Music Courses

Students will receive private (one-to-one) instrumental or voice lessons and participate in studio performance opportunities. Private lessons are offered to support the RIT ensembles program, therefore only students who are active participants in an approved RIT ensemble will be eligible for lessons.

Class music instruction provides students with training in basic instrumental or vocal technique and musical notation in a class setting. This course is designed to develop skills both individually and in small groups. Students will have the opportunity to explore repertoire from different cultures and historical periods as they learn the basics of note reading, instrumental and performance technique. Students need no prior experience playing the instrument in order to enroll in this course.

An introduction to music as a fine art. Students develop skills in listening, evaluation and analysis through an examination of music's forms, constituent elements, and its cultural, stylistic and historical development.

This course is designed for the student who has basic musical literacy (ability to read music notation). In addition to the writing of melody, two-part counterpoint and four-part harmony, some attention will be given to the analysis of form and style. Because it is important that theoretical understanding be coordinated with musical application, time will be devoted to the development of musicianship. Consideration will be given to individual skills and abilities, hopefully allowing for the maximum development of each student. (Elementary music reading ability)

Composing for Media will guide the student through the process of creating original music to accompany a visual medium. The course begins by focusing on the aesthetics, terminology, procedures, and technical aspects of film scoring. As the course progresses, the skills acquired will progress towards a class project of scoring a short film or animation. By using a broad range of techniques including click tracks, spotting, scoring under dialogue, free timing, and the creative use of overlap cues, students will learn how to develop a dramatic concept for a score and how to synchronize it seamlessly to visual events. This course is applicable to musicians interested in scoring music to visual media as well as students with skills in the areas of audio engineering, film and animation and video gaming. No previous film scoring experience is required. Fundamental knowledge and a background in music will be introduced in the class topics. In addition to a good ear for music, a functional ability with MIDI sequencing, via DAW—a proficiency in the use of sample libraries and audio plug-ins and basic audio mixing—is expected. Entrance to the class requires instructor permission.

This course explores the composition, arrangement, mixing, and mastering of modern electronic music. Topics include aesthetics of formal song structure and melodic and harmonic construction techniques, synthesis and sound design, using a digital audio workstation (DAW) to program musical elements using audio or MIDI, sound processing using effects such as equalization and compression, and introductory mastering techniques.

An audio professional working in the gaming industry is required to possess not only musical and audio talent, but also knowledge and experience with typical audio workflow. Composing for Video Games and Interactive Media prepares the student for a career in the industry by covering the many facets of sound production and engineering that are particular to game music and other forms of interactive media.

This course explores the creation, performance, and reception of music within the context of Western cultural, religious, political and artistic ideals, and related non-Western traditions, from Greek antiquity to ca. 1750. Topics of exploration include the development of musical notation, musical instrument technology, the interrelationships of music theorists, composers, performers, patrons, and audiences, music as a communicative and expressive art, aesthetics, and musical analysis and criticism.

This course explores the creation, performance, and reception of music within the context of Western cultural, religious, political and artistic ideals, and related non-Western and popular traditions, from ca. 1750 to ca. 1920. Topics of exploration include musical instrument technology, the interrelationships of music theorists, composers, performers, patrons, and audiences, nationalism, the influence of folk and non-Western music traditions on Western art music, popular music traditions, music as a communicative and expressive art, philosophy and aesthetics of the Enlightenment and 19th century, and musical analysis and criticism.

Music & Global Cultures is an exploration of music from around the world drawing from the theoretical and methodological discipline of ethnomusicology. This field has been defined as the study of “people making music” (Titon) or of music “as” culture. Ethnomusicologists seek an understanding of the connections between musical expression and other elements of society. Music can reflect a community’s experience as well as becoming a catalyst for political and social change. In this course you will explore the ways different musics are created, performed, used and passed on to future generations. In class we will hone our listening skills, analyze musical and rhythmic structure, read ethnographic accounts of musical performances, as well as discuss and write about music.

This course examines the history and elements of popular and rock music in the United States from the end of the 19th century to current times. Emphasis will be placed on the music that was written and performed after WWII. Students will be introduced to various styles of this genre as well as an introduction to those musical elements necessary to define a rudimentary analysis of the music. Among the composers and performers to be studied are early Minstrel performers, Louis Armstrong, Scott Joplin, George Gershwin, Blues musicians, Benny Goodman, Frank Sinatra, R and B musicians, country and western, Elvis Presley, Motown, Ray Charles, folk, Jimi Hendrix, disco, punk, metal, grunge, and pop.

A historical and cultural survey of collaboration between the arts of music and theatre, focusing on a selection of significant creative products that combine music and drama. Possible works studied include those by Shakespeare, Monteverdi, Mozart-Daponte, John Gay, Beethoven-Goethe, Wagner, Puccini, Brecht-Weill, and Bernstein, spanning the genres of Renaissance tragedy and comedy, opera seria, opera buffa, ballad opera, incidental music, romantic drama, Italian opera, music-drama, epic theatre, cabaret, vaudeville, and musical comedy.

The RIT Singers is an experiential-learning course in which students learn music theory and historical context by learning pieces from the 16th century to the present and performing them at three major concerts a year. Participation in learning and performing such music gives students an experiential appreciation and understanding of the role of music in modern society. In addition, students from the RIT Singers have opportunities to sing in a variety of small vocal ensembles. Auditions will be held to assess proper placement. Contact instructor for more information.

This course is a survey of the development of the American Musical Theater, highlighting representative works, composers, librettists and performers of both the cultivated and vernacular traditions. It is further designed as an appreciation course, fostering the development of a greater appreciation for all types of stage music and the ability to better evaluate the quality of a work, the performance, and the performers.

Russia’s history contains a complex blend of indigenous artistic expression and artistic influences from beyond its borders. Given its large land mass and geographical position spanning Europe and Asia, Russian monarchs struggled with understanding who the Russian people were, but also how to best navigate the cultural and economic commonalities and differences among their neighbors, with whom they desired relationships. This course explores the many ways music in Russia reflected the cultural influences apropos to its complex history and national identity in the world. The focus will be on the political, social, and artistic aspects of Russian music nationalism emerging in the 19th century and continuing into the 20th-century Soviet Era, but will include a review of the cultural and historical background from the 9th through the 18th centuries which led to Russia’s own, unique musical and artistic language. This is a writing-intensive seminar-format course, encouraging students to develop their research and writing skills, and their abilities to analyze, argue and persuade within historic, cultural, artistic, and aesthetic fields.

Survey of the cultivated traditions of music in the 20th and 21st centuries, particularly in the U.S., taking into account its political, social, and historical frameworks.

This course will survey the development of American jazz music, highlighting representative composers and performers and significant works. Particular attention will be drawn to the multi-racial influences on the creation of jazz music and its relationship to American culture as a whole.

This course is a survey of African American music through an examination of the major forms of music-making and dance developed among African Americans in the United States from the early 17th century to the present. A brief introduction to West African cultural characteristics, especially music and dance, as well as discussions of the African diaspora in the New World, will serve as background for this survey.

This course is designed to explore the variety of ways music has served as commentary on and/or symbolic representation of social circumstances and events in America and throughout the world, historically and in the present. Students will research, listen to, analyze, and discuss music representing a variety of genres, styles, and cultures, ranging from various forms of European and American folk, popular, and concert music to selected non-western music. Topics will include race, gender, sexuality, economics, class, war, and politics, among others.

This course will survey the development of the American popular song and its composers and performers, taking into account the political, social, and historical perspectives reflected in this commercial part of our vernacular music tradition.

The development of music in the Western art tradition had a mutually influential relationship with the changes in construction and manufacturing of musical instruments. Recent research into the various and special sounds of instruments from different historical periods has been pivotal in new approaches to performance over the past quarter century (Historically Informed Performance). This course explores the historical development of musical instruments commonly used in performing Western art music, including various technologies influencing manufacturing techniques and construction, performing techniques, historical audience expectations of musical sound, and comparative performance practices.

The RIT Singers is an experiential-learning course in which students learn music theory and historical context by learning pieces from the 16th century to the present and performing them at three major concerts a year. Participation in learning and performing such music gives students an experiential appreciation and understanding of the role of music in modern society. In addition, students from the RIT Singers have opportunities to sing in a variety of small vocal ensembles. Auditions will be held to assess proper placement. Contact instructor for more information.

The RIT Orchestra performs three major concerts a year of standard orchestral repertoire from the 16th century to the present. In addition, students from the RIT Orchestra have the opportunity to play in a variety of chamber music ensembles. Auditions will be held to assess proper placement. Contact instructor for more information.

The RIT Concert Band is an experiential-learning course in which students learn music theory and historical context by learning several works from the Concert Band literature including standard wind band literature, contemporary compositions, marches, and orchestral transcriptions. The ensemble prepares to perform three major concerts a year and participates in departmental performances. Participation in learning and performing such music gives students an experiential appreciation and understanding of the role of music in modern society. Auditions will be held to assess proper placement. Contact instructor for more information.

The RIT West African Percussion Ensemble is a hands-on course, in which students explore the dynamic percussive traditions of Guinea. The ensemble combines the djembe hand drum with a trio of drums played with sticks, known as dunun, sangban, and kenkeni. The multi-part relationships established by this trio of drums provide a rhythmic foundation for the ensemble, enabling djembe players to develop technique in executing both accompaniment and solo parts. Enrollment is open to all interested students, faculty, and staff, regardless of musical proficiency. Developing cooperation and teamwork is a necessary outcome of participation in this ensemble.

