Courses of Interest
The courses listed in this section have been chosen by the designated departments as having special interest for students who are not majoring in that particular subject but who might find courses in that discipline both enjoyable and beneficial. For more information, contact the department directly.
- USC Iovine and Young Academy (ACAD)
- USC School of Cinematic Arts (CTAN, CTCS, CTIN, CTPR, CTWR, IML)
- USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism (JOUR, PR)
- USC Thornton School of Music (MUCO, MUJZ, MUEN, MUHL, MUIN, MTEC, MPGU, MPKS, MPPM, MPST, MPVA, MUSC)
- USC Chan Division of Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy (OT)
USC Iovine and Young Academy
ARTS, TECHNOLOGY AND THE BUSINESS OF INNOVATION
ACAD 245 Product Design I (4 units)
Description: A wide investigation of techniques specific to dimensional design as they apply to package, product and spatial design, in analog and digital environments.
Prerequisite: ACAD 176 or DES 102
ACAD 302 The Hacker Imagination: from Ancient Greece to Cupertino (4 units)
Description: Exploring issues in innovation, design and invention from the perspective of the hacker imagination.
The popular notion of the innovator and inventor is a story of the individual genius and the birth of new ideas. In reality, most new ideas result from reworking – hacking – older ideas.
This course explores many of the world’s greatest ideas from the perspective of the imaginative mindset of hacking.
ACAD 356 Audio and Media Integration (4 units)
Description: Methods and techniques for integrating audio into various media and applications including: film and video, Internet streaming, mobile devices, and other digital and computer applications.
Methods and techniques for integrating audio into various media and applications including: film and video, internet streaming, mobile devices, and other digital and computer applications.
School of Cinematic Arts
ANIMATION
CTAN 330 Animation Fundamentals (2 units)
Description: An introduction to the fundamentals of animation, covering such topics as timing, anticipation, reaction, overlapping action, and metamorphosis.
CTAN 410 Audio Design for Animation and Immersive Media (2 units)
Description: Experimental and traditional audio design practices for animation, culminating in an immersive audio project utilizing acoustic design, surround sound, and professional recording and editing tools.
Fundamental principles of traditional and experimental audio design for cinema and new media culminating in a unified immersive audio project.
CTAN 420 Concept Design for Animation (2 units)
Description: Creating characters and environments for animation, live action, and video games.
CTAN 435 Story Art Development (2 units)
Description: Using basic storyboarding techniques to develop a sense of character, plot, and continuity. Technical aspects of developing ideas into films.
CTAN 436 Writing for Animation (2 units)
Description: Workshop exploring concept and structure of long and short form animated films through practical writing exercises.
CTAN 443L Character Development for 3-D Animation and Games (2 units, max 4)
Description: Development, modeling, and animation with an emphasis on character setup features: rigging, skeletons, deformers, and scripting. Applying principles of traditional animation to 3-D character rig/puppet. Prerequisite: CTAN 452.
CTAN 448 Introduction to Film Graphics — Animation (4 units)
Description: An introduction to methods for creating analog animation through experimentation with imagery, concepts and materials. Emphasis on basic timing principles and hands-on techniques.
CTAN 450a Animation Theory and Techniques (2 units)
Description: Methods for creating animation blending traditional techniques with contemporary technologies.
CTAN 451 History of Animation (2 units)
Description: In-depth survey of historical developments, styles, techniques, theory and criticism of animation as an art form.
CTAN 452 Introduction to 3-D Computer Animation (2 units, max 4)
Description: Lecture and laboratory in computer animation: geometric modeling, motion specification, lighting, texture mapping, rendering, compositing, production techniques, systems for computer-synthesized animation.
CTAN 455L Organic Modeling for Animation (2 units)
Description: The art of digital sculpting for animated characters, with visual effects integration. Recommended preparation: CTAN 452 or CTAN 462.
CTAN 462 Visual Effects (2 units)
Description: Survey of contemporary concepts and approaches to production in the current state of film and video effects work. Digital and traditional methodologies will be covered, with a concentration on digital exercises illustrating modern techniques.
CTAN 464L Digital Lighting and Rendering (2 units)
Description: Concepts, tools and techniques used to create cinematic lighting and rendering in computer-generated imagery (CGI). Prerequisite: CTAN 452 or CTAN 462.
CTAN 485L Pipeline and Character Modeling for Animation (2 units)
Description: Modeling and pipeline integration for 3-D animation props, sets and characters. Recommended preparation: Prior knowledge in Maya preferred.
This class teaches all the necessary skills to model and texture 3-D characters in Maya and ZBrush.
CTAN 502L Experiments in Immersive Design (2 units)
Description: An in-depth exploration of aesthetics and techniques involved in the conceptualization, design and creation of immersive media and stereoscopic imaging. (Duplicates credit in former CTAN 502a)
Review of techniques and aesthetic issues pertinent to immersive virtual reality and stereoscopic animation. Students create short projects utilizing emerging media formats: IMAX cinema, Fulldome cinema, cinematic virtual reality.
