course-details-portlet

MUSV3147

Music in audiovisual culture

Choose study year

Lessons are not given in the academic year 2026/2027

Credits 7.5

Level Second degree level

Language of instruction Norwegian

Location Trondheim

About the course

Course content

Music is an integral part of our experiences in the movie theater and in front of the television screen. In later years, music has provided rhythm and affective intensity to our digital lives and our screen-based interaction, from TikTok and music videos to music in video games. In this course, students will study music in such audiovisual contexts. The course will feature studies of film music and music in television, music video, video game music, and other exciting combinations of sound and image in digital media.

What kinds of effects arise from the meeting of sound and image? In many cases the music will be a deciding factor for how we experience and interpret what we see. Sometimes music and image weld together in ways that make us not consciously aware of the music at all. At other times, we remember the music better than we do the images. In this course we will study a range of theories and perspectives on the relation between music and moving images, and on the use of music and sound in visual storytelling. These will then be connected to specific examples of how music and sound has been applied in film, in television, and in video games.

Learning outcome

Knowledge:

Candidates who successfully complete MUSV3147 will have gained knowledge of:

Relations between music and moving images.
The role and function of music in digital media.
Key stylistic features of recent film music, television music, and video game music.

Skills:

Candidates who successfully complete MUSV3147 will be able to:

Interpret and discuss musical choices in film and other audiovisual expressions
Present their knowledge of music in audiovisual culture orally and in writing
Do interdisciplinary analyses that place musical issues into a broader cultural, technological and media context
Perform audiovisual analyses of a range of audiovisual forms in digital media

Learning methods and activities

Teaching in this course will consist of combined lectures and seminar activities. This may include listening and analysis, group work and discussions, and oral presentations.

Compulsory assignments

Attendance at lectures and seminars (at least 80%)
Two short written assignments

Further on evaluation

Individual semester assignment (essay) submitted digitally in Inspera, as a pdf-file, at the end of the semester. The essay should have a length of 4000-6000 words. The course instructor will present the essay question in the first half of the semester.

If the course is not passed, the student must retake the whole assessment. If the candidate retakes the exam, there is no need to retake the compulsory assignments.

Specific conditions

Admission to a programme of study is required:
Creative Music Technology (MMUST)
Film Production (