Course Info: HACU-0205
| Course | HACU-0205 American Strings |
| Long Title | American Strings: Old Time and Bluegrass |
| Term | 2015F |
| Note(s) |
Satisfies Distribution Textbook information |
| Meeting Info | Music and Dance Building RECITAL on T,TH from 2:00-3:20 |
| Faculty | Rebecca (Becky) Miller |
| Capacity | 25 |
| Available | 7 |
| Waitlist | 0 |
| Distribution(s) |
Culture, Humanities, and Languages |
| Cumulative Skill(s) | Multiple Cultural Perspectives Writing and Research |
| Additional Info | Students re expected to spend 8 hours weekly in preparation and work outside of class time. |
| Description | American Strings: Old Time and Bluegrass: This course focused on American southern old-time string band music, bluegrass, and early country song. We drew on cultural theory to explore the growth of these musics throughout the 20th century as well as the influences of gender, music revivalism, and African-American musical expression. We considered old time and bluegrass both from an historical perspective and as vital forms in communities today. There were weekly reading, listening, and writing assignments as well as occasional film screenings and evening concerts with visiting guest artists. This course also had a performance component: students learned to play old time music by ear and developed a repertoire of dance music. Prior experience with old time and bluegrass was not necessary, but a basic working knowledge of one of the following instruments was required: fiddle (violin), banjo, guitar, upright bass, mandolin, harmonica, and other appropriate instruments. |