CTAN 504 Creative Production in Virtual Reality (2 units)
Description: A creative studio course in producing both a linear cinematic virtual reality short film and associated real-time immersive experience.
CTAN 525 Gesture Movement (2 units)
Description: The concepts of animation performance, body and facial gesture, and the emotional and psychological resonance through cinematic arts.
CTAN 550 Stop Motion Puppet and Set Design (2 units)
Description: Puppet and set design for stop motion animation while providing guidance on armature rigs that allow the character to be animated effectively.
CTAN 563 Advanced Computer Animation (2 units)
Description: Description: Investigation of advanced computer techniques related to character representation and various types of algorithmically defined animation produced on either film or videotape. Prerequisite: CTAN 452.
CTAN 564L Motion Capture Fundamentals (2 units)
Description: Fundamental principles of motion capture technology explored while working through a structured series of assignments based around performance, gesture and motion. Prerequisite: CTAN 452 or CTAN 462.
CRITICAL STUDIES
CTCS 190g Introduction to Cinema (4 units)
Description: Gateway to the majors and minors in cinematic art. Technique, aesthetics, criticism, and social implications of cinema. Lectures accompanied by screenings of appropriate films.
CTCS 200 History of the International Cinema I (4 units)
Description: The development of international cinema from its beginnings to World War II. Lectures, screenings, and discussions.
CTCS 402 Practicum in Film/Television Criticism (4 units, max 8)
Description: Exercise in writing film and television criticism using new and classic films and television programs.
CTCS 412 Gender, Sexuality and Media (4 units, max 8)
Description: Examines how gender and sexuality are figured in cinema and television with an emphasis on the development of feminist media theory.
An examination of how media informs our understandings of race, gender and sexuality and how theories of race, gender and sexuality can influence our understanding of media. Students are expected to be open and comfortable with discussing a wide range of representations of race, gender and sexuality.
CTCS 464 Film and/or Television Genres (4 units)
Description: Description: Rigorous examination of film and/or television genres: history, aesthetics, cultural context, social significance, and critical methodologies.
CTCS 466 Television Symposium (4 units)
Description: Description: Lectures and readings on creative problems in the motion picture industry; current films; interviews with visiting producers, directors, writers, performers. Each week students watch special movie sneak previews, followed by Q & As with the teams behind the films, including directors, writers, producers, and actors. Taught by film critic Leonard Maltin, guests have included Damien Chazelle, JJ Abrams, James Franco, Ryan Coogler, Marion Cotillard, and Judd Apatow.
Professor: Leonard Maltin
CTCS 467 Television Symposium (4 units)
Description: Description: Lectures and readings on creative problems in the television industry; study of current and historical trends, interviews with producers, directors, writers and performers.
Each week students meet with current TV showrunners for Q & As about writing and producing their shows. Recent guests include: Cheo Coker (Marvel’s Luke Cage), Ilene Chaiken (Empire), Noah Hawley (Fargo), Conan O’Brian (Conan), Scott Alexander and Larry Karaszewski (The People vs O.J. Simpson) and Ted Sarandos (Netflix).
Professor: Mary McNamara
CTCS 469 Film and/or Television Style Analysis (4 units)
Description: Intensive study of the style of an auteur, studio, film or television making mode in terms of thematic and formal properties and their influences upon the art of film.
INTERACTIVE MEDIA
CTIN 190 Introduction to Interactive Entertainment (4 units)
Description: Critical vocabulary and historical perspectives on interactive entertainment; students articulate their own ideas, while wrestling with the larger conceptual issues at play within the field. (Duplicates credit in former CTIN 309.)
CTIN 458 Business and Management of Games (2 units)
Description: Overview of current business models in games and interactive media, methods for pitching and getting products funded; copyright and intellectual property.
Students will study and design an original social game using leading industry design methodologies. Learn the fundamentals of leveraging web services for online social experience.
CTIN 488 Game Design Workshop (4 units)
Description: An introduction to making games. Students will explore the principles of game design through the entirely analog creation of card, board and tabletop games. Recommended preparation: CTIN 190.
The purpose of this workshop is to examine models and strategies for creating games that are based in solid play mechanics. Students will experience the fundamentals of game design through the study of classic games, as well as design their own games and playtest/critique the games of others.
PRODUCTION
CTPR 288 Originating and Developing Ideas for Film (2 units)
Description: Exercises in observation, imaginative association, visualization, etc., that deepen the creative process, leading to ideas, stories, characters, and images for narrative, documentary, and experimental films.
CTPR 327 Motion Picture Camera (3 units)
Description: Use of high definition motion picture equipment to explore the fundamentals of shot design, movement and lighting. In class group projects.
Principles of black-and-white and color cinematography. Individual projects. The magic of creating images on film from using cameras, lenses, and filters to photographic processes and the role of the cinematographer in interpreting story.
CTPR 335 Motion Picture Editing (3 units)
Description: Theory, techniques, and practices in picture editing; use of standard editing equipment; individual projects.
CTPR 340 Creating the Motion Picture Sound Track (2 units)
Description: Techniques and aesthetics for recording production sound, editing dialogue, sound effects, music, Foley and preparing for the mix. For film, television, and other media.
CTPR 371 Directing for Television (4 units)
Description: Preparation of director’s preproduction blockout; study of direction for live, tape, and film production, for both dramatic and informational television.
Class focuses on the preparations needed for directing in TV. Students will work in teams creating short scenes in various formats, including traditional episodic and situational comedy. The directorial role as production leader and visionary is emphasized.
CTPR 385 Colloquium: Motion Picture Production Techniques (4 units)
Description: Basic procedures and techniques applicable to production of all types of films; demonstration by production of a short film from conception to completion.
Motion picture production from writing of the script to planning, shooting, and completion of a movie. The class will write, direct, and shoot a digital video.
CTPR 386 Art and Industry of the Theatrical Film (4 units)
Description: Detailed analysis of one theatrical film from conception through critical reception to develop an understanding of motion pictures as art, craft, and industry.
Examines aspects of filmmaking with an in-depth study of all facets – screenplay to completion; the anatomy of a film. A major current film is examined in detail and guest speakers involved in the making of the film describe each phase of production. Films previously studied include “The Avengers” and “The Sessions.”
CTPR 409 Practicum in Television Production (2, 4 units)
Description: Television production: laboratory course covers operating cameras, creating graphics, technical operations, controlling audio and floor-managing live productions. Students plan and produce actual Trojan Vision programs.
CTPR 410 The Movie Business: From Story Concept to Exhibition (2 units)
Description: Examination of the industry from story ideas, through script development, production and exhibition; evaluation of roles played by writers, agents, studio executives, marketing and publicity.
Covers the gamut of the movie business, from story concept to film exhibition. Guest speakers and lectures will cover the role of the writer, agent, studio executive, producer, director, marketing, and distribution.
CTPR 422 Makeup for Motion Pictures (2 units)
Description: Lecture-laboratory in makeup relating it to mood of the story and emulsion of the camera stock. Introduction to makeup for film, TV, and theater, exploring glamour, old age, gore, fantasy, and prosthetic techniques. Students learn through lectures, demos, and hands-on workshops.
CTPR 423 Introduction to Special Effects in Cinema (2 units)
Description: Introductory workshop in the aesthetics and practices of special effects, embracing both the classical and contemporary modes.
Intro to special effects techniques, cost, and operational characteristics. Hands-on workshop where students experience time and complexities involved with effects/techniques now in popular use industry-wide. Great for aspiring production managers, directors, and camera and effects specialists.
CTPR 425 Production Planning (2 units)
Description: Theory, discussion, and practical application of production planning during preproduction and production of a film.
From script to screen: practical application of methods and tools for the scheduling, budgeting, and planning of a film.
CTPR 454 Acting for Film and Television (4 units)
Description: Intensive examination of skills and techniques necessary for successful performances in film and television. Practical application through in-class exercises and assigned projects.
Learn and apply prominent theories of performance and how they relate to film and television. Students gain understanding of the tools of performance, as derived from the stage, and how they translate to film and television.
CTPR 456 Introduction to Art Direction (2 units)
Description: Introduction to computer drafting, set design, rendering and model-making for students with diverse abilities. Guest lecturers, group discussions and hands-on workshop.
CTPR 457 Creating Poetic Cinema (2 units)
Description: An investigation of poetic cinema from four different perspectives: found poetry; applied poetry; poetry as image; and poetry in narrative fiction. Production of short films.
Explores the relationship between poetic cinema and artistic expression — especially the visual arts, literature and music — through the creation of short films. Approaching the poetics of cinema through: found poetry, translating written poetry, cinema AS poetry and the poetic image in narrative cinema.
CTPR 460 Film Business Procedures and Distribution (2, 4 units)
Description: Financing, budgeting, management as applied to films; problems of distribution, including merchandising, cataloging, evaluation, and film library management.
Introduces film economics, exhibition, distribution, and production. Budgets, financing, television/non-theatrical and theatrical films, production and distribution agreements, copyright and legal considerations will also be covered.
CTPR 461 Managing Television Stations and Internet Media (2, 4 units)
Description: Managing electronic media, including radio and television stations, broadcast and cable networks, and the Internet.
In a period of unprecedented growth and change in media, students focus on how managers of TV, cable, radio and digital mass media are facing the challenges of the era. The class includes guest speakers, field trips and studies in mass media financing, marketing and history.
CTPR 470 Practicum in On-screen Direction of Actors (4 units)
Description: Concentration on the basic skills in working with actors from a director’s point of view.
Focuses on the relationship between a director and actor. Students will learn to break down scripts from the actor’s point of view and give the director an understanding of the process an actor has to go through to achieve the emotional elements that the director would like to create.
CTPR 474 Documentary Production (4 units)
Description: Pairs produce, direct, shoot, and edit a short documentary on a subject of their choice. Finished projects will be suitable for broadcast/festivals. Students are encouraged to form pairs before class; individual students form partnerships at the beginning of the term. Students must come prepared with two to three documentary ideas. Finished films will be approximately fifteen minutes in length.
CTPR 484 Advanced Multi-Camera Television Workshop (4 units)
Description: Exercises and practical application for writing and producing a multi-camera television project. Special attention to the development of the sitcom. Recommended preparation: CTPR 371 required for students who wish to direct a sitcom.
The Witt-Thomas-Harris Endowed Advanced Multi-Camera Television Workshop. Exercises and practical application for producing/directing/editing a half-hour television project. Recommended preparation: CTPR 371, CTPR 476, CTPR 523, CTPR 532/comedy for students who wish to direct and CTPR 310 or CTPR 335 for students who wish to edit. Offered in conjunction with CTWR 487 Staff Writing the Multi-Camera Television Series.
CTPR 487 The Recording Studio in Film and Video Production (2 units)
Description: Exploration of the role of the recording studio in professional film and video productions. Emphasis on technical and hardware considerations.
CTPR 496 The Film Industry: Career Challenges and Choices for Women (2 units)
Description: Discusses womens’ roles in the entertainment industry and career opportunities available for women in the business, corporate, and creative sectors.
WRITING
CTWR 211g The Television Writer: An Agent of Change (4 units)
Description: The television writer as an agent of change across current social issues including, but not limited to: race, gender, and class.
This course satisfies the university’s general education requirement.
CTWR 404 Foundations of Comedy (2 units)
Description: Study of comedy theory and practical applications in film, television, and social media. Lectures and screenings of comedic forms tracing past, present and future.
CTWR 416 Motion Picture Script Analysis (2 units)
Description: Critical analysis of story structure from classic films to contemporary works. Identification of key story concepts and elements of three-act structure.
CTWR 417 Script Coverage and Story Analysis (2 units)
Description: Evaluation of completed scripts prior to their production. Coverage and analysis of scripts as potential properties from the perspective of a production company.
CTWR 431 Screenwriters and Their Work (2 units)
Description: Detailed investigation of a specific screenwriter’s style and the works they’ve influenced. Lectures include screenings and visiting screenwriters.
MEDIA ARTS AND PRACTICE
IML 104 Introduction to Digital Studies (2 units)
Description: An introduction to the expressive range of screen languages in their cultural, historical, and technological contexts.
Introduction to media, art and technology in the context of various academic and professional disciplines. Students will study the history and theory of digital media and also gain hands-on media authoring skills.
IML 140 Workshop in Multimedia Authoring (2 units)
Description: Introduction to the expressive potential of multimedia as a critical and creative tool, supplementing traditional forms of academic work.
IML 295L Workshop in Multimedia Authoring (4 units)
Description: Critical analysis of the categories of race, class and gender within the diverse digital spaces of contemporary culture, from video games to the digital divide.
IML 320 Designing and Writing for Transmedia Narratives (4 units)
Description: Creating a story that uses three or more digital platforms (video, social media, games, comics, et cetera) with strategies drawn from entertainment, art and activism. Students will explore various narrative styles for interactive non-linear storytelling.
IML 340 Remixing the Archive (4 units)
Description: An intermediate level course, which approaches archived material from multiple perspectives, in order to develop new avenues of expression, education, and research.
IML 365 Future Cinema (4 units)
Description: Examination of the history of cinematic experimentation to provide a framework for understanding contemporary virtual reality, augmented reality, interactive installations and large-scale urban screens.
For the final project, students will be asked to design a speculative project by transforming a short story into an expanded/future cinema presentation.
IML 420m New Media for Social Change (4 units)
Description: Creating real social change through multimedia, working in collaboration with a local nonprofit organization.
IML 422 Information Visualization (4 units)
Description: Visualizing information through diverse media platforms, with a focus on critical analysis and hands-on visualization.
Students will explore the technical and conceptual aspects of using data to create diagrams, infographics, charts, wayfinding systems, interactive media, journalism and art.
IML 458 The Embedded Story: Designing Digital Landscapes and Languages (2 units)
Description: Exploration of the imagined territories where language and landscape originate, converge and are transformed. Students will collaborate to create media in cross-platform environments.
Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism
JOURNALISM
JOUR 200w The Power and Responsibility of the Press (4 units)
Description: Explores the role of journalism and social media in society – its influence on government, technology, business, national security, sports, science and entertainment.
