Spring 2021

MUSIC 424 - MUSICAL INFORMATICS

Time:

This is an online course

Credit:

Instructor: Dr. Sever Tipei
email: s-tipei@illinois.edu

Course website: http://cmp.music.illinois.edu/courses/tipei/M424/index.html

A 21st. century approach to Music Theory: fundamental elements of music illustrated through logical and mathematical concepts, unencumbered by stylistic considerations. The goals of the course are to define the internal structure of sounds and to present a few general methods of organizing them into complex compositions.

Musicians with limited familiarity with mathematics as well as scientifically oriented people with little musical background are encouraged to participate.

Among the main topics to be discussed are:

Proportions in music
Makeup of a sound: Acoustics and Psychoacoustics
Organized sounds I: materials - outside-time === BEING
Organized sounds II: methods - in-time ======= BECOMING
Music as a Complex Dynamic System ======== CREATING / COMPOSING

Recommended readings

Herbert Brün	When Music Resists Meaning
	From Musical Ideas to Computers and Back
Lejaren Hiller	Experimental Music
Gareth Loy	Musimatics
Abraham Moles	Information Theory and Aesthetic Perception
Karheinz Stockhausen	...how time passes...
Aurel Stroe	Morphogenetic Music
Iannis Xenakis	Formalized Music
Various articles from	The Computer Music Journal Interface Leonardo

There will be 25 assignments following each sub-topic discussed in class and a final project. They will involve the use of dedicated software, listening to selected works, and solving or designing solutions for specific musical problems.

The grades:

        98-100  A+      93-97   A       90-92   A-
        88-90   B+      83-87   B       80-82   B-
        78-80   C+      73-77   C       70-72   C-
        68-70   D+      63-67   D       60-82   D-
                         0-60   F

Recognizing the difference in students' backgrounds, some assignments will include options allowing the participants to choose between more music-oriented topics and topics requiring greater familiarity with mathematics or computer science.

Attendance policy.
The absence policy must be included in the syllabus. Students may not always be eligible to obtain an absence letter for missed classes. Sample policy statements can be found at http://odos.illinois.edu/community-of-care/resources/docs/sample- policies.pdf for policies on missed classes and http://odos.illinois.edu/community-of-care/resources/docs/missed-exams.pdf for policies on missed exams.
Attendance and participation in class are crucial to success in this course. Since there is no book or manual for it, you are responsible for taking detailed notes during lectures.

Please read carefully:
According to Article 1, Part IV, section 402 of the University of Illinois Student Code, plagiarism is defined as representing the words or ideas of another as one's own in any academic endeavor. This includes copying another student's paper or working with another person when both submit similar papers without authorization to satisfy an individual assignment. This constitutes an infraction of academic integrity that may result in a variety of penalties as well as a permanent record of the infraction being placed in your student file (see http://admin.illinois.edu/policy/code/article1_part4_1-403.html [ms6.express.cites.illinois.edu]).

Please follow this link and read carefully: emergency procedures

Disabilities
If you have a disability that requires special testing accommodations or other classroom modifications,you should notify meand the Division of Disability Resources and Educational Services (DRES) no later than the 2nd week of the term. You may be asked to provide documentation of your disability to determine the appropriateness of accommodations. To notify DRES, call 217.333.4603 (Voice or TTY) or send them an email at disability@uiuc.edu. Their Office is located at 1207 S. Oak St. in Champaign.

FERPA please follow this link: http://registrar.illinois.edu/ferpa

Sexual Misconduct Reporting Obligation
The University of Illinois is committed to combating sexual misconduct. Faculty and staff members are required to report any instances of sexual misconduct to the University’s Title IX and Disability Office. In turn, an individual with the Title IX and Disability Office will provide information about rights and options, including accommodations, support services, the campus disciplinary process, and law enforcement options

Final examination: Monday, May 10, 2021, 8:00 - 11:00 am.

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