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MUS20080

Academic Year 2025/2026

Global Soundscapes (MUS20080)

Subject:
Music
College:
Arts & Humanities
School:
Music
Level:
2 (Intermediate)
Credits:
5
Module Coordinator:
Dr Abigail Lindo
Trimester:
Spring
Mode of Delivery:
On Campus
Internship Module:
No
How will I be graded?
Letter grades

Curricular information is subject to change.

In this module, we will examine music in different contexts globally, partially led by the following question: What does it mean to analyze and understand music and sound across various global contexts? With this line of inquiry in mind, this module blends ethnomusicology and sound studies, using each class session to explore a different concept in musical research and framing it through engagement with a corresponding text. Engagement with readings and multimedia and the production of course assignments situate students as cultural critics, digital humanists, and musical practitioners who participate in close reading, close listening, textural and media analysis, and informed peer review. Our inquiries center on the phenomenology of music “itself” as well as on the roles that music plays in diverse cultural, social, and historical contexts. This is not a world music course, but we will be considering the global flows of music ideas and expression without any intention of surveying musical generation in its entirety. The aim is both to build knowledge of different musical cultures and to sharpen critical thinking about the forms of access and agency that shape how geographical regions and their musics are framed, understood, and circulated in local and global settings.

About this Module

Learning Outcomes:

Upon completing the module, students will be able to:
- Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of diverse sonic concepts and musical traditions covered in the course
- Differentiate between different styles and traditions of music, identifying the elements, instruments, and processes in the musics covered in this course
- Listen analytically to a variety of musics in different cultural contexts globally
- Apply and integrate various sound, musical, and cultural concepts in your writing and analysis

Indicative Module Content:

Student Effort Hours:
Student Effort Type Hours
Lectures

24
Specified Learning Activities

24
Autonomous Student Learning

52
Total

100

Approaches to Teaching and Learning:
In this module, students learn through lectures, course discussions, and close, critical readings and analyses of assigned text and multimedia resources. Students will also be asked to develop media resources and to participate in musical performance/demonstration. Skills to participate in these activities are introduced at the start of the course and are developed throughout the trimester (in and outside of class).

Requirements, Exclusions and Recommendations

Not applicable to this module.


Module Requisites and Incompatibles
Not applicable to this module.
 

Assessment Strategy
Description Timing Component Scale Must Pass Component % of Final Grade In Module Component Repeat Offered
Reflective Assignment: Specific assignments given as homework Week 2, Week 4, Week 6, Week 8, Week 10, Week 12 Standard conversion grade scale 40% No
30
 No
Participation in Learning Activities: Weekly participation in tasks given in class Week 1, Week 2, Week 3, Week 4, Week 5, Week 6, Week 7, Week 8, Week 9, Week 10, Week 11, Week 12 Standard conversion grade scale 40% No
50
 No
Viva Voce: Brief in-person oral exam Week 14, Week 15 Standard conversion grade scale 40% No
20
 No

Carry forward of passed components
Yes
 

Resit In Terminal Exam
Autumn No
Please see Student Jargon Buster for more information about remediation types and timing. 

Feedback Strategy/Strategies

• Feedback individually to students, post-assessment
• Group/class feedback, post-assessment
• Self-assessment activities

How will my Feedback be Delivered?

Feedback individually to students, on an activity or draft prior to summative assessment Feedback individually to students, post-assessment Group/class feedback, post-assessment Peer review activities Self-assessment activities

Please purchase the following book in your preferred format (physical copy or ebook). The readings from this text for the first and second week of the course will be provided. Additional readings will be provided online for student access. There are no other texts to purchase.

Novak, David, and Matt Sakakeeny, eds. Keywords in Sound. Duke University Press, 2015.

Timetabling information is displayed only for guidance purposes, relates to the current Academic Year only and is subject to change.
Spring Lecture Offering 1 Week(s) - 20, 21, 23, 24, 25, 26, 29, 30, 32, 33 Mon 11:00 - 12:50
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