visual recording skills, transcription and analysis
skills, and skills in the preparation of radio programmes.
PROGRAMME STRUCTURE AND REQUIREMENTS FOR GAINING AN
AWARD
Structure, duration and requirements for gaining an award
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SOAS has standard requirements relating to the structure and duration of taught
postgraduate programmes and for the award and classification of these programmes.
Details can be found at
http://www.soas.ac.uk/registry/degreeregulations/file60379.pdf
Programme structure diagram
Below is a structure diagram for this programme.
Level
Year of
study
Course code Course title
Credi Status
t
7
1
15PMUC004
45
7
Ethnomusicology in
Practice
Dissertation in Music
Notes
Core
1 or 2/3 if 15PMUC999
45
Core
part-time
1 or year 2 or 3 subject to approval 1 unit or 2 half units from the following list of Area courses
7
1 or 2/3 if 15PMUH016
Musical Traditions of
22.5
Optional
part-time
East Asia
7
1 or 2/3 if 15PMUH014
Pop and Politics in east
22.5
Optional
part-time
Asia
7
1 or 2/3 if 15PMUH017
Aspects of Music and
22.5
Optional
part-time
Religion in South East
Asia
7
1 or 2/3 if 15PMUH018
Popular and Fusion
22.5
Optional
part-time
Music in South East
Asia
7
1 or 2/3 if 15PMUC027
Indian Classical Music
45
Optional
part-time
7
1 or 2/3 if 15PMUC005
Music in South Asian
22.5
Optional
part-time
Culture (Masters)
7
1 or 2/3 if 15PMUH008
Central Asian Music
Optional
22.5
part-time
7
1 or 2/3 if 15 PMU H010
Popular Music and
Optional
22.5
part-time
Politics in Israel
7
1 or 2/3 if 15PMUH011
Klezmer Music: Roots
Optional
22.5
part-time
and Revival
7
1 or 2/3 if 15PMUC033
Music of the Near and
Optional
45
part-time
Middle East and North
Africa
7
1 or 2/3 if 15PMUC009
Atlantic Africa:
Optional
45
part-time
(P)Layers of Mediation
in African Popular
Music (PG)
7
1 or 2/3 if 15PMUC006
Music in Selected
Optional
45
part-time
Regions of Africa:
Contexts and Structures
7
1 or 2/3 if 15PMUH015
Music, Place and
Optional
22.5
part-time
Politics in Cuba
Either one full unit course or two half unit courses from the list below, including a
maximum of 1 course unit (45 credits) from a list of option at King’s College ,
London these options may change each year
7
1 or 2/3 if 15PMUH004
Analysing World Music: 22.5
Optional
part-time
7
1 or 2/3 if
part-time
15PMUH001
Transcription &
Analysis in
Ethnomusicology
Composition
5
22.5
Optional
7
7
7
7
7
7
1 or 2/3 if
part-time
1 or 2/3 if
part-time
1 or 2/3 if
part-time
1 or 2/3 if
part-time
1 or 2/3 if
part-time
15PMUH009
1 or 2/3 if
part-time
15PANH050
15PMUC002
15PMUH003
15PANH009
15PANH010
Gender and Music
(MMus)
Performance
22.5
Optional
45
Optional
The Music Business
(Masters)
African and Asian
Cultures in Britain
African and Asian
Diasporas in the Modern
World
Media Production Skills
22.5
Optional
22.5
Optional
22.5
Optional
22.5
Optional
Options of courses taught at King’s College. NB special assessment rules apply for
SOAS students to bring the credit rating up to 22.5 – please check with course tutors
at King’s for requirements.
7
1 or 2/3 if 7AAMM007
Issues in Biography and 22.5
Optional
7
7
7
7
7
7
7
part-time
1 or 2/3 if
part-time
1 or 2/3 if
part-time
1 or 2/3 if
part-time
1 or 2/3 if
part-time
1 or 2/3 if
part-time
1 or 2/3 if
part-time
1 or 2/3 if
part-time
7AAMM008
7AAMM009
7AAMM010
7AAMM013
7AAMM034
7AAMM035
7AAMM056
Criticism
Theories of Modernism
and the Avant-Garde
Issues in Historiography
and Criticism
Performance, Gesture
and Meaning
21st-Century Bach
22.5
Optional
22.5
Optional
22.5
Optional
22.5
Optional
Post-tonal Music and
Composition Theory
Advanced Opera Study
22.5
Optional
22.5
Optional
Advanced Studies in
Musical Analysis &
Criticism: Beethoven's
Late Works
22.5
Optional
The availability of optional/elective courses may vary in a given academic session due
to factors such as staff absence and student numbers. For an up to date list of
courses running in a given academic session please refer to the degree structures as
listed on the SOAS website for the degree programmes taught by each Department.
TEACHING, LEARNING AND ASSESSMENT
Teaching/Learning Methods & Strategies (with reference to learning outcomes
above)
A Knowledge & Understanding
Acquisition of 1 through seminars, lectures, and tutorials. Students are required to
attend all classes, to study extensively on their own and to prepare non-assessed and
assessed work regularly. Students are expected to contribute actively to classes.
