MUSA3114 · Music
Morrissey College of Arts & Sciences
This music theory course will focus on the study of chord structures, chord substitutions, chord scales, composition, and improvisation as they have been codified by contemporary jazz musicians. The technical innovations in the music of Sonny Rollins, Thelonius Monk, Charlie Parker, and Miles Davis will be analyzed and discussed. Special attention will be placed on learning how to improvise on the great standards of the jazz repertory. Additional studies will include the following: piano lead sheet arrangements; ii-V-I keyboard harmony, re-harmonization, and composing original tunes based on chord structures of standards by Berlin, Kern, Gershwin; rhythm changes; and the blues.
Course experience
Averages use the original five-point historical evaluation scale.
Organization
4.1 / 5
How well the course was organized
Challenge
4.7 / 5
How intellectually challenging students found it
Attendance
4.8 / 5
How necessary attendance was
Assignments
4.6 / 5
How helpful assignments were
Weekly effort
~5
hours per week
Estimated from the original workload response buckets. Individual sections may differ.
Instructor options
Ratings below reflect only recovered evaluations connected to this course.
Across time
Section-level results available in the recovered archive.
Fall 2024
1 sectionFall 2023
1 sectionFall 2022
1 sectionFall 2021
1 sectionFall 2020
1 section