FRS 001 — Sec. 009 — (1 unit) — CRN 53577 — W 4:10-5:00pm — 157 Young
Listening to Music With a Scientific Mind

Instructor: Petr Janata, Department of Psychology, College of Letter and Science

Description: The goal of this course is to foster analytical listening skills and introduce students to general concepts in psychology and neuroscience through the use of music. This quarter, we will tackle issues of categorization and expertise, as they pertain to classification of music into various genres. Examples of questions we will explore are, "What are the acoustic/musical features that define specific genres?" and "Are there universal features of music that give it emotional appeal, or is it very genre-specific?" Requisite scientific and musical terminology and concepts for thinking about music will be introduced throughout the quarter and supplemented by readings as necessary.

Format: Class will meet for one hour each week and will consist of student presentations and discussion. Over the course of the quarter, students will take turns selecting examples of musical genres that they consider themselves to be aficionados of. They will present the examples to the class, leading a discussion about the distinguishing features that make the pieces exemplars of the genre. Students will also write a short paper (5 pages) that elaborates on their class presentation. Grading: 40% paper, 30% class presentation, 30% class participation.

About the Instructor: Dr. Janata is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychology and the Center for Mind and Brain. He has a long-standing fascination with neuroethology (the neuroscience of species-typical behaviors), and accordingly he uses music and neuroscience tools to try to understand the functional organization of the human brain.