Universität Wien

160080 VO Music and Language: A Special Relationship (2025W)

4.00 ECTS (2.00 SWS), SPL 16 - Musikwissenschaft und Sprachwissenschaft
Moodle
Fr 05.12. 14:00-17:15 Hörsaal 1 Musikwissenschaft UniCampus Hof 9, 3G-EG-09

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Details

Language: English

Examination dates

Lecturers

Classes (iCal) - next class is marked with N

Der Termin am 21.11.2025 muss krankheitsbedingt entfallen und wird am 05.12.2025 nachgeholt. | The lecture on 21 November 2025 has been cancelled due to illness and will be rescheduled for 5 December 2025.

  • Friday 03.10. 14:00 - 17:15 Hörsaal 1 Musikwissenschaft UniCampus Hof 9, 3G-EG-09
  • Friday 24.10. 14:00 - 17:15 Hörsaal 1 Musikwissenschaft UniCampus Hof 9, 3G-EG-09
  • Friday 31.10. 14:00 - 17:15 Hörsaal 1 Musikwissenschaft UniCampus Hof 9, 3G-EG-09
  • Friday 28.11. 14:00 - 17:15 Hörsaal 1 Musikwissenschaft UniCampus Hof 9, 3G-EG-09
  • Friday 16.01. 14:00 - 17:15 Hörsaal 1 Musikwissenschaft UniCampus Hof 9, 3G-EG-09
  • Friday 23.01. 14:00 - 17:15 Hörsaal 1 Musikwissenschaft UniCampus Hof 9, 3G-EG-09

Information

Aims, contents and method of the course

This course presents an overview on the comparative study of music and language, a timely and profoundly inter-disciplinary field of research integrating approaches from psychology, cognitive neuroscience, evolutionary theory, musicology, linguistics, and information theory.

The course material (including the overall structure) is based, among others, also on selected parts of the following textbooks:
- Arbib, M. A. (2013). Language, music, and the brain: A mysterious relationship
- Hauser 1996 ("The Evolution of Communication")
- Koelsch 2013 "Music and Brain"
- Patel, A.D. (2008). Music, Language, and the Brain. OUP. 
- Patel, A.D. (2015) Music and the Brain: Course Guidebook. Tufts University / Great Courses series
- Rebuschat, P., Rohrmeier, M., Hawkins, J. A., & Cross, I. (Eds.). (2011). Language and Music as Cognitive Systems. Oxford University Press.
- Sammler, D. (ed.) (in press). Oxford Handbook of Language and Music. OUP. 
- Savage, P. (in press) Comparative Musicology: Evolution, Universals, and the Science of the World’s Music
- Savage, P. (in press) A brief history of the world"s music
- Wallin et al. 2000 ("The Origins of Music")

The above list is provided as a broad point of reference; more details, e.g. specific chapters, will be given in the References slide at the end of the slides notes for each class. In addition to textbooks, several research articles will be discussed, focusing e.g. on current global research projects that compare music and language across cultures, such as Pat Savage's "ManyVoices".

The course syllabus focuses on the following core notions, first to be defined separately for the individual case of music and of language; and subsequently analysed comparatively across the two domains:
• (Psycho)acoustics and phonetics
• Rhythm
• Melody/prosody and emotion
• Syntax
• Meaning/semantics
• Mental representations and epistemological/semiotic aspects
• Evolution and precursors in animal communication

Required background knowledge includes having taken at least one course in either: psychology, cognitive science, neuroscience, biology, linguistics, or philosophy.

Assessment and permitted materials

Specifics of the exam (format, content, etc.) will be described in the first class.

Minimum requirements and assessment criteria

This course prepares students for course examination 160080.

Students can register for the course at any time. Registration for the examinations opens only two weeks before the respective dates.

The grading will also be based solely on the final written exam – there are no other assignments. The following point system placeholder will be updated shortly:

Unsatisfactory: up to _ points
Sufficient: _ to _ points
Satisfactory: _ to _ points
Good: _ to _ points
Very good: from _ points

Examination topics

Specifics of the exam (format, content, etc.) will be described in the first class.

Reading list

A literature list for each class will be described in the References slide at the end of the course notes of that class. See the "Aims, contents and method of the course" section above for a more general reading list.

Association in the course directory

BA: SYS-V, INT, FRE
MA: MUS, S.1, S.2, E.INT, E.SYS, H.INT, H.SYS, S.INT, S.SYS
EC: MAK2

Last modified: Th 20.11.2025 17:26