Music and Philosophy, BA (Hons)

The Music and Philosophy joint degree enables you to pursue your interest in both disciplines, explore the fascinating intersection between them, and enjoy belonging to two particularly vibrant departments.In Philosophy, a wide selection of modules is on offer, addressing the most fundamental questions that arise in diverse areas of human concern, from religion and politics, to morality and the sciences.In Music, the learning of techniques such as harmony, counterpoint, and aural skills are juxtaposed with an investigation of the most up-to-date thinking in musicology, critical theory, composition (acoustic and electroacoustic), analysis, ethnomusicology, cognitive musicology, and performance.As a student on the course, you will receive around 7½ hours of timetabled contact per week on average over the course of the degree. This will include a combination of lectures, seminars, and tutorials (including one-to-one supervision), as well as instrumental or vocal tuition and performance and composition workshops. The number and balance of these activities will change over the course of the degree as you develop your knowledge and abilities as an independent learner.In the first year, you will receive about 9 hours of timetabled contact each week. For each module, weekly lectures will introduce you to the broad questions and current issues in Music and Philosophy. Seminars will give you the opportunity to engage with the topics introduced in lectures, discuss key issues in small groups, and look in detail at musical and philosophical works. Instrumental or vocal lessons will help you develop your abilities as a performer, while composition seminars and workshops will allow you to explore approaches to composing. Practical training in both generic study skills and music-specific skills such as using notation software, recording equipment and transcribing music are embedded within the core modules.In the second year, there is an increased emphasis on the development of critical and analytical skills. As modules specialise more strongly in particular areas, the type of teaching varies more markedly between modules, so the kind of contact you experience will depend to a great extent on the modules you take. The total contact time you will receive will on average be similar to the first year, around 9 hours per week. As in the first year, you will be expected to complement this with about three times as much independent study as there are contact hours.In the third year you will develop further your independent research skills, culminating in a double weighted project, which can be a composition portfolio, public performance recital, or dissertation (in either Philosophy or Music): this counts for one third of your marks for the year. This project will give you the opportunity to engage, at an advanced level, with creative cutting-edge research. On account of the time that you will need to undertake this research, during the third year you will receive timetabled contact of 4½ hours each week on average. This includes one-to-one supervision on your project (6 hours for dissertation, 6 for recital or 11 for composition) as well as group classes. The performance strand has 19 group seminars, as well as time for instrumental or vocal lessons. The contact time for dissertation supervisions reflects the text-based nature of the mode of study. Additional hours, in the case of the recital and composition projects, take account of their practical nature and the need to investigate and further embed student-specific advanced skills in areas including performance practice, notation and instrumental scoring, and the creative use of music technology. Other modules on offer include single-weighted projects in ethics, aesthetics, metaphysics, musicology, composition and performance. Overall, during the third year, you will be expected to spend at least 35 hours on independent research each week.