Professor: Geoffrey Cowan
JOUR 201 Culture of Journalism: Past, Present and Future (4 units)
Description: Understanding key moments, debates and ideas that have shaped journalism in the United States from the Revolutionary War period through today. Examination of the social, cultural, political and technological aspects of journalism and its impact on the profession and public service.
Professor: Roberto Suro
JOUR 330 Photojournalism (4 units)
Description: Emphasis on fundamental skills necessary for photojournalism including camera techniques, story ideas and digital darkroom.
JOUR 350 Introduction to Sports Media (4 units)
Description: Highlight norms, routines of content, including print, broadcast, video. Focus on opportunities, constraints posed by roles of reporters, fans, players, publicists, agents, leagues, teams.
Professor: Jeffrey C. Fellenzer
JOUR 380 Sports, Business and Media in Today’s Society (4 units)
Description: An inside look at the important stories, topical issues, trends and historical developments related to the growing influence of business and media on college and professional sports; identifying the key components and meeting the influencers in class that help shape the business side of sports, while recognizing the role the media plays in providing daily coverage across multiple platforms.
JOUR 381 Entertainment, Business and Media in Today’s Society (4 units)
Description: An examination of the symbiotic relationship of the entertainment business and the media; press coverage of the entertainment industry; Hollywood’s relationship with news media.
JOUR 401 Multiplatform Editing for Digital Audiences (6 units)
Description: Breaking news and real-time editing for digital audiences across platforms, including homepage, social media and mobile. Introduction to analytics for website and social media.
JOUR 404 Produce and Host Sports Content in Studio A (2 units)
Description: Interview, present and design sports segments for television/video in Studio A.
JOUR 411 Broadcast Reporting and Newswriting for Non-Majors (2 units)
Description: Develop a broad-based knowledge of broadcast news writing and reporting; recognize, research and develop stories; write and format broadcast stories in all forms and learn to produce finished news packages.
JOUR 422 Visual Journalism for Non-Majors (4 units)
Description: Emphasis on photographic storytelling in print, video and Web-based media; understanding of visual thinking and imagery techniques.
JOUR 432 Sports Commentary (4 units)
Description: Techniques of reporting and writing sports columns and commentary for print, video, radio and Web-based media.
JOUR 441 Sports Reporting (2 units)
Description: News and feature coverage of sporting events, including social and economic factors influencing sports in America.
JOUR 460 Social Responsibility of the News Media (4 units)
Description: News media as instruments of constructive social change; standards of ethics and aesthetics; interactions between news media and cultural settings; social responsibility of news media personnel.
JOUR 489 Hands-on Disruption: Experimenting with Emerging Technology (2 units)
Description: Exploration and experimentation of emerging technologies through the lens of journalism and hands-on prototyping.
JOUR 495 Journalism for Mobile and Emerging Platforms (2 units)
Description: Create video, audio and graphic news and information using mobile and emerging technology such as phones, tablets and laptops — for non-broadcast platforms; understand ethical and legal issues related to journalists working on mobile and emerging platforms.
PUBLIC RELATIONS
PR 340 Introduction to Advertising (4 units)
Description: History and development of advertising; basic advertising campaigns showing relationships of marketing, creative, print and electronic media.
PR 341 Advertising Copywriting (4 units)
Description: Writing and editing for advertising and commercial copy for all media.
PR 342 Advertising Media and Analysis (4 units)
Description: Selling, planning, buying for the media; advertising’s relationship to society and business; media choice.
PR 452 Public Relations in Entertainment (4 units)
Description: Public relations in the design, promotion, and presentation of popular entertainment, including films, broadcasting, music, expositions, amusement parks, resorts and arenas.
PR 453 Public Relations Strategies for Working with Athletes (4 units)
Description: Sports Public Relations isn’t only getting press for a team or player; it’s managing communications among influencers. Complements overview course giving students advanced look at practitioners’ role with professional athletes.
PR 454 Sports Public Relations (4 units)
Description: Introduction to the field of sports information and promotion, including lectures, media assignments, role-playing, and presentations by sports professionals.
PR 455 Public Relations for Non-Profit Organizations (4 units)
Description: Introduction to the specialized field of public relations for non-profit and non-governmental organizations; emphasis on case studies, strategic and critical thinking, and campaign development.
PR 458 Public Relations in Politics and Political Campaigns (4 units)
Description: Application of public relations principles to the context of political campaigns; emphasis on message development and delivery; relationship between candidate, news media, and electorate.
PR 486 Multimedia PR Content: Introduction to Digital Design Tools (2 units)
Description: Hands-on lab; producing multimedia content; basic principles of design; tools and techniques to create digital images and layouts.
PR 487 Multimedia PR Content: Introduction to Audio/Video Tools (2 units)
Description: Hands-on lab; audio/video tools for conceiving, shooting, editing, delivering and archiving compelling stories for online audiences; personal brand building; digital storytelling trends and applications.
