WRCT 286
Spring 2026
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01
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What does it mean to write critically about a pop song or album at a time when anyone can listen to it with minimal effort? What is the value of an artist profile when artists' careers and lives are so publicly intertwined? How does a critic derive the aesthetic or moral authority to comment on music made by performers with dissimilar backgrounds, lifestyles, and values? In this class we'll look at the way the critical discourse around popular music has evolved in terms of immediacy, accessibility, scope, and purpose, paying attention to both "classical" pop journalism and ways of engaging with music that, while not quite reviews, nonetheless contribute significantly to the discourse around it. Most of all we'll listen to music together and explore different forms of interpreting and making sense of it. |
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| Credit: 1 |
Gen Ed Area Dept:
HA WRCT |
| Course Format: Seminar | Grading Mode: Student Option |
| Level: UGRD |
Prerequisites: None |
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Fulfills a Requirement for: None |
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Past Enrollment Probability: Not Available |
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