Traditional American music is a dynamic cultural medium that defines identity and community. It is transmitted by long-practiced modes of observation and imitation, and it engages talented musicians who are part of a long-lived cultural continuum. It is based upon a collective understanding of what tradition is, but it is necessarily altered in each generation as new musicians bring their training, insights, talents, and instruments to the process. How traditional music has evolved into the current popular American musical forms, will be explored in lectures, musical examples and readings. Effective Fall 2019, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Aesthetic Exploration, Digital/Multimedia Expression, Research and Information Literacy.

Note that this information may change at any time. Please visit the MyBU Student Portal for the most up-to-date course information.