PR 492 Personal Branding (4 units)
Description: Learn to build, promote and manage a personal brand through critical analysis, case study, interactive interpretation and creative problem solving.
Thornton School of Music
COMPOSITION
MUCO 101x Fundamentals of Music Theory (2 units)
Description: An introductory course in music theory required for those majors in need of remedial training, and available to the general student who wishes to develop music writing skills. Not available for credit to B.M. and B.A. music majors. Recommended preparation: ability to read music.
JAZZ STUDIES
MUJZ 150 Beginning Jazz Improvisation (2 units)
Description:Development of beginning improvisational skills including underlying principles of theory, harmony, jazz ear training, and jazz style.
MUJZ 218a Afro-Latin Percussion Instruments (2 units)
Description:Instruction in the performance of percussion instruments associated with African, South American, and Caribbean music traditions, with special emphasis on adaptation to jazz music.
MUJZ 218b Afro-Latin Percussion Instruments (2 units)
Description:Instruction in the performance of percussion instruments associated with African, South American, and Caribbean music traditions, with special emphasis on adaptation to jazz music.
MUJZ 450 Intermediate Jazz Improvisation (2 units)
Description: Development of intermediate improvisational skills including underlying principles of theory, harmony, jazz ear training, and jazz style. Recommended preparation: MUJZ 150.
MUSIC ENSEMBLE
MUEN 222 Trojan Marching Band (1 unit)
Description: Rehearsal and participation in performances for athletic and other university functions. Open to all students by audition. Graded CR/NC.
MUEN 305 Vocal Jazz Ensemble (1 unit)
Description: Study and performance of vocal ensemble literature from the Jazz idiom, with emphasis on improvisational techniques. Open to all students by audition. Graded CR/NC.
MUEN 307 University Chorus (1 unit, max 8)
Description: Rehearsal and performance of choral literature from all periods of music history. Open to all students. Graded CR/NC.
MUEN 308 USC Men’s Chorus (1 unit)
Description: Rehearsal and performance of choral repertoire from all periods written for male voices. Open to all students. Graded CR/NC.
MUEN 311 USC Oriana Choir (1 unit)
Description: Rehearsal and performance of advanced chamber music written for women’s voices. Open to all students by audition. Graded CR/NC.
MUEN 322 Trojan Marching Band (1 unit)
Description: Continuation of MUEN 222. Graded CR/NC.
MUEN 505 Vocal Jazz Ensemble (1 unit)
Description: Study and performance of vocal ensemble literature from the Jazz idiom, with emphasis on improvisational techniques. Open to all graduate students by audition. (Duplicates credit in MUEN 405.)
MUEN 507 University Chorus (1 unit)
Description: Rehearsal and performance of choral literature from all periods of music history. Open to all graduate students.
MUEN 508 USC Men’s Chorus (1 unit)
Description: Rehearsal and performance of choral repertoire from all periods written for male voices.
MUEN 511 USC Oriana Choir (1 unit)
Description: Rehearsal and performance of advanced chamber music written for women’s voices. Open to all graduate students by audition.
MUSIC INDUSTRY
MUIN 272x Basics of the Music Industry (4 units)
Description: Introductory survey of the music business. Topics include: copyright, record companies, contracts, music publishing, performance rights societies, managers, agents, and other artist team/income considerations. Not for major credit for music industry majors. (Duplicates credit in former MUIN 372ax.)
MUIN 372x Business and Legal Aspects of the Music Industry (4 units)
Description: An intermediate-level survey of music law, artist contract analysis, case studies, modern/emerging business models and the business of music licensing. Prerequisite: MUIN 272x. Not available for credit for music industry majors. (Duplicates credit in former MUIN 372bx.)
MUSIC TECHNOLOGY
MTEC 245 Introduction to MIDI Sequencing (1 unit)
Description: Introductory course where students will learn to use professional MIDI sequencing software to sequence, edit, and realize music compositions.
MTEC 246 Introduction to Audio Recording and Editing (1 unit)
Description: Introduction to the techniques and applications of recording, editing and mixing sound on personal computers.
MTEC 277x Introduction to Music Technology (4 units)
Description: A survey of the technology used to create, prepare, perform, and distribute music, with an emphasis on recording, MIDI, music production, mastering and Internet technologies. Not available for major credit to B.M. and B.S., Music Industry majors. (Duplicates credit in former MUIN 277.)
PERFORMANCE (GUITAR)
MPGU 120a Beginning Pop/Rock Guitar (2 units)
Description: Introduction to the performance technique of pop/rock guitar as well as music theory fundamentals, exploring repertoire by artists such as The Beatles and Dave Matthews.
