Music
143 Elm, 432.2985
M.A., M.Phil., Ph.D.
Chair
Patrick McCreless
Director of Graduate Studies
James Hepokoski (143 Elm, 432.2991, james.hepokoski@yale.edu)
Professors
Margot Fassler, Allen Forte, Michael Friedmann (Adjunct),
Daniel Harrison, James Hepokoski, Patrick McCreless, Robert
Morgan, Leon Plantinga, Ellen Rosand, Craig Wright
Associate Professors
Kathryn Alexander, Richard Lalli (Adjunct), Kristina Muxfeldt
Assistant Professors
David Clampitt, Eric Drott, John Halle, Robert Holzer, Michael
Veal
Fields of Study
Fields include music theory and music history. (Students
interested in performance or composition should apply to the
Yale School of Music.)
Special Admissions Requirements
Previous training in music theory or music history
is required. Samples of the applicant’s previous work
including extended papers, advanced exercises, and analyses
must be submitted. The GRE General Test is required by the
Graduate School. Applicants whose native language is not English
must take the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL).
Special Requirements for the Ph.D. Degree
Two years of course work, comprising sixteen courses,
are normally required. Students in the music theory program
must pass examinations in two foreign languages: German and
normally French, Latin, or Italian. For students in the music
history program, German and two other languages are required.
Language examinations, partly with dictionary and partly without,
are administered at the beginning of each term. A musicianship
exam (ear training, keyboard, and basic theory and analysis)
is given to all entering students. Admission to candidacy
for the Ph.D. must occur before the end of the third year
of study. It is granted if the student has received a grade
of Honors in two full-year courses or in four term courses,
has passed the language and qualifying examinations, and has
submitted an acceptable dissertation prospectus. The departmental
qualifying examination is given near the beginning of the
third year and all language requirements must be satisfied
by that time. Students attend a weekly prospectus/dissertation
seminar during the third year of study. Before the end of
that year, the student must submit a dissertation prospectus
for faculty approval.
The faculty considers teaching to be essential to the professional
preparation of graduate students in Music. Students in Music
participate in the Teaching Fellows Program in their third
and fourth years.
Combined Ph.D. Program: Music and Renaissance Studies
The Department of Music also offers, in conjunction
with the Renaissance Studies Program, a combined Ph.D. in
Music and Renaissance Studies. For further details, see Renaissance
Studies.
Master's Degrees
M.Phil. See Graduate
School requirements.
M.A. (en route to the Ph.D.). Students enrolled in
the Ph.D. program qualify for the M.A. degree upon the successful
completion of eight courses, at least six of which are seminars
given in the department, along with the passing of an examination
in one foreign language. Of the six departmental seminars,
at least two grades must be Honors; the remaining six grades
must average High Pass.
Master's Degree Program. The department offers admission
to a small number of students in a terminal M.A. program.
Candidates must pass eight term courses achieving an average
of High Pass and at least one Honors, complete a special project,
and pass an examination in one foreign language.
Program materials are available upon request to the Director of Graduate Studies, Department of Music, Yale University, PO Box 208310, New Haven CT 06520-8310.
Courses
MUSI 618b, Hildegard of Bingen: The Composer as
Theologian. Margot Fassler. Th 1.30–3.20
An introduction to the “lived” theology of
monastic medieval life through one of its greatest champions,
the nun Hildegard. This course focuses for half of its time
upon careful reading of her theology and biblical exegesis
in English translation, and the other half of the time upon
her music, poetry, drama, and illuminations. It is hoped that
an interdisciplinary mix of students will be present, and
that individual projects will develop out of specialized expertise.
The course also provides an introduction to manuscript study
via twelfth-century sources, and to the theological landscape
of the twelfth century. The class is limited in size to twenty-five
students and permission of the instructor is required. Also
REL 736b.
MUSI 702a, Theory and Aesthetics: Pre-1600. Craig
Wright. W 10-12
This course investigates the writings of the principal
Western music theorists from Greek antiquity to 1600—Aristoxenus,
Boethius, Guido, Franco, Philippe de Vitry, Tinctoris, Gaffurius,
Glareanus, Zarlino, and Morley among them. Issues of modality,
scalar structures, chromatic inflections, counterpoint and
voice leading, as well as aesthetic questions concerning the
meaning of music and its function in society, are discussed.
Whenever possible, relevant musical compositions are analyzed
to exemplify theoretical principles.
MUSI 705b, Theory and Aesthetics: The Nineteenth Century. Leon
Plantinga. T 1.30–3.20
A consideration of nineteenth-century European thought
about music approached from four vantage points: philosophical
views of the arts and music; literary romanticism and the
arts; music criticism; theories of harmony, acoustics, and
musical form.
