Making Sense of Music



Overview

This is a course for anyone who loves music but feels they want to understand it better. It explores music in a non-technical way from the point of view of the listener, aiming to give the listener a deeper sense of involvement in the music.

During the course we will explore the idea of "active" listening, looking at ways of discerning individual musical ideas within a piece and following their journey through that piece. We will look at the many levels on which music affects us - physical, emotional, abstract, spiritual - and relate these to the ways in which basic elements of music are handled by composers.

The course will be illustrated with copious musical examples. No technical knowledge of music is required for participation in the course.

Programme details

Course starts:  27 Sept 2023 

Week 1: What is music and why does it mean so much to us?

Week 2: Musical ideas - what are they and what happens to them?

Week 3: Music as movement - physical and emotional.

Week 4: Music as proportion and structure - how pieces of music develop from musical ideas.

Week 5: Tempo, metre and rhythm - how time passes in music. Rhythm as a means of musical expression.

Week 6: "Melody is the essence of music." (Mozart).  Melody shapes, phrases and cadences.

Week 7: Harmony. Consonance and dissonance. Is harmony natural? Harmony as a means of musical expression.

Week 8: Musical texture - the "surface" of the music.

Week 9: Musical "colour". What is it and how is it used?

Week 10: Music as a journey - navigating larger scale musical works.

Certification

Students who register for CATS points will receive a Record of CATS points on successful completion of their course assessment.

To earn credit (CATS points) you will need to register and pay an additional £10 fee per course. You can do this by ticking the relevant box at the bottom of the enrolment form or when enrolling online.

Coursework is an integral part of all weekly classes and everyone enrolled will be expected to do coursework in order to benefit fully from the course. Only those who have registered for credit will be awarded CATS points for completing work at the required standard.

Students who do not register for CATS points during the enrolment process can either register for CATS points prior to the start of their course or retrospectively from between January 1st and July 31st after the current academic year has been completed. If you are enrolled on the Certificate of Higher Education you need to indicate this on the enrolment form but there is no additional registration fee.

Fees

Description Costs
Course Fee £257.00
Take this course for CATS points £10.00

Funding

If you are in receipt of a UK state benefit, you are a full-time student in the UK or a student on a low income, you may be eligible for a reduction of 50% of tuition fees. Please see the below link for full details:

Concessionary fees for short courses

Tutor

Jonathan Darnborough

Jonathan Darnborough is Director of Studies in Music and Departmental Lecturer in Music at Oxford University Department for Continuing Education.  He is a composer and pianist and has worked in continuing education throughout his career.

Course aims

To give students a deeper sense of involvement in the music to which they listen.

Course Objectives:

  • To enable students to discern individual musical ideas within a piece of music.
  • To enable students to follow the development of musical ideas within a piece of music.
  • To give students the confidence to listen to unfamiliar music.

Teaching methods

The course will be illustrated by audio and video extracts, mostly co-ordinated by computer. All visual illustrations, including scores, opera texts, video and DVD extracts will be projected on to a large screen. Audio recordings will be played through high quality hi-fi. In any musical analyses the tutor will play passages on the piano to provide clear aural comparisons before playing the relevant recordings.

Learning outcomes

By the end of this course students should be able to:

  • discern individual musical ideas within a piece of music;
  • follow the development of musical ideas within a piece of music;
  • listen to music with a deeper sense of engagement.

Assessment methods

Assessment will be through the medium of worksheets that will assist the students to consolidate the knowledge that they have gained in class. Students will also have the option to write an essay or undertake a project, the nature of which will be discussed with the tutor beforehand.

Students must submit a completed Declaration of Authorship form at the end of term when submitting your final piece of work. CATS points cannot be awarded without the aforementioned form - Declaration of Authorship form

Application

To earn credit (CATS points) for your course you will need to register and pay an additional £10 fee per course. You can do this by ticking the relevant box at the bottom of the enrolment form or when enrolling online.

Please use the 'Book' or 'Apply' button on this page. Alternatively, please complete an enrolment form (Word) or enrolment form (Pdf).

Level and demands

Most of the Department's weekly classes have 10 or 20 CATS points assigned to them. 10 CATS points at FHEQ Level 4 usually consist of ten 2-hour sessions. 20 CATS points at FHEQ Level 4 usually consist of twenty 2-hour sessions. It is expected that, for every 2 hours of tuition you are given, you will engage in eight hours of private study.

Credit Accumulation and Transfer Scheme (CATS)

Terms & conditions for applicants and students

Information on financial support