Composers studied include Guillaume de Machaut, Josquin des Prez, Claudio Monteverdi, Guillaume Dufay, J.S. Bach, and G.F. Handel. Other relevant information from these periods will be included with a focus on music and its impact on society of the times.

By the end of the course you will be able to:

• Recognize the major composers of each era studied and a few of their principal works
• Identify the representative musical forms and genres used during this time period
• Identify the representative musical forms and genres used during this time period
• Identify some of the technical aspects of music from each era studied such as melody, harmony, rhythm, musical instruments, and performance techniques
• Associate the key aspects of culture, society, history, and geography that relate to music in Western Europe during the Antiquity, Middle Ages, Renaissance, and Baroque periods

Syllabus

Lesson 1 Music in Ancient Greece, Early Middle Ages, and Chant 

Lesson 2 Late Chant, Troubadours, and Early Polyphony

Lesson 3 The Development of Polyphony in the Middle Ages

Lesson 4 Music Theory of the Ars Antiqua and Ars Nova

Lesson 5 Music in Florence and Music In England

Lesson 6 The Early Renaissance

Lesson 7 Popular Music in Florence, Music in Paris, and Josquin dex Prez

Lesson 8 Reformation, Counter-Reformation, and Music England

Lesson 9 The Early Baroque Music

Lesson 10 Baroque Religious and Instrumental Music 

Lesson 11 Henry Purcell and G.F. Handel

Prerequisites and Course-Specific Requirements

This course does not have any prerequisites.

Required Textbook (Choose ONE of the following)

• A History of Western Music 9th Edition by Burkholder, Grout and Palisca, W. W. Norton & Company
• Music in Western Civilization, Media Update Edition (no other editions acceptable) by Craig Wright and Bryan Simms, Cengage Learning

Instructors

Tom Rudolph

Author & Instructor

Dr. Tom Rudolph is an adjunct instructor for Berklee Online, the University of the Arts, Central Connecticut State University, VanderCook MECA, and the Rutgers Mason Gross School of Music. He has authored multiple online courses in music technology and music history. His books include: The Musical iPad, The iPad in the Music Studio, Finale: An Easy Guide to Music Notation (Third Edition), Sibelius: A Comprehensive Guide to Sibelius Music Notation Software (Second Edition), Teaching Music with Technology (Second Edition), Recording in the Digital World, YouTube in Music Education and Finding Funds for Music Technology. He was one of four co-authors of the TIME publication, Technology Strategies for Music Education. Rudolph is the co-author of the Alfred Music Tech Series that includes: Playing Keyboard, Music Production and MIDI Sequencing, and Composing with Notation Software. He has published many articles on music technology that have appeared in the Music Educators Journal, The Instrumentalist, and DownBeat magazine. In addition to his work in music technology, Dr. Rudolph is a trumpet performer in the Philadelphia area and performs with a group called Gaudeamus. His compositions and arrangements have been published by Neil Kjos and Northeastern Music Publications, Inc.