MUSC 144: Intro to Country
When we study music, we also study people: who makes the music, and why? Who listens to the music, and what does it tell us about them, their culture, their sense of who they are in the world?
Country music is a rich and varied genre that offers a fascinating opportunity to take another look at the 20th and 21st century. It emerges from a time of technological innovation: radio stations and new types of recording technology. It tells the story of the working- and middle-class Americans navigating the 20th century: World Wars, changing social norms, economic and educational opportunities, the Civil Rights era, the economic boom periods and recessions, America’s place in an increasingly global society, and the divisions between rural and urban America.
Taught by Professor Jocelyn Neal, Musc 144 is a chance to listen to a century of music, to compare different styles and traditions of country music, and to dig deep into what the songs tell us about the past and the present.
This is a great class for students from any major or degree program! It satisfies the general education Fine Arts requirement and stokes the interest of anyone curious about the history and varied meanings of this music.