This semester we will be focusing on music and social change with respect to the ways that music intersects with various aspects of social change in the United States including the role of music in prominent struggles for societal change, taking into account music and social change more broadly in the US and the ways certain musical styles have become associated with different kinds of social changes. We will explore both past and present movements and the ways that the past informs the present, both in musical and ideological and social terms.  

We will engage with a variety of musics and styles that may include works like Janelle Monae's Dirty Computer and “Hell You Talmbout,” rap in Sénégal, the various ways that music intersects with social change and cultural preservation among indigenous populations in North America, the songs of Woody Guthrie, Bob Dylan, Joan Baez, and Bruce Springsteen, the music of Rhiannon Giddens, Terence Blanchard's music for Spike Lee films, Max Roach and Abby Lincoln's Freedom Now, and many other musicians and composers (whether or not we know their names), as well as taking into account the role of musical organizations such as social justice, feminist, and LGBTQ choirs in promoting and supporting social change. I usually make some space in the syllabus for students to help craft some of the specific content we will cover (we generate lists)

All readings will be drawn from online resources, and the course will include regular discussion). You may wish to make sure that you have a subscription to DisneyPlus (for Hamilton).

Attached syllabus is from Fall 2025, there are always some changes from year to year.

Here are a few video clips that give a sense of the range of materials we may encounter:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Un9EOjbUWVA 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M_G3CawhEGU 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vLOA8xrfWyY 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JEmI_FT4YHU 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SKWfnO7fhQM 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wJKj7dkKkx0&list=RDwJKj7dkKkx0