Love Songs

An archaeological investigation into a basic human experience by way of the most ubiquitous musical genre: love songs. From the Biblical Solomon to 12th-century troubadours to Taylor Swift, romantic love has remained a central topic for songs. Yet conceptions of love---not to mention sex, gender, and sexuality---have undergone radical changes. How have love songs resisted or enabled these, and others? How has the form survived and evolved? Through close listening and careful readings of history, philosophy, and psychoanalysis, we will grapple with love's place in nature, society, and song. All levels and forms of musical expertise are welcome.