About Music 254

Music 254 is the second quarter of a two-quarter sequence, offered yearly at Stanford University in the winter and spring. Building on an understanding of musical information (Music 253), it provides an in-depth experience in one application domain (sound, graphics, analysis).

Students are asked to identify a particular area of interest, conduct a literature review, and either develop a hands-on project or write a review article including evaluations of existing approaches and outcomes. Here is a brief description of projects done by students of Music 254 and visiting scholars in previous years of the course. Mus 254 is designed for research principally on computational analysis applications utilizing symbolic musical data. Application areas less frequently pursued include methods of data acquisition and interchange.

The lab component of the class emphasizes the open-source Humdrum Toolkit for Music Research (also see the user guide), which runs on unix and can be downloaded without cost. Other platforms may be used for the purposes of musical display, sound output via MIDI, statistical analysis, and document preparation.

The course can be taken for 1-4 credits and auditors are welcome. The main reference for the underlying musical codes is Beyond MIDI (MIT Press, 1997).

Course Time & Location

Course Time: Wednesdays, Fridays 1:15 pm - 3:05 pm
Braun Music Center, Room 129

Instructors

Eleanor Selfridge-Field (esfield/at/stanford.edu) - principal instructor
Craig Sapp (craig@ccrma.stanford.edu) - teaching assistant

Textbook

Beyond MIDI: The Handbook of Musical Codes, ed. Eleanor Selfridge-Field (The MIT Press, 1997).

A copy of the Textbook is available in the Lab, but also is available for home use from the Stanford Book Store and other on-line bookstores:

- Amazon.com
- MIT Press

Prerequisites

This course sequence is designed for graduate students and upper-level undergraduates students. A basic knowledge of music theory is advisable (equivalent to Mus 19) and the ability to read music in at least one clef is required. Auditors are also welcome; enrolled students are given priority access to computers in the Braun lab (#129). Completion of the first quarter of the sequence is normally a prerequisite for the second quarter (Music 254).