MPGU 120b Beginning Pop/Rock Guitar (2 units)
Description: Introduction to the performance technique of pop/rock guitar as well as music theory fundamentals, exploring repertoire by artists such as The Beatles and Dave Matthews.
MPGU 120c Beginning Pop/Rock Guitar (2 units)
Description: Introduction to the performance technique of pop/rock guitar as well as music theory fundamentals, exploring repertoire by artists such as The Beatles and Dave Matthews.
MPGU 121 Intensive Beginning Pop/Rock Guitar (4 units)
Description: Introduction to the performance technique of pop/rock guitar as well as music theory fundamentals, exploring repertoire by artists such as The Beatles and Dave Matthews.
MPGU 125 Beginning Fingerstyle/Chord Guitar (2 units)
Description: Basic fingerstyle guitar, learned through the study of such pieces as “Greensleeves,” “Malaguena,” and “Minuet” (Bach); song accompaniment patterns and music notation for the beginner.
MPGU 126 Easy Fingerstyle Beatles (2 units)
Description: Techniques of classical guitar applied to the study of five to eight Beatles songs, from “Hey Jude” to “Blackbird.” No guitar or music background required.
PERFORMANCE (KEYBOARD STUDIES)
MPKS 150a Beginning Piano (2 units)
Description: Techniques of performance, note reading, and basic musicianship. Not open to music majors.
MPKS 150b Beginning Piano (2 units)
Description: Techniques of performance, note reading, and basic musicianship. Not open to music majors. Prerequisite: MPKS 150a.
MPKS 150c Beginning Piano (2 units)
Description: Techniques of performance, note reading, and basic musicianship. Not open to music majors.
PERFORMANCE (POPULAR MUSIC)
MPPM 120 Popular Music Performance I (2 units)
Description: Study of musical elements appropriate to the performance of popular music in a collaborative, interactive environment.
MPPM 240 Drumming Proficiency for the Popular Musician (2 units)
Description: Beginning and elementary instruction in drum set techniques.
MPPM 340 Intermediate Drum Set Proficiency (2 units)
Description: Intermediate level instruction in drum set performance including accompaniment techniques, fills, beat and brush patterns in jazz, Afro-Caribbean and Brazilian styles, interpreting drum charts. Recommended preparation: MPPM 240.
PERFORMANCE (STRINGS)
MPST 163 Class Harp (2 units, max 4)
Description: Basic instruction in the fundamentals of solo harp playing, note reading, and basic musicianship. Open to music and non-music majors.
PERFORMANCE (VOCAL ARTS)
MPVA 141 Class Voice (2 units)
Description: Introduction to the fundamental principles of singing: breath control, tone production, diction, and the use of appropriate song material.
MPVA 241 Intermediate Class Voice (2 units, max 4)
Description: Continued development of the fundamentals of singing, diction, and repertoire building. Prerequisite: MPVA 141.
MPVA 402 Musical Theatre Workshop (2 units)
Description: Stylistic and technical features of dramatic and musical elements involved in performance of American musical and standard operetta repertory; staging of scenes.
SCHOOL OF MUSIC
MUSC 102gw World Music (4 units)
Description: Exploration of music and cultures of the world. Engagement with international musicians, global issues, field work and musical diasporas in Los Angeles.
MUSC 115gp Western Music as Sounding History (4 units)
Description: An introduction to Western art music and culture from the Medieval, Renaissance, Baroque, Classical, Romantic and Modern eras through reading, listening, analyzing and writing about music.
MUSC 200mgw The Broadway Musical: Reflections of American Diversity (4 units)
Description: A uniquely American genre, the Broadway musical serves as a catalyst for inquiry into human diversity, cross-culturalism, and significant social and political issues.
MUSC 210g Electronic Music and Dance Culture (4 units)
Description: The origins and development of EDM and its relatives such as disco, house, techno, rave and electronica, focusing on cultural and technological influences.
MUSC 250mgw The Music of Black Americans (4 units)
Description: A chronicle of the musical contribution of Africans and African Americans to American society and to the foundations of musical genres and styles throughout the world.
MUSC 255 Songwriting I (2 units)
Description: Development of musical and lyrical skills, composing, listening, analysis, and critiques of popular original music.
MUSC 320mgw Hip-hop Music and Culture (4 units)
Description: A history of hip-hop music from its inception to the present: its musical processes and styles, as well as attendant social, political and cultural issues.
MUSC 355 Songwriting II (2 units)
Description: Continuation of Songwriting I; particular emphasis on the analysis of the techniques of important popular songwriters and the application of these techniques to original songs. (Duplicates credit in former MUCO 252.) Prerequisite: MUSC 255.
MUSC 371g Musical Genre Bending (4 units)
Description: The aesthetic and ethical issues of genre-bending music in 20th and 21st century rock, classical, jazz, and folk music.
MUSC 422 The Beatles: Their Music and Their Times (4 units)
Description: Music, lyrics, recordings, production techniques, career strategy, social ramifications, and especially the technological impact of the musical group known as The Beatles.
