Duration
30h Th
Number of credits
Lecturer
Language(s) of instruction
French language
Organisation and examination
Teaching in the second semester
Schedule
Units courses prerequisite and corequisite
Prerequisite or corequisite units are presented within each program
Learning unit contents
During the 2025-2026 academic year, "Questions in the History of Popular Music" will address jazz, particularly in relation to certain issues and problems at the heart of current research on popular music. The first part of the course will offer a general introduction to the history of jazz. The second part of the course will consist of monographic sessions exploring the links between jazz and issues as varied as economics, music technology, gender and race, disability, autobiographical discourse, and cinema.
Learning outcomes of the learning unit
At the end of this course, students will have mastered the main frameworks of jazz history (chronology, locations, major figures, key works, social issues, styles). They will be better able to recontextualize and comment on audio excerpts, whether familiar or unfamiliar. In addition, they will have been made aware of a number of current socio-economic and cultural issues and will be able to formulate a relevant and critical discourse by drawing on the main elements.
Prerequisite knowledge and skills
As this is not a music analysis course, it does not require any musical skills such as "solfège." However, students are expected to have a certain ability to analyze music "by ear" (particularly the ability to recognize different musical instruments).
Students must also be able to consult and understand (academic) texts and audiovisual documents in English.
Planned learning activities and teaching methods
Lectures and seminars. The monographic sessions in the second part will require preparatory work, including reading and possibly supplemented by prior consultation of audiovisual materials.
Mode of delivery (face to face, distance learning, hybrid learning)
Face-to-face course
Course materials and recommended or required readings
Platform(s) used for course materials:
- eCampus
Further information:
For a general introduction to the history of jazz:
- Baudouin, Philippe (2005). Une Chronologie du jazz, Paris, Outre Mesure.
- Shypton, Alyn (2009). New History of Jazz, Londres, Bloomsbury.
- Gioia, Ted (2021). The History of Jazz, 3e édition, Oxford, Oxford University Press.
- Porter, Lewis, Ullman, Michael & Hazell, Edward (2009). Le Jazz. Des Origines à nos jours, Paris, Outre-Mesure.
Exam(s) in session
Any session
- In-person
written exam
Further information:
Written exam with the possibility, depending on the number of students, of considering part of the exam in the form of written work.
Work placement(s)
Organisational remarks and main changes to the course
Contacts
Alexandre Piret : apiret@uliege.be