GRMUS 674H — Classical/Jazz: Boundaries

2 credits
Fall
Jonathan Yaeger

Much of the 20th century’s most enduring (and thrilling) music sits near the border of classical and jazz styles. Where exactly does that boundary lie? Is it based on musical criteria or other concerns? Who has drawn it, and for what reasons? Or, alternatively, does the border even exist? When we examine pieces of music closely, do we find terms such as “classical” and “jazz” useful, liberating, or constrictive? How have composers and performers defined such terms, and how are they defined today? We will explore these questions by studying the music and the cultural context of pieces by composers and performers from the late 19th, 20th, and early 21st centuries, including but not limited to: Leonard Bernstein, Anthony Braxton, Miles Davis, Duke Ellington, George Gershwin, Mary Halvorson, Scott Joplin, Gunther Schuller, Nina Simone, and Kamasi Washington. For their final project, students will have the option of writing a research paper or undertaking a performance project with a writing component.