All upcoming Courses

Painting was often perceived as a sister art of music, though typically occupying a somewhat lower place in the hierarchy. Nonetheless, throughout the Early Modern era, painters used musical motifs in their works to give their paintings a "voice" and convey a sense of beauty and harmony comparable to those qualities in musical compositions. Art historian Aneta Georgievska-Shine explores this relationship as it evolved between the 15th and the 17th centuries in Italy and Northern Europe. (World Art History Certificate core course, 1 credit)

Thomas Hobbes, John Locke, and Jean-Jacques Rousseau are three influential philosophers whose ideas have significantly shaped political theory and the understanding of the social contract. In a fall series, join Georgetown professor Joseph Hartman as he explores these thinkers who offered distinct perspectives on the nature of human beings, the origins of political authority, and the formation of societies. This session focuses on Jean-Jacques Rousseau.

From sleigh bells and sugarplums to the mystical beauties of the Nativity, every December is alive with the music of Christmas. Lecturer and concert pianist Rachel Franklin revisits this most beloved seasonal repertory, hand-picking selections that explore how classical Western composers created a canon of both secular and sacred experiences that are now deeply rooted in our collective seasonal expectations.

Tchaikovsky, Mussorgsky, Rimsky-Korsakov, Rachmaninoff, Prokofiev: Russia has provided us with some of the most exciting and original music in the repertoire today. Vibrant colors, explosive energy, and passionate emotional drive characterize the works of these composers. As she explores their riches, concert pianist Rachel Franklin combines lecture and piano demonstrations to survey the growth of this tradition and the turbulent historical movements that acted both as backdrop and engine for it its expansion.

This advanced course builds on Introduction to Music Theory and is intended for individuals who read music and can visually and aurally identify the basic elements of pitch, rhythm, and form. Using audio and score examples from many musical genres, content includes an analysis of melody and harmony in greater depth and detail and also includes weekly assignments in ear-training, sight-reading, improvisation, and composition, as well as instructor-led musical dictation.

Chamber music, perhaps the most subtle and intimate form of musical expression, has inspired many great composers to create some of their most sublime compositions. In a five-session series, classical music expert Saul Lilienstein explores and analyzes some of the chamber repertoire’s masterworks by Mozart, Beethoven, Brahms, Dvorak, Shostakovich, and others.

Your family is unique in all the world, but how do you best tell its story? Whether you’re starting with boxes (or digital folders) of photos, diaries, news clippings, recipes, and other mementos, or whether memories are your main material, documenting a family history can be daunting. Writer Mathina Calliope offers the tools and guidance you need to confidently create the most meaningful story to share with the people you love.

Discover how visual art can inspire creative writing and how writing can offer a powerful way to experience art. Join Mary Hall Surface, the founding instructor of the National Gallery of Art’s popular Writing Salon, for five online workshops that explore essential elements of writing and styles through close looking, word-sketching, and imaginative response to prompts. This writing session is inspired by 20th-century artist Edward Hopper’s People in the Sun.

The art and architecture of Spain as seen in the works of El Greco, Goya, Velázquez, Picasso, and Gaudi offer a window into the influences that define the country's history and national identity. Art historian Joseph Cassar highlights artworks and structures that exemplify Spain’s distinctive cultural heritage, from altarpieces for churches in the Castilian citadel of Toledo to the opulent Nasrid residences of the Alhambra. (World Art History Certificate elective, 1 credit)

Artists including Picasso, David, Goya, and others came to grips with the political upheavals of their day with heroic and searing images that elicit our admiration or moral outrage. Art historian Judy Scott Feldman explores this complex interplay between artistic expression and social, religious, and political content as she examines four historical turning points and the artists who responded to them with powerful artworks that continue to resonate today. (World Art History Certificate elective, 1 credit)