TOPICS IN US AND GLOBAL BLACK MUSIC STUDIES

MUSIC 405

Explores various topics in music research from the perspective of contemporary cultural theory and history. Develops skills in critical analysis of music and culture, drawing from literatures in postcolonial studies, critical race theory, studies of empire, colonialism, and capitalism.

AFRICAN 605

Introduces foundational texts in the study of modern Africa and the social, political, and economic contexts of the continent's cultural production and productivity. Conceptual explorations of interesting issues such as the African encounter with Europe, anticolonialism, race, racialism, and subjectivity, African and European languages and epistemology, transformations in gendered structures, and the environment, and the circulation and consumption of cultural forms and practices. Examines the long histories and theories of cultural production and practices in Africa, the local/global provenance of forms and styles, and the contexts of their local, national, and global circulation and consumption. Promotes critical thinking by putting like and unlike texts together and considering rhetoric and implied meanings, all in the context of Africa's interactive history with the world in the modern era.

MUSIC 319

Explores music of ethnic groups in the U.S., including that of marginalized minorities, in its cultural context. Topics may include the music of African American, Asian American, Native American and Jewish communities.

AFROAMER 156

Examines the interaction between African American musical culture and its historical context, with an emphasis on the period from 1920 to the present.

AFRICAN 202

Various topics in African cultural studies and African expressive cultures. Topics will include cultural and/or political themes that cut across multiple media and genres, including two or more of the following: literature, film, media, music, performance, language use, etc.