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MUS21110

Academic Year 2026/2027

Music and the Environment (MUS21110)

Subject:
Music
College:
Arts & Humanities
School:
Music
Level:
2 (Intermediate)
Credits:
5
Module Coordinator:
Dr Abigail Lindo
Trimester:
Autumn
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 explore the ways in which sound is connected to human engagement with the natural world. Our understandings will be guided by listenings and critical analyses of sound and music (recordings, performances, and compositions). Considering the sound worlds of human and more-than-human (animals and plants) entities, we will address various topics, including soundscape studies, acoutemology, acoustic ecology, climate change, sonic sustainability, noise, creative practice, and environmental activism. Learning will be experiential, including various outings requiring students to assess their sonic surroundings and positionality within different environments. As the course aims to develop students’ independent critical thinking and analysis abilities, use of (generative) AI will not be encouraged or permitted.

About this Module

Learning Outcomes:

• Identify and confidently utilize musical concepts and terms from the environmental humanities
• Describe, analyse, and contextualize music, sound, performances, and musical texts to explore their connections to various discourses around the physical and natural world
• Thoughtfully interpret and discuss cultural and musical dimensions of environmental crisis
• Understand the creative labour and cultural impact of key musical figures and scholars
• Possess a functioning knowledge of ecomusicology as it relates to scholarly writing and popular music analysis
• Think critically about literature detailing connections between music and nature
• Complete and analyse field recordings and present their resulting findings using digital media

UNESCO highlights a set of key competencies that support individuals in their development and support society in achieving the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). UCD has adapted these competencies and is combining them with others to form a general framework of learning competencies. This module will help you develop the competencies below to the levels specified. 
Learning Competency Additional Information Level

Collaboration

The ability to learn from others; to understand and respect the needs, perspectives and actions of others (empathy); to understand, relate to and be sensitive to others (empathic leadership); to deal with conflicts in a group; and to facilitate collaborative and participatory problem solving. Competent

Critical Thinking

The ability to question norms, practices and opinions; to reflect on one’s own values, perceptions and actions. Competent

Systems Thinking

The ability to recognize and understand relationships; to analyse complex systems; to think of how systems are embedded within different domains and different scales; and to deal with uncertainty. Competent

Strategic

The ability to collectively develop and implement innovative actions that further sustainability at the local level and further afield. Advanced Beginner

Integrated Problem Solving

The overarching ability to apply different problem-solving frameworks to complex sustainability problems and develop viable, inclusive and equitable solution options that promote sustainable development, integrating the competencies in this list. Competent

Self-awareness

The ability to reflect on one’s own role in the local community and (global) society; to continually evaluate and further motivate one’s actions; and to deal with one’s feelings and desires. Advanced Beginner

Normative

The ability to understand and reflect on the norms and values that underlie one’s actions; and to negotiate values, principles, goals, and targets, in a context of conflicts of interest and trade-offs, uncertain knowledge and contradictions. Advanced Beginner

Anticipatory

The ability to understand and evaluate multiple scenarios for the future – possible, probable and desirable; to create one’s own visions for the future; to apply the precautionary principle; to assess the consequences of actions; and to deal with risks and changes. Advanced Beginner

Digital Literacy and Judgement

The ability to access, evaluate, create and communicate information in digital environments; to engage critically, ethically and responsibly with digital technologies and digital information; to understand their opportunities, limitations, risks and impact on individual’s digital identities; and to exercise informed judgement in digital participation and decision-making. Competent

AI Literacy & Agency

The ability to understand, critically evaluate and responsibly engage with artificial intelligence; to recognise how AI systems are shaped by human values; to assess their ethical, social and environmental implications; and to exercise human judgement, agency and accountability in AI-related contexts. Not addressed

Wellbeing

Wellbeing is having the resources and skills to meet life's challenges, including attributes such as personal development skills, resilience, stress management, strengths, lifestyle skills, nutrition, physical activity, sleep, alcohol/substance use, academic skills, time management, goal setting, interpersonal skills, group work, communication. Advanced Beginner

Student Effort Hours:
Student Effort Type Hours
Specified Learning Activities

24

Autonomous Student Learning

40

Lectures

20

Tutorial

16

Total

100


Approaches to Teaching and Learning:
• Lectures
• Group discussions
• Project-based exploration
• (Individual and collaborative) presentations
• Screenings and media analysis
• Peer review
• Active learning
• Experiential learning

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 Component repeat (in-module) Offered
Portfolio: Generative creative, reflective, and/or analytical assignments allow students to demonstrate the development of ideas across concepts, readings, and discussions in the module. Week 1, Week 2, Week 3, Week 4, Week 5, Week 6, Week 7, Week 8, Week 9, Week 10, Week 11 Graded Yes
60
Yes
Exam (In-person): This is a comprehensive written assessment involving listening, multiple choice, matching questions, and a brief written portion on a relevant topic (of each student's choosing). Week 14 Graded Yes
40
Yes

As part of UCD's student support, under the Additional Consideration policy, extensions may be available for the following assessments in the module: Assignment (including essay/poster), Portfolio, Reflective Assignment, Report(s), and Individual Project.


Carry forward of passed components
Yes
 

Remediation Type Remediation Timing
In-Module Resit Prior to relevant Programme Exam Board
Please see Student Jargon Buster for more information about remediation types and timing. 

Feedback Strategy/Strategies

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

How will my Feedback be Delivered?

Not yet recorded.

Adams, John Luther. The Place Where You Go to Listen: In Search of an Ecology of Music. Wesleyan University Press, 2012.
Allen, Aaron S., and Kevin Dawe, eds. Current Directions in Ecomusicology: Music, Culture, Nature. Routledge, 2015.
Carras, Christos. “Soundwalks: An Experiential Path to New Sonic Art.” Organized Sound 24, no. 3 (2019): 261-273.
Dirksen, Rebecca. “Haiti, Singing for the Land, Sea, and Sky: Cultivating Ecological Metaphysics and Environmental Awareness Through Music.” MUSICultures 45, no. 1-2 (2018): 112-135.
Galloway, Kate. “Listening to Indigenous Knowledge of the Land in Two Contemporary Sound Art Installations.” Feminist Media Histories 6, no. 2 (2020): 176-206.
Politz, Sarah. “Virgin Forest and the ‘Intrusion’ of Gaïa: Ecomusicological Questions, Relational Listening, and the Music of Lionel Loueke of Benin.” Sound Studies 8, no. 2 (2022): 196-218.
Rehding, Alexander. “Ecomusicology Between Apocalypse and Nostalgia.” Journal of the American Musicological Society 64, no. 2 (2011): 409-414.
Schafer, R. Murray. The Soundscape: Our Sonic Environment and the Tuning of the World. Destiny Books: 1994.

Timetabling information is displayed only for guidance purposes, relates to the current Academic Year only and is subject to change.
Autumn Lecture Offering 1 Week(s) - 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 9, 10, 11, 12 Mon 14:00 - 15:50