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Welcome to From the Repertoire, Western

Music History through Performance.
I'm Jonathan Coopersmith, Chair of Musical
Studies at
the Curtis Institute of Music in
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
>> And I'm David Ludwig, Dean of
Artistic
Programs at Curtis and member of the
composition faculty.
Thanks for joining us.
>> In this class, we'll be studying the
history of Western music through the
lens of some great pieces that represent
the eras in which they were written.
This class is intended to be an introduction to this rich history
for the new listener,
or an informative supplement to the study
of music for students and experienced
listeners.
>> There are two goals for the course.
The first is to understand a general
survey of
the development of Western classical music
through the ages.
By better understanding each piece we
cover, you should arrive at the second and
more important goal, which is to develop
the skills and tools to research and
understand
other pieces of music, on your own.
There are only seven classes in this
course.
But the skills you develop will lead to
better ways
of approaching, and understanding any
piece of music, new or familiar.
>> Each week, we will survey a new piece
of music from a different era in music
history,
focusing on the historical context,
composer, background, and ultimately an
analysis of the work, in order to learn
much more
about it than we would simply by
listening.
For a variety of reasons, the more you
know about a piece, the circumstances
under which it
was written, the more you can appreciate
it,
and the more you'll actually enjoy
listening to it.
As a class participant, you'll be able to
watch engaging performances
of these pieces as recorded by Curtis
students, faculty, and alumni.
>> In addition to watching the lecture

and performance videos,

each week you'll be asked to post
responses
to provocative questions about the era and
the music,
and to explore a piece more deeply through
an assignment.
You'll also have a chance to comment on
and even grade each others' post and
assignments.
>>This first class goes all the way back
to ancient music, and continues through
the 1300s
with a quick look at today, too, as
we explore the development of our notation
system.
So let's get started.
>> Have fun, and we hope you enjoy the
course.
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