Time Schedule:
John Rahn
MUSIC 571
Seattle Campus
Advanced theoretical and analytical work in serialism and other nontonal systems. Prerequisite: MUSIC 471 or equivalent.
Class description
Music 571
see https://sites.google.com/site/uwcourse/Home/music-575-winter-2009
Music 575 Winter 2009, Seminar on music and mathematics John Rahn Tue 1:30-3:20 room Smith 111, continued Spring 2009 as Music 571, Music room 212, Mondays 1:30-3:20. Note on the continuation:
In Spring, we will concentrate more on individual research projects, which will be presented to the seminar in various stages of completion for discussion and feedback. If you would like to jump in at this stage, some knowledge of music theory is a good idea (at least for example, if you play an instrument and read music). Of course more music theory is better. In math, a BA in math or the equivalent, or a keen interest and some talent and background, will see you through.
Math majors and graduate students etc are welcome. The areas of mathematics that are currently most active in music theory include: Actions of wreath product groups. These are the music-theory "UTTs", which construe the "neo-Riemannian" groups (the music theory Riemmann) and "contextual transformations." Directed graphs with arrows labelled in a monoid and nodes labelled in a set acted on by the monoid. These are called "Lewin nets". They are called simply "Nets" if we relax the restriction that the diagram must (in the category theory sense) commute, and allow multiple arrows (or labels) between any ordered pair of nodes. Theory of Sturmian morphisms on words. This is used as a model for scale theory. Grothendieck topologies as at the root of the voluminous music theory work by Guerino Mazzola and his associates (the Topos of Music book).
Student learning goals
General method of instruction
Recommended preparation
Class assignments and grading
