MUSIC 325 A Su 24: Music In Cinema
Professor: Huck Hodge, DMA • Office: 325 Music
Email: hhodge@uw.edu
COURSE DESCRIPTION
This course will survey some of the most representative films and film soundtracks of the last 100 years while laying the groundwork for students to acquire the skills necessary to critically engage with film as a multi-media experience. Special attention will be paid to aesthetic questions arising from the fusion of sound and image as well as the psychological, political and philosophical resonances that result from this union.
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
Students will gain exposure to the techniques used in film and many other artistic media that extend the boundaries of cinema (opera, theater, television, video games, etc.). In addition, they will acquire an understanding of the nature of film music‘s cultural importance, and the degree to which it can shape our emotional, philosophical and political responses to cinema. This will enable students to enjoy film-viewing with a more thoughtful and critical eye and ear than before.
EVALUATION
Course grades will comprise the following components:
- Participation [10%] Video lectures 1-13 (beginning with class session 2) will have a series of ungraded 1-question quizzes to help you with comprehension of the material. Your participation grade will be determined by watching the video lectures and completing these quizzes.
- Assignment [10%] Masking / Commutation Test
- Quizzes [10%] There will be 3 online quizzes given throughout the quarter. These will cover material from the lectures, readings and films.
- Midterm Project [30%] Using only sound effects create a 2 / 3-minute Musique Concréte composition / story.
- Final Project [40%] The final will involve scoring of a brief scene from a short silent film. You must use original or pre-existing (compilation) music AND sound design. You must pay close attention to the interaction of sound and image. You will also write a 3-page (750-word) statement describing how the techniques and ideas presented in class influence your piece.
The chart for converting percentage grades to the 4.0 scale can be found here.
RESOURCES:
Columbia University Film Glossary
Examples of Film Sound Techniques (College Film & Media Studies)
FilmSound.org Glossary of Sound Terminology
Making Waves: The Art of Cinematic Sound
COURSE SCHEDULE
N.b., All films are available for rent/streaming on a variety of platforms. It is your responsibility to watch the movies before/together with/after the class sessions on them.
[Alexander Nevsky is available for free on YouTube. Elephant is available as a Google Drive link on the Canvas page (class session 7).]
Class session 3: Alexander Nevsky / A crash course in film theory
Class session 5: Vertigo / Masking & commutation
Class session 6: 2001: a Space Odyssey / Nietzsche, The Birth of Tragedy
Class session 7: Musique Concrète / Silence / Cinema Verité
Class session 8: Classical aesthetics / Mulholland Drive