MPL Spring 2021 Virtual Minicourses
The nonprofit Friends of the Madison Public Library have organized two virtual minicourses for the Spring 2021 semester, “The Romantic Symphony (1820-1910)” by Dr. Robert Butts, Founder and Conductor of the Baroque Orchestra of NJ and “Italian High Renaissance and Baroque Art and Architecture” by Dr. Margaret Kuntz, Professor of Art History and Chair of the Department, Drew University. These online Zoom minicourses will be held for five-weeks beginning March 3, 2021 for music and May 5 for art. Registration began February 16. The cost is $95 per individual or couple residing at the same residence. The cost of a second minicourse by the same student is $65. Students may either register by mail or online on our website, minicoursesmadisonlibrary.org. Checks made payable to Friends of the Madison Public Library may be mailed to: Minicourses at Madison Library, P.O. Box 1341, Madison, N.J. 07940.
Sylvia Luber, Coordinator, said that “future minicourses will most likely continue to be offered online until it’s completely safe to meet in-person.”
These virtual non-credit courses are intended for the general public with no prerequisites or examinations. For information, email minicoursesmadisonlibrary@gmail.com, or leave a voice message at 929-450-7040. The minicourses are organized by the Friends and all proceeds go to the Madison Public Library.
Minicourse Descriptions:
The Romantic Symphony (1820-1910) by Dr. Robert Butts; Wednesdays, 1:30-3:00 p.m., March 3, 10, 17, 24 and 31, 2021
The Romantic period (1820-1910) was the golden age of the symphony. The new aesthetics and social changes of the 19th century impacted music in many ways, both in terms of developing the form and style as well as in terms of it becoming the most important public aspect of orchestral creativity. The period is marked by three distinctive periods, represented by some of the most beloved composers and works. Early Romantic symphonists included Berlioz, Schumann, and Mendelssohn. Middle Romantic composers included Brahms, Tchaikovsky, Dvorak, and Bruckner. The leading late Romantic symphonic composers were led by Mahler and Sibelius. Each generation developed its own definition of the symphony as well as its own meaning. In the 20th century, many composers were inspired by the aesthetics and ideas of romanticism blended with the techniques and styles of modernism.
Italian High Renaissance and Baroque Art and Architecture by Dr. Margaret Kuntz; Wednesdays, 1:30 to 3:30 pm, May 5, 12, 19, 26 and June 2, 2021
This course will focus on the art and architecture of some of the greatest Italian masters, such as Michelangelo, Leonardo, Bernini, Borromini, Caravaggio and Artemisia Gentileschi. Questions surrounding design process, function and meaning, rivalry and gender are just some of the issues Dr. Kuntz will address as she explores individual works of art and well-known urban projects of the 16th-17th centuries.
