Music rarely occurs in a political vacuum. Throughout history, music and music-making have been engaged with the political whether through their use in propaganda or political protest, or as instruments of national or factional identities. The power of music as a political force has been known since Plato, while the politics of music, ethnicity and gender play out in the media every day, and influence the ways that societies’ policies are shaped. This course explores the relationship between music and politics from Plato to the present. A case study will be presented each week to illustrate the overarching themes of this course.
The course culminates with students working in groups preparing an application for funding for an music project, as though it were to be presented to a Federal or Territory arts or education minister, in which the students have to advocate for the importance of music and the arts in the contemporary policy landscape.
Learning Outcomes
Upon successful completion, students will have the knowledge and skills to:
Upon successful completion of this course, students will be able to:
- describe the interrelationships between music and politics from several theoretical perspectives
- apply these theoretical perspectives to a number of specific musical cases
- Advocate for the value of music and the arts in a formal policy setting;
- demonstrate research, analysis, discussion and writing skills about music and politics
Indicative Assessment
- One essay of 3000 words or equivalent (50%), [Learning Outcomes 1,2,4];
- One group research project in which, for example, an application for support for a music project is prepared for a Federal or Territory arts or education minister (50%) [learning outcomes 1-4]
The ANU uses Turnitin to enhance student citation and referencing techniques, and to assess assignment submissions as a component of the University's approach to managing Academic Integrity. While the use of Turnitin is not mandatory, the ANU highly recommends Turnitin is used by both teaching staff and students. For additional information regarding Turnitin please visit the ANU Online website.
Workload
A mixture of lectures, tutorials, seminars and workshops equivalent to three hours per week, plus seven hours of independent study per week.
Prescribed Texts
Jacques Atali Noise: the political economy of music (Minneapolis, University of Minnesota Press, 1977)
Peddie, Ian (ed.) Human Rights and Popular Music, 2 vols (Surrey, Ashgate, 2011).
Majors
Minors
Fees
Tuition fees are for the academic year indicated at the top of the page.
If you are a domestic graduate coursework or international student you will be required to pay tuition fees. Students continuing in their current program of study will have their tuition fees indexed annually from the year in which you commenced your program. Further information for domestic and international students about tuition and other fees can be found at Fees.
- Student Contribution Band:
- 1
- Unit value:
- 6 units
If you are an undergraduate student and have been offered a Commonwealth supported place, your fees are set by the Australian Government for each course. At ANU 1 EFTSL is 48 units (normally 8 x 6-unit courses). You can find your student contribution amount for each course at Fees. Where there is a unit range displayed for this course, not all unit options below may be available.
| Units | EFTSL |
|---|---|
| 6.00 | 0.12500 |
Course fees
- Domestic fee paying students
| Year | Fee | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 1994-2003 | $1542 | |
| 2014 | $2478 | |
| 2013 | $2472 | |
| 2012 | $2472 | |
| 2011 | $2424 | |
| 2010 | $2358 | |
| 2009 | $2286 | |
| 2008 | $2286 | |
| 2007 | $2286 | |
| 2006 | $2286 | |
| 2005 | $2286 | |
| 2004 | $1926 |
- International fee paying students
| Year | Fee |
|---|---|
| 1994-2003 | $3618 |
| 2014 | $3762 |
| 2013 | $3756 |
| 2012 | $3756 |
| 2011 | $3756 |
| 2010 | $3750 |
| 2009 | $3618 |
| 2008 | $3618 |
| 2007 | $3618 |
| 2006 | $3618 |
| 2005 | $3618 |
| 2004 | $3618 |
Offerings, Dates and Class Summary Links
ANU utilises MyTimetable to enable students to view the timetable for their enrolled courses, browse, then self-allocate to small teaching activities / tutorials so they can better plan their time. Find out more on the Timetable webpage.