Scribner Seminar Program
Course Description
Sound the call: Protest music through the ages
Instructor(s): Georgia Mills, Music
Does music tell the truth, or does it save us from the truth? Does music extend the
past, ever-elongating its deep roots from ancient cultures, or is it born anew in
radical reaction to societal conditions? Is it evolutionary? Revolutionary?
Music has long been a powerful vehicle for protest, channeling voices of resistance to sociopolitical changes through history. Over the course of the semester, we will explore the vital role of Western music through periods of social and political unrest, tracing its evolution from the first to the 21st centuries. This seminar analyzes the ways in which composers, songwriters, and musicians have engaged with and spoken out on issues of nationalism, war, race, gender, and cultural blending. We will engage with the chronicles and artistic outputs of composers, as well as philosophers, literary scholars, architects, visual artists, anthropologists, and iconoclasts who contributed to changing the course of music history. We will discuss the long-debated notion of separating the art from the artist, thinking critically about how intent shapes how we listen to music. Ultimately, you will leave the class equipped with an arsenal of tools to help you think critically about music and the arts throughout your life.
Music has long been a powerful vehicle for protest, channeling voices of resistance to sociopolitical changes through history. Over the course of the semester, we will explore the vital role of Western music through periods of social and political unrest, tracing its evolution from the first to the 21st centuries. This seminar analyzes the ways in which composers, songwriters, and musicians have engaged with and spoken out on issues of nationalism, war, race, gender, and cultural blending. We will engage with the chronicles and artistic outputs of composers, as well as philosophers, literary scholars, architects, visual artists, anthropologists, and iconoclasts who contributed to changing the course of music history. We will discuss the long-debated notion of separating the art from the artist, thinking critically about how intent shapes how we listen to music. Ultimately, you will leave the class equipped with an arsenal of tools to help you think critically about music and the arts throughout your life.
Course Offered: 2026