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MUS41250

Academic Year 2026/2027

Contemporary Music in Ireland, Britain, and North America (MUS41250)

Subject:
Music
College:
Arts & Humanities
School:
Music
Level:
4 (Masters)
Credits:
5
Module Coordinator:
Dr Sean L Clancy
Trimester:
Spring
Mode of Delivery:
On Campus
Internship Module:
No
How will I be graded?
Letter grades

Curricular information is subject to change.

The distance between Vancouver in Western Canada to Aldeburgh in the eastern UK is about 7600 kilometres (including some 5000 kilometres of ocean). Whilst this vast geographical region is a celebration of diversity and home to a multiplicity of peoples, culture, and musics, within the world of contemporary classical music, there are a number common threads that might be seen as binding new music in Ireland, Britain, and North America. There is an interest in pitch, working with tonality after upheaval, repetition of various kinds, texture, expansive structures, improvisation, and vernacular music. Whilst these threads may not be unique to this mostly anglophone region, musical discourse operates in a very different manner to other regions in the world.

This short 6 week module cannot be a comprehensive survey of contemporary music from Ireland, Britain, and North America; rather, by examining repertoire composed for self-organised groups like the Crash Ensemble (Ireland) Bang on a Can All-Stars (US), Quatuor Bozzini (Canada), Plus Minus Ensemble, and Apartment House (UK), as well as solo practitioners, the module explores contemporary classical music created in neoliberal economies where ensembles and artists for the most part have to rely on multi-annual funding applications, philanthropy, or a gig-by-gig fee to create work. This DIY self-organised approach has had an immense impact on the music created in these regions since the 1990s. It is this way of music-making that will be explored in creative and musicological ways.

About this Module

Learning Outcomes:

- Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of contemporary classical music from Ireland, Britain, and North America.
- Explain and evaluate the importance of place on the formation of different contemporary musical styles.
- Deploy the creative techniques and characteristics of the repertoire discussed in class.
- Demonstrate improved listening and analytical skills.
- Assess and employ ethnomusicological/musicological methodologies as tools for examining and creating contemporary classical music.
- Demonstrate an improved knowledge of conducting research and improved communication skills both creatively and academically.

Indicative Module Content:

Weeks 1: Music from the US - Bang on a Can All-Stars etc. Julia Wolfe; David Lang; Darius Jones; Alvin Curran.

Week 2: Music from Canada - Quatuor Bozzini. Cassandra Miller; Michael Oesterle.

Week 3: Music from Ireland - Crash Ensemble. Gerald Barry; Linda Buckley; David Fennessy.

Week 4: Music from Ireland - Crash Ensemble. Donnacha Dennehy; Ann Cleare; Andrew Hamilton.

Week 5: Music from the UK - Plus Minus Ensemble. Matthew Shlomowitz; Mariam Rezaei; Howard Skempton.

Week 6: Music from the UK - Apartment House. Joe Cutler; Laurence Crane; Elaine Mitchner.

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. Expert

Critical Thinking

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

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. Expert

Strategic

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

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. Expert

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. Expert

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. Expert

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. Expert

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. Expert

The United Nations identified seventeen Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as core to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, and UCD contributes in general to SDG 4 Quality Education. Further SDGs explored within this module if relevant are listed below. A scale of 1 - 5 indicates the extent to which the SDG is covered.


 

Student Effort Hours:
Student Effort Type Hours
Lectures

12
Project Supervision

12
Autonomous Student Learning

100
Total

124

Approaches to Teaching and Learning:
In-person seminars 2 hours per week
office hours with module coordinator
self-directed research, study, composition and/or academic writing.

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
Assignment(Including Essay): Create a piece of music of c 5 minutes that uses one or more of the approaches discussed in class OR Write a research paper of c. 5000 words discussing one or more of the topics explored. Week 7 Graded No
100
 No

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
 

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, on an activity or draft prior to summative assessment
• Feedback individually to students, post-assessment

How will my Feedback be Delivered?

Feedback will be given individually to students, post-assessment by written and annotated remarks through the VLE.

BERGER, John, Ways of Seeing (London: Penguin, 2008).

BURROWS, Jonathan, A Choreographer’s Handbook. (Abingdon: Routledge, 2010).

CAGE, John, Silence (London: Marion Boyars, 1968).

CAVETT, Esther, Howard Skempton, Conversations and Reflections on Music (Suffolk, Boydell Press, 2019).

DERVAN, Michael, The Invisible Art: A Century of Music in Ireland 1916-2016 (Dublin, New Island, 2016)

FELDMAN, Morton, Give my Regards to Eighth Street (Cambridge MA: Exact Change, 2000).

GLOVER, Richard & HARRISON, Bryn, Overcoming Form: Reflections on Immersive Listening (Huddersfield, Huddersfield University Press, 2013).

GOTTSCHALK, Jennie, Experimental Music Since 1970 (New York: Bloomsbury Academic, 2016).

GRIFFITHS, Paul, Modern Music and After 3rd edition (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2010).

LEWIS, George, A Power Stronger Than Itself: The AACM and American Experimental Music (Chicago, University of Chicago Press, 2009).

LELY, John & SAUNDERS, James, Word Event: Perspectives on Verbal Notation (London: Bloomsbury, 2012).

LUCIER, Alvin, Music 109: Notes on Experimental Music (Middletown CT, Wesleyan University Press, 2012).

LUCIER, Alvin, Eight lectures on experimental music (Middletown CT, Wesleyan University Press, 2018)

NYMAN, Michael, Experimental Music: Cage and Beyond (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1974).

ROBIN, William, Industry: Bang on a Can and New Music in the Marketplace (New York, OUP USA, 2021).

RUTHERFORD-JOHNSON, Tim, Music after the Fall, (Oakland, University of California Press, 2017).

ZIMMERMANN, Walter, Desert Plants, Conversations with 23 American Musicians (Cologne, MusikTexte, 2020).

It's also useful to read articles in periodicals such as Journal of Music, Tempo, Perspectives of New Music, MusikTexte, Leonardo Music Journal, The Wire.

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, 22, 23, 24, 25 Wed 13:00 - 14:50
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