aCademiC Catalog 2013-2014 - Lorenzo de Medici

FLORENCE
School of Arts & Sciences
American writers. Another important aspect of the course will
be the study of the history, the works of art, the monuments
and the folklore events of the main Grand Tour destinations:
Venice, Florence, Rome. Students will learn about the different
experiences of famous foreign travelers in Italy through the
centuries and will be able to understand some stereotypes,
prejudices and idealized visions about Italy and Italians that still
survive today.
Mathematics
Topics in Mathematics for Liberal Arts
MAT 130 F
Cr: 3; Contact hrs: 45
This is an elementary course for Liberal Arts majors. It deals
with topics emphasizing fundamental ideas of mathematics,
selected from set theory, algebra and geometry.
Finite Mathematics
MAT 240 F
Cr: 3; Contact hrs: 45
This course covers sets, real numbers, solution of equations,
inequalities, functions, and elementary linear algebra.
Prerequisites: MAT 130 Topics in Mathematics for Liberal Arts,
or equivalent
Calculus I
MAT 260 F
Cr: 3; Contact hrs: 45
This course introduces students to derivatives, minimum and
maximum problems, applications to graphing, exponential
and logarithm functions, growth and decay, anti-derivatives,
definite integrals and areas.
History of World Cinema: from Lumière to
Tarantino
MCT 258 F
Cr: 3; Contact hrs: 45
The course is an introduction to the history, analytic concepts,
and critical vocabulary necessary for understanding cinema
as a major art form of the 20th century. This course will look
in particular at the history of different types of film style and
storytelling, focusing on such movements and trends as early
cinema, European avant-garde, classical Hollywood cinema,
Italian Neorealism, French New Wave, Postmodernism. It will
also examine key directors, producers, stars and other pertinent
figures involved in the film industry. Along the way we will cover
important developments in technology and trends in what was
popular, critically acclaimed, experimental and socially relevant.
Music and Film
MCT 270 F
Cr: 3; Contact hrs: 45
This is an introductory course which explores the role of
music in one of the most important 20th century artistic and
entertainment media: film. The course surveys film music from
its silent era origins, in which music was a major component in
conveying emotions, up to the present. Topics for discussion
will include film music history and the history of films. In the
process, students will study the dramatic function of music as an
element of cinematic “diegesis” and emphasis, the codification
of musical iconography in the standard cinematic genres,
the basics of filmmaking musical forms, associative listening,
the important basic musical elements, film music techniques,
and how composers use them in film scoring. Some of the
cinema’s iconic scores and accompaniments will be discussed,
from silent era movies through he films of such directors as
Hitchcock, Kubrick, and Fellini.
Music, Cinema and Theatre
Studies
Italian Cinema and Society
MCT 200 F; Dual listed: SOC 201 F
Cr: 3; Contact hrs: 45
This course explores Italian cinema from its origins to the
present time, within the socioeconomic and historical context
of Italian culture and society. The course is based on the
premise that film can be usefully employed for studying a
society’s history and culture, including such areas as customs,
ideologies, discourses, gender roles and social problems. Areas
of particular focus will include Fascism, World War II, the
economic miracle, the southern question, political terrorism
of the 1970s, commercial television, the Second Republic, the
Mafia, and the contemporary phenomenon of immigration.
Along the way we will be looking at some of the major works
of key directors, as well as at the most important genres of
popular cinema, giving particular attention to the intellectual,
historical, cultural, and literary matrix of each movie. Through
analyzing the ways in which Italian cultural, social and political
conflicts are portrayed and worked out both in art films and
popular cinema, students will be encouraged to reach an
understanding of the possibilities of film both as work of art
and as cultural document.
Understanding Movies: Theory and Practice
MCT 215 F; Dual listed: FVM 215 F
Cr: 3; Contact hrs: 45
Moving images are among the most distinctive innovations and
experiences of the last century and remain one of the most
enduring. In a media-dependent culture, developing a critical
understanding and practical knowledge of this form are vital.
This course studies the theory as well as the techniques of
filmmaking. It analyzes the ever-evolving cinematic language
in terms of both its historical development and its essential
elements, techniques and tools. Through the study of stylistic
choices and the construction of images and sequences,
students learn aesthetic and technical terms, rules, conventions,
and social assumptions used to build meaning. In a series of
stylistic exercises, students engage in hands-on experience of
video shooting.
Introduction to Italian Theatre
MCT 275 F
Cr: 3; Contact hrs: 45
This course covers the origins of Italian theatre from the early
period to the beginning of the 20th century. Topics covered will
include the Renaissance theatre (among others, Gli Ingannati,
Ariosto, Secchi), Baroque theatre, Commedia dell’Arte, the
17th century and Goldoni, the 19th century theatre and its
connections with Opera (including Rossini and Verdi). The
course will conclude with the rise of modern theatre with a
particular focus on Pirandello.
World Beat: Exploring Global Music
MCT 280 F
Cr: 3; Contact hrs: 45
This class, which deals with individuals and societies around
the world, aims to explore human musical life in its fullness
and diversity. It provides an overview of the most important
musicians’ works with emphasis on their characteristics and
roles in the technological development and survival of musical
traditions in a global context of constant intercultural contact
and change. It also proposes an original approach to so-called
“ethnic music” via the study of the “world beat” or “world music”
phenomenon, which represents the most contemporary aspect
of ethnic music on the global market. All artists are presented in
relation to their own musical roots, their traditional background
and their socio-political statements and legacy.
Introduction to Italian Opera
MCT 285 F
Cr: 3; Contact hrs: 45
The course surveys the historical and artistic evolution of
Italian Opera, from its beginnings in the classical atmosphere
of the late Renaissance, through the extravagant Baroque, the
passionate period of Romanticism up to the last exciting works
of the early modern age. The bulk of the program is dedicated
to the great repertoire of the 1700s and 1800s, still today the
most popular and frequently performed. The course follows
a special approach exploring the social, philosophical and
literary forces that shaped Opera. Particular emphasis is placed
on the musical aspects of Opera, like the style of singing, the
different roles on stage, the evolution of the orchestra and its
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LdM Academic Catalog 2013-2014