Preparing for and performing concerts of jazz repertoire offers students the opportunity to broaden their knowledge of and appreciation for music, and its role in society, through the careful analysis of musical forms and ideas, and the comparison of exemplary works from a variety of times, places and social/cultural necessities. The RIT Jazz Ensemble performs three major concerts a year of standard repertoire from the early 20th century to the present. Students from the RIT Jazz Ensemble also have the opportunity to play in a variety of informal performances both on and off campus. Auditions will be held to assess proper placement. Contact instructor for more information.

Preparing for and performing concerts of orchestral repertoire offers students the opportunity to broaden their knowledge of and appreciation for music, and its role in society, through the careful analysis of musical forms and ideas, and the comparison of exemplary works from a variety of times, places and social/cultural necessities. The RIT Chamber Orchestra is a select group of advanced players It performs concerts and engages in other activities, in particular the exploration of performing practices and stylistic considerations apropos to 17th, 18th, and 20th century music. In particular, the RIT Chamber Orchestra revives works from the 18th and early 19th centuries that have not been performed in modern times. Participation is by invitation of the music director, or by audition. Contact instructor for more information.

This course is designed for beginning musicians who wish to study the fundamentals of music and performance through the performance and practice of steel pan drums which originate from Trinidad and Tobago. The instructor/band director will instruct students using both western music and Caribbean musical pedagogies. Students will study the cultural, social, and political contexts in which this Caribbean music tradition is played. This will include an introduction to the history and development of the instrument from its roots in Africa to its construction out of discarded oil barrels, to its modern form and practice. No prior instruction or background in this music is required.

This course involves rehearsing and performing in small performance groups in music, theatre and dance. Groups may include flute choir, saxophone quartet, horn ensemble, woodwind or brass ensembles, theatre groups engaged in devised or classical theatre, dance groups, or mixed instrument or vocal groups. Ideas about as well as the application of collaboration and/or improvisation will be emphasized. Students will be led by a faculty member and will rehearse weekly. Collaborative practice in rehearsals and performances will also be discussed and applied within the context of the students’ major(s). Instructor approval required.

This course provides a fundamental study of the technology and practice used in recording, editing, mixing, production, and distribution of sound. Topics include microphone types, selection and application the mixing console, mixing techniques and introduction to Signal Processing equipment and associated techniques, an introduction to the concepts relating to digital audio technology such as sampling, the Nyquist theorem, alias frequencies, quantization, dynamic range, compression and their applications will be covered. Topics include basics of digital audio, session creation, importing media, recording techniques, editing, mixing, and mastering. In addition, the course teaches how-to-listen sonic difference to appropriately apply the technical knowledge and to achieve highest sound quality.

Sound, voice, music, and effects play a critical role in telephone communication and entertainment systems. Development of integrated multi-channel acoustic information is a complex process. This course provides an intermediate level study of the technology used in recording, editing, mixing, and mastering audio. Students are introduced to core concepts and skills necessary to operate a system running large sessions with up to 48 tracks. Students will develop an appreciation of and the requisite skills to create, organize, mix, filter, process, enhance, and coordinate sound information in digital format. Topics include MIDI, virtual instruments, filtering, processing for sound enhancement, editing and adjusting time bases, mixing and mastering, and audio production. Students will develop critical listening skills as well as technical skills.

Technologies and techniques for producing and manipulating digital audio are explored. Topics include digital representations of sound, digital audio recording and production, MIDI, synthesis techniques, real-time performance issues, and the application of digital audio to multimedia and Web production.

This course provides students with exposure to the design, creation and production of audio in interactive applications and computer games. Students will become familiar with the use of sound libraries, recording sounds in the studio and in the field, generating sound with synthesizers, and effects processing. Students will create sound designs for interactive media, integrating music, dialog, ambient sound, sound effects and interface sounds within interactive programs.

This course is designed for the student who has a knowledge of basic music theory and an understanding of four-part diatonic composition. In addition to the continuing study of melodic construction and development, thematic development in two-part counterpoint, four-part harmony, chromatic materials and modulation, and analysis of form and style, emphases will be placed on the development of individual music skills.

Allows examination of a special problem or topic area in the theatre, dance, music, visual arts, and other performing and fine arts. Topics and specific content and methods vary from term to term. Each term’s offering, however, features an introduction to a historical period, movement, phenomenon, practitioner(s), or other subfield of study within performing arts and/or visual culture. In so doing, students develop theoretical and experiential knowledge of an artistic period, movement, phenomenon, practitioner(s) or other subfield of study within performing arts and/or visual culture.

An in-depth examination of a selected aspect of performing arts with a focus on performance and composition.