Musicology
Musicology focuses on historical, critical, stylistic, analytical and aesthetic aspects of music. As well as work on a single composer or group of composers, musicological research can include inter-disciplinary research (on music and literature, music and art, and music and dance, for example), as well as study of the social and historical context of music (related to a composer, genre, time, place). The reception history of music, examining the genesis of a particular work or group of works (using primary and secondary sources) and the detailed analysis of music also fall within the remit of musicology. Musicological work can also relate directly to performance, through (for example) the preparation of editions, or through research into performance practice. Though the majority of the work done in this area concerns Western art music, we actively encourage the application of these same approaches to popular, contemporary, vernacular and traditional music. Performance practice, the history of listening, the development of education and amateur music-making, and feminist musicology are several of the developing subdisciplines. Students at Sheffield can explore intellectual territory shared with researchers in a wide variety of fields, from classical literature to folklore and psychology to acoustics. Postgraduates work towards a dissertation on an original topic of musicological research. The University of Sheffield´s staff have internationally recognized strengths in a wide range of music, including late eighteenth-century and nineteenth century music, and twentieth-century music ranging from Messiaen to Broadway and Björk, as well as areas such as the history of recording and music education.
Thinking of applying for graduate study in Musicology?
You can either study for an MMus, with the possibility of writing a 20,000-word dissertation on a topic of your choice, or study for an MPhil/PhD. (Both MMus and MPhil/PhD degrees allow students the opportunity, if desired, of incorporating a performance component.) You can read more about the postgraduate opportunities available in our prospective postgraduate section.
Read about how to apply and funding in our Prospective Postgraduate section
If you have any further queries please contact Professor Simon Keefe, at
email : s.keefe@sheffield.ac.uk