Theory and Analysis of Contemporary Music: Study Abroad Course in Paris
General Information
Description
Offered since 2012, this summer study-abroad program is a four-week, three-credit graduate-level course on contemporary music, open to performers, composers, theorists, and other music scholars. Scheduled to coincide with ManiFeste, a month-long festival of contemporary music produced by IRCAM (Institut de Recherche et Coordination Acoustique/Musique), the course is designed to explore musical innovations of the last twenty-five years with special emphasis on works performed during the festival. Students will attend class meetings with Prof. Robert Hasegawa (McGill University) for the first two weeks of the course, then will participate as auditors in the ManiFeste Festival Academy for the final two weeks. Academy events include concerts, lectures, masterclasses for composers and performers, open rehearsals, and films.
The course is repertoire-based and will include readings by composers and theorists and close study of scores and recordings. Course topics will include spectralism, electroacoustic music, microtonality, computer-aided composition, transformational theory, and timbre-based music.
The course is designed for graduate students and advanced undergraduates. Students applying to the course should have completed at least four semesters of collegiate-level music theory or the equivalent; previous study of post-tonal theory is recommended but not required. The course will be taught in English, and knowledge of French is not necessary.
The course will meet four days per week for three hours each day from June 1 to June 12, with four additional meetings during the ManiFeste Academy (June 15 to 28). Class meetings will be supplemented by frequent concerts (usually 15 to 20 performances!), lectures, open rehearsals, and museum visits; students will also have free time to explore other Parisian musical and cultural resources. Housing in a single-occupancy dormitory room is included in the program fee.
The three credits of the course can be easily transferred to most North American colleges and universities—contact your institution’s registrar for details. For Eastman DMA students, this course fulfills the post-tonal theory (TH 402) degree requirement; those who have already taken TH 402 can still register for the course using the cross-listed course number CMP 490. Students in other degree programs may apply the course as an elective toward the BM, BA, MM, MA, and PhD degrees.
The program fee of $7,095 includes tuition and fees, shared apartment housing, concert tickets, course materials, local transportation passes, and travel/health insurance. Students will be responsible for all other expenses, including meals and airfare. Students accepted into the program must register by February 16, 2026 and pay the full tuition fee by February 23 to reserve their place in the class.
The subject material of this course (music theory and analysis of contemporary works, specifically in the spectral schools) filled a gap that was not covered by any courses at my university. It was brilliant to learn about spectralism and French contemporary composers in Paris, where many of the pieces were written, especially because of our interaction with IRCAM and ManiFeste.
Attending Students