Acquisition of 2 through attending the core course (Ethnomusicology in Practice),
coupled to public and research seminars, workshops and concerts, through guided and
independent reading, and in the preparation of coursework including reviews, review
essays, essays on theoretical topics, and fieldwork projects. Students may train and
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complete coursework in sound engineering, radio programme development and
broadcast, and transcription and analysis. Acquisition of 3 through attending one of
six regional and culture-specific courses (Indian Classical Music/Music in the
Cultures of South Asia, Popular Music and Politics in Israel, Klezmer music: roots
and revival, Music of East Asia, Music of Southeast Asia, Music of Africa: Contexts
and Structures, Music of the Middle East), coupled to tutorials, through guided and
independent reading, and in the preparation of coursework. Students are encouraged
to take part in performance courses and to attend workshops and concerts.
Acquisition of 4 through a set of optional courses, the choice being approved in
advance by the course convenor to ensure an appropriate relation between 3 and 4. A
number of options in performance training are always available, and the course allows
a student to study performance from specialists working outside SOAS. Assessment:
Through unseen examinations and aural examinations, coursework and a dissertation.
Coursework may be in the form of essays, radio programmes, audio or audio-visual
projects, or exercises in transcription and analysis.
B Intellectual (thinking) Skills
Acquisition of 1 and 2 is fostered in all courses offered as part of the degree
programme, in that all courses introduce (a) information that will need to be assessed
critically and (b) demonstrate how conflicting interpretations arise from the same
information. Acquisition of 3 is fostered through (a) the examination of literature and
recordings produced by musicians, scholars and music producers in Europe and
America as well as in Asia and Africa and (b) through contact at SOAS and beyond
with performers of Asian and African music. The learning experience is enhanced
through tutorial discussions within the core course, particularly because of the wide
variety of backgrounds and wide variety of experience that the students have, and
because of the extra-curricular workshop and performance events that are arranged by
the Department of Music and in collaboration with the AHRC Research Centre for
Cross-Cultural Music and Dance Performance. Acquisition 4 is fostered by the
combination of theoretical and thematic coverage in the core course and the content of
the regional or culture-specific music course chosen by the student. Assessment:
Through unseen examinations and aural examinations, coursework and a dissertation.
Coursework may be in the form of essays, radio programmes, audio or audio-visual
projects, or exercises in transcription and analysis.
C Practical Skills
Acquisition of 1 through the writing of review essays, long essays and dissertations.
Acquisition of 2 through library research, class presentations, use of music archives
(including the National Sound Archive) and internet resources. Acquisition of 3
through regular seminar presentations. Acquisition of 4 through discussion.
Acquisition of 5 through the setting of clear deadlines for the submission of written
work. Acquisition of 6 through classes on fieldwork, transcription and analysis, and
the availability of training in audio and audio-visual recording, coupled to elective
coursework in these areas. Assessment: Through unseen examinations and aural
examinations, coursework and a dissertation. Coursework may be in the form of
essays, radio programmes, audio or audio-visual projects, or exercises in transcription
and analysis.
D Transferable Skills
Acquisition of 1 through long essays, course work and a dissertation. Acquisition of
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2, 3 and 5 through class and seminar presentations, discussions and essays.
Acquisition of 4 through access to the SOAS Library and the British Library Sound
Archive, and through the provision of detailed reading lists, including references to
internet materials. Acquisition of 6 through classes on fieldwork, transcription and
analysis, training in audio and audio-visual recording, and performance courses,
coupled to elective coursework in these areas. Assessment: Through unseen
examinations and aural examinations, coursework and a dissertation. Coursework
may be in the form of essays, radio programmes, audio or audio-visual projects, or
exercises in transcription and analysis.
REFERENCE POINTS
The following reference points were used in designing the programme:
1. School learning and teaching strategy
2. Staff research
3. QAA framework for higher education qualifications
4. Music subject benchmark (BA only)
5. Discussions with musicians and relevant music industry professionals
6. Feedback from students collected annually.
QUALITY ASSURANCE AND ENHANCEMENT
SOAS has internal procedures to assure the quality of provision to be offered to
students and to enhance the quality in the light of experience following delivery,
taking into account the input of external experts and students.
The procedures are set out in the School’s Quality Assurance Handbook and can be
viewed at http://www.soas.ac.uk/add/qualityassurance/quality-assurance-handbook/.
SOAS is also subject to periodic external review from bodies such as the Quality
Assurance Agency for Higher Education and relevant professional and statutory
regulatory bodies.
The procedures described in the Quality Assurance Handbook are in place to provide
a high quality student experience for those choosing to study at SOAS, and student
input and evaluation of their experiences is greatly valued. Students make an input to
the ongoing development of their programmes, and the environment in which they
operate, in a number of ways, including: formal student evaluation as part of the
annual programme review; student representation on School committees at various
levels (through the Students’ Union) where many relevant issues are discussed.
FURTHER INFORMATION
SOAS Vision and Strategy Statement;
Undergraduate and Postgraduate Handbooks;
Quality Assurance Handbook;
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Separate regs link;
UCAS website;
QAA website.
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