96376 - Philosophy and Musical Aesthetics. Fundamentals (1) (C.I.) (A-L)

Learning outcomes

By the end of the course the student: knows on a general basis the problems and challenges that music, understood as a science and as an art, as abstract form and signifying medium, posed to Western philosophical thought; is introduced to concepts and periods of crucial relevance to the history of musical aesthetics; is able to place in time and space some of the major questions that haunted the discipline.

Course contents

This unit's focus is on the uses of music and sound in the societies we live in. First we will introduce several concepts, developed by philosophers, that will become our tools to interpret the world we live in: in particular we will deal with the 'aestheticisation of the world', with 'aesthetic capitalism'(Gernot Böhme) and with 'everyday aesthetics' (Yuriko Saito). Secondly we will try to understand how these tools can be used in order to explain phenomena regarding the world of music or of sound, and we will do it by examining some theories developed by Thomas Turino and other theories coming from the fields of sound studies and the study of soundscapes.

Our aim is to develop a critical awareness to phenomena that regard our everyday lives (with a particular focus on the sonic environment), and that often go utterly unnoticed.

Readings/Bibliography

1. Elisabetta di Stefano, Che cos’è l’estetica quotidiana? (Carocci 2017, 2019)
2. Paesaggi sonori. Musica, voci, rumori: l’universo dell’ascolto, ed. by Michael Bull and Les Back, Milano, il Saggiatore, 2008, pp. 195-247 (Parte Quarta: Suoni della città) [international students may also use the original English version].
3. Elementi per un’estetica del contemporaneo, a cura di G. Matteucci, pp. 5-21 (introduzione); pp. 39-53 (Piacere, Autonomia); pp. 82-95 (Opera, Artista); pp. 123-129 (Suono); pp. 164-179 (Spazi di consumo, Tempo libero) [freely accessible for Unibo users from the collections AlmaRE]
4. Barry Truax, “Modelli e strategie per il design acustico”, in A. Mayr, Musica e suoni dell’ambiente, Bologna, CLUEB, 2001, pp. 27-40 [freely accessible for Unibo users from the collections AlmaRE]
5. Additional material uploaded in Virtuale.

Teaching methods

Lecturing, discussion, group work

Assessment methods

The student will have to answer three open questions relating to the books and the materials of the bibliography in 2 hours time.

If the student has to obtain 12 CFU with this exam, he/she will also have to either deliver during the lessons or write a paper.

ATTENDING STUDENTS

Students can choose between an oral communication (individual or group presentation) of a concrete case study to be formerly agreed with the teacher or a paper assignment (see below).

NON ATTENDING STUDENTS

Paper assignment (max 2000 words, A4, single-spaced, Times New Roman 12) either on a topic related to the assigned readings, or on a more specific case-study (to be agreed with the teacher)

Teaching tools

Audio, video, materials shared on Virtuale

Office hours

See the website of Maria Semi