Applied musicology and performance
Medieval Musical Iconography
6 sessions
Online
Course Description
Musical iconography encompasses the study of music depictions in the visual arts. It is extremely useful for the study of medieval music as it can offer us information about performers, musical instruments, and performance practices omitted in contemporaneous music sources and treatises. However, medieval images are not “photographic” in nature. They respond to complex visual conventions shared between their creators and audiences, which are rather foreign to modern viewers. For this reason, the music iconographer has to develop a “period eye” to ensure a precise interpretation of the music data recorded in medieval art. To this end, medieval images have to be placed within specific artistic styles and trends, in relation to textual sources, and in the social and cultural contexts of their creators, sponsors, and audiences.
In this course, students will:
Distinguish the different principles, styles, and trends of medieval art (800-1300)
Identify the main subjects, genres, and types of music depictions in the different periods of medieval art
Locate iconographic sources
Analyze medieval music depictions in combination with other contemporaneous music-related sources (music treatises, written music, payment records, religious and secular literature, archeological specimens)
Utilize some of the most important paradigms proposed by art historians and musicologists in the study of medieval art and medieval musical iconography
Complement other medieval fragmentary music data with the help of iconographic information
Develop theories about performance practice based on the study of iconographic sources
Instructor:
Dr. Mauricio Molina
COURSE INFO
DATES & DURATION
February 17 to June 9, 2025
6 sessions
Location
Online
Price 1.5 credits
1.5 credit ECTS: 340€
Languages
English - Spanish
Prerequisites
Open to musicians, musicologists, and people interested in Medieval music and the Middle Ages in general (with or without experience playing medieval musical instruments)
Syllabus
Session 1 | Developing a “Period Eye:” Paradigms from Art History
Session 2 | Musical Iconography: Developing a Methodology
Session 3 | Texts and Representations
Session 4 | Iconographic Models, Traditions, Conventions
Session 5 | Iconography and Musical Instruments
Session 6 | Iconography and Performance Practice
Teaching Methodology
This course will be comprised of:
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- 6 tutorial videos of 20-35 minutes each (total 3.5 hours)
- 6 recorded lectures of 45 minute each (total 4.5 hours)
- 3 biweekly live Q&A sessions of 1hour and 15 minutes each (total 3.5 hours) conducted through the course. The sessions will be recorded so that students can access them at any time.
- Downloadable materials and links to additional resources
Schedules and assignments:
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- The course is self-paced.
- The majority of pre-recorded video lessons, lectures, and study materials will be posted on the first day of the term.
- Students will have access to all session and their materials until the last day of the term.
- The student workload to review the materials and complete the assignments is approximately 6.25 hours per session
- There will be some suggested deadlines to submit assignments
- Homework will be accepted until a week before the end of the term
- Students taking the course for credit must complete all assignments and class requirements
Technical Requirements
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- Broadband Internet connection / WIFI
- External or internal webcam
- External or internal microphone
- Speakers or headphones
- Possibility of printing downloaded materials
- Possibility of scanning your assignments
- Possibility of auto-recording (audio and video)
Enroll Now
Places are limited for each section, so sign up early.
The International Course of Medieval Music Besalú offers singers and instrumentalists the possibility of studying the repertoires of monodic and polyphonic music composed between the 11th and 13th centuries.
With the support of:
