Undergraduate Course: Music and State Socialism in the Twentieth Century (MUSI10081)
Course Outline
| School | Edinburgh College of Art |
College | College of Humanities and Social Science |
| Credit level (Normal year taken) | SCQF Level 10 (Year 4 Undergraduate) |
Availability | Available to all students |
| SCQF Credits | 20 |
ECTS Credits | 10 |
| Summary | This course examines the role of music in twentieth-century socialist regimes. Students will be introduced to Marxist aesthetics, to the cultural politics of state socialism, and to a broad repertoire of music. The course will examine the reception of music within the context of Cold-War politics, and will consider how music served both as a tool of the state and as a vehicle for opposition. Students will engage in comparative studies of Soviet Bloc countries, Cuba, China and North Korea. Topics that will be covered include nation-building, propaganda, the canon, late socialism, and socialist pop. |
| Course description |
Week 1: Introduction
Week 2: Socialism versus the Bourgeois Canon
Week 3: Brecht versus Lukács
Week 4: Socialist Realism, Stalinism, and the Case of Shostakovich
Week 5: Building a socialist state on German soil
Week 6: East meets West ¿ Music and the Cold War
Week 7: Music and Late Socialism
Week 8: Socialist Pop
Week 9: Music as Opposition: Poland, the Baltics, and the GDR.
Week 10: Looking beyond Europe ¿ Cuba, China, and North Korea.
Week 11: Music and Post-Socialism
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Information for Visiting Students
| Pre-requisites | Visiting students should have at least three Music courses at grade B or above (or be predicted to obtain this). We will only consider University/College level courses. |
Course Delivery Information
| Not being delivered |
Learning Outcomes
On successful completion of this course, students will be able to:
1. explain the major tenets of Marxist aesthetics;
2. identify the ways in which Marxist aesthetics have been interpreted by socialist regimes;
3. discuss the various roles that music played in state socialism and in the Cold War;
4. analyse a broad musical repertoire in its political and cultural contexts.
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Additional Information
| Course URL |
www.music.ed.ac.uk |
| Graduate Attributes and Skills |
Not entered |
| Keywords | Not entered |
Contacts
| Course organiser | Dr Elaine Kelly
Tel: (0131 6)50 8248
Email: |
Course secretary | Miss Annabelle Evans
Tel: (0131 6)50 2422
Email: |
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