MUSC 423 Classic Rock: Popular Music of the Sixties and Seventies (2 units)
Description: Critical examination of the lyrics, structure, associated mythology, technology, and evolving styles of popular music reflecting the turbulent societal changes during the Sixties and Seventies.
MUSC 424 Iconic Figures of Popular Music (2 units, max 8)
Description: Music, life, recordings, and attendant musical, cultural and political influences of a seminal musician or group in 20th or 21st century popular music.
MUSC 455 Songwriting III: The Performing Songwriter (2 units)
Description: Continuation of Songwriting I and II with emphasis on the development of performance skills of original popular music in preparation for songwriting showcases.
MUSC 460 Film Music: History and Function from 1930 to the Present (4 units)
Description: A survey of the art and craft of film music as practiced by outstanding composers in motion pictures.
USC Chan Division of Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy
OCCUPATIONAL SCIENCE AND OCCUPATIONAL THERAPY
OT 101 Caring For Your Self: Engaging in Healthy Habits and Routines (1 units)
Description: Application of occupational science evidence and occupational therapy principles of lifestyle and self-care behavior change to support self-analysis and integration of healthy habits and routines.
What would it be like if you didn’t have to choose between your grades, friends and sleep? This new 1-unit Credit/No Credit course discusses everything from time management, to relationships, to sleep!
OT 220 Lifestyle Design: Introduction to Occupational Therapy (2 units)
Description: Introduction to theoretical concepts concerning the relationship of engagement in activities (occupations) to health and well-being. Application of these perspectives to students’ own lives.
What you choose to do or not do, minute by minute, day by day, and year by year, shapes who you will become and how healthy you will be. Develop expertise in lifestyle design, starting with your own.
Professor: Kimberly Ann Morris
OT 250 Introduction to Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy (4 units)
Description: Introduction to concept of occupation and overview of human drive for meaningful activity; impact of occupations on health and well-being; analysis of personal occupational patterns; selected therapeutic applications.
Discover strategies that will enable you to successfully transition to college life and beyond. Learn to utilize tools that will help you to create a healthy living environment, manage your time and find social community. In this age of information overload, find your path to happiness, purpose and health.
Professor: Kate Crowley
OT 251x Across the Lifespan: Occupations, Health and Disability (4 units)
Description: Exploration of the transformative power of occupation throughout the lifespan for all individuals.
What activities are important to a child? To an adolescent? To an adult? Explore the power of occupation and its ability to be transformative throughout the lifespan of all individuals. Discover how your path has changed throughout your life and learn to better direct its course in the future.
OT 280 Essential Occupations of Emerging Adulthood (2 units)
Description: Examination of challenges associated with the emerging adulthood stage of development through an occupational science lens; strategies to promote health and well-being for this population.
Examine the challenges associated with the emerging adulthood stage of development – what most college students are experiencing as everyday life! Discuss occupational science strategies for promoting health and wellness in the face of these challenges.
Professor: Kimberly Ann Morris
OT 312 Creating a Sustainable Lifestyle (2 units)
Description: Scientists and policymakers advocate lifestyle changes as crucial to solving the environmental crisis. Investigation into the development of habits that promote environmental sustainability and personal well-being.
Professor: Camille Dieterle
OT 330 Perspectives on the Daily Life of Families (4 units)
Description: Examines family structures and processes, the occupational dimensions of families, and the meanings embedded in the acts of daily life of contemporary families.
Learn about the importance of connections, cultures, and histories while you reflect on your own family and find out how even simple activities, such as a meal together, can reinforce and build families.
Professor: Kate Crowley
OT 340 Occupational Foundations of Human-Animal Interaction (4 units)
Description: Explores how interactions with companion animals expand human capacity for action and contribute to human health, well-being and participation, in different cultural contexts, across the life-span.
Will you travel your path with a best friend? Explore how interactions with companion animals, especially cats and dogs, can expand human capacity for action. Whether you’ve had a pet in the past, have one now, or might want one in the future, learn how these furry friends contribute to your health and well-being.
OT 360 Creating the Self through Narrative: Acts of Life Story Production (4 units)
Description: Analysis of life stories, life histories, and testimonies in social interactions, texts, and films. Life stories are an occupation to re-create the “Self” in response to conflict and change. Learn how the stories that you tell about yourself, your friends, your family, and your experiences not only describe who you are, but connect you to others and make you unique.
OT 370 Understanding Autism: Participation Across the Lifespan (4 units)
Description: Introduction to Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) from a neurodevelopmental perspective, with a focus on the daily living experience and occupational participation for individuals with ASD.
One in 68 children is identified as having Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), which means you probably already know or have met someone with ASD. Discuss representations of ASD in media, film and TV, while learning about contemporary perspectives on disability.
Professor: Linsey Smith