This seminar examines the place of the “human” in music discourse. While earlier scholarship assumed a definition of music as “humanly organized sound” (Blacking), recent global developments – from social fragmentation to ecological catastrophe – have put pressure on simple characterizations of both humanity and music. This seminar explores theorizations of the musical human from different disciplines and angles, including biosemiosis, anthropology, and Black critical theory. In addition, we consider the music making capacities of non-human species.
Spring 2020 Class Schedule
T, 10:00 AM - 12:50 PM