MUS 41.01 Debussy the Innovator

Debussy’s music acted as a fulcrum between the 19th and 20th centuries and remains an active influence on musicians today. This course investigates the composer’s innovative approach to harmony, color, rhythm, and form. Via analytic and creative projects, we connect Debussy’s instrumental and vocal music to concurrent movements in literature, painting, and politics. We encounter the composer as performer, investigating his 1913 recordings on the Welte-Mignon reproducing piano. Reading primary sources sheds light on his personal life and alter-identity as Monsieur Croche. Across the term, we gauge Debussy’s profound influence on modernism, film scoring, jazz, and popular music.

Instructor

Beaudoin

Degree Requirement Attributes

Dist:ART; WCult:W

The Timetable of Class Meetings contains the most up-to-date information about a course. It includes not only the meeting time and instructor, but also its official distributive and/or world culture designation. This information supersedes any information you may see elsewhere, to include what may appear in this ORC/Catalog or on a department/program website. Note that course attributes may change term to term therefore those in effect are those (only) during the term in which you enroll in the course.

Offered

• Winter