MUSI 732b. Practicum in German Translation. Kristina
Muxfeldt. W 10–12
Intensive work in translating German, using texts in music
history and theory drawn from a broad range of historical
periods. The course considers various theories of translation
and practices a range of strategies for gaining facility in
both quick paraphrase and accurate and idiomatic scholarly
translation. Prerequisite: an elementary course in German
or the equivalent knowledge. This course may supplement but
cannot replace one of the three required departmental seminars
offered in this term.
MUSI 814a, Directed Studies in the History of Music.
By arrangement with faculty.
MUSI 814b, Directed Studies in the History of Music.
By arrangement with faculty.
MUSI 817b, Alban Berg’s Lulu. Robert Holzer.
W 1.30–3.20
A wide-ranging historical and critical examination of
Alban Berg’s second opera. Issues to be considered include
Frank Wedekind’s Lulu plays and German theater at the
turn of the twentieth century; German opera and cinema of
the 1920s; the development of Berg’s style after his
adoption of serialism; Berg’s fashioning of the libretto
from the play; the meanings of tonal allusion and stylistic
parody; Berg as autobiographer; feminism and anti-feminism
in Austria and Germany; and the opera’s reception.
MUSI 822b, Handel and Ariosto. Ellen Rosand.
Th 10–12
Ariosto’s Renaissance romance Orlando furioso
was a favorite source for opera librettos of the eighteenth
century, including three by Handel: Orlando (1732),
Ariodante (1734), and Alcina (1735). Like the
librettos of most of Handel’s operas, these are derived
from previous texts that had been set to music by a variety
of composers active in Italy in the early decades of the century.
In addition to surveying Handel’s compositional materials
for the three works (autograph scores, revisions, borrowings),
we consider the source librettos and their settings, by such
composers as Vivaldi and Pollarolo, as well as contemporary
operas based on other texts drawn from Ariosto. Such a study
not only provides an introduction to Handel’s operas
in general (bibliography, sources, questions of genre, performance
traditions) but may also allow us to draw broader conclusions
regarding the reception of Ariosto in the eighteenth century.
MUSI 850a, Sonata Theory. James Hepokoski. T
1–4
A genre-based approach to analyzing sonata form and the
multimovement sonata, ca. 1770–1800. Hierarchies of
compositional options and principles of deviation. Intersections
with other analytical methodologies in current usage. Issues
in sonata hermeneutics.
MUSI 875a, Topics in Criticism: Life, Work, and Narrative. Kristina
Muxfeldt. Th 1.30–3.20
The debates surrounding the function and value of Beethoven
sketch studies, “genetic” criticism in literary
studies, and relations between biography and work in the writings
of such figures as T. S. Eliot, Benjamin, Rosen, Dahlhaus,
and Berlioz. The seminar includes a mix of theoretical readings
and close case studies.
MUSI 901a, Tonal Analysis I. Allen Forte. M
9–11
A systematic coverage of basic Schenkerian concepts, together
with instruction in the creation of graphic representations
of analyses of shorter tonal works. Following a schedule to
be provided by the instructor, participants present their
work for discussion in the seminar. As relevant to the course,
readings are assigned and given critical attention.
MUSI 901b, Tonal Analysis II. Robert Morgan.
T 10–12
Continuing study of Schenkerian concepts, practice in
graphic analysis, and critical readings of writings both by
and about Schenker.
MUSI 904b, The Pedagogy of Music Theory. Daniel
Harrison. Th 1.30–3.20
An examination of various “systems of presentation”
(Schoenberg) for material common to music-theory courses at
the college level. Various current texts and approaches are
evaluated, rehearsed, and critiqued, and their role in the
curricula of both liberal arts and conservatory degree programs
is considered. Some historical methods are also surveyed in
connection with the history of institutional music instruction.
Special problems in the teaching of music are covered: aural
and keyboard skills, tutorial and private lessons, the appropriate
role of technology, and introductory approaches useful for
general students (those without previous formal training).
MUSI 914b, Directed Studies in the Theory of Music.
By arrangement with faculty.
MUSI 933a, Richard Wagner’s Parsifal. Patrick
McCreless. Th 10–12
An analytical and interpretive study of Wagner’s
final music drama. Readings include analytical work on Parsifal
from Alfred Lorenz to the neo-Riemannians, David Lewin,
and Warren Darcy. Also to be considered are the place of Parsifal
in Wagner’s oeuvre as a whole and questions of hermeneutics
and meaning.
MUSI 914a, Directed Studies in the Theory of Music.
By arrangement with faculty.
MUSI 998a, Prospectus Workshop. Ellen Rosand.
T 4–5.20
MUSI 999b, Dissertation Colloquium. Ellen Rosand.
T 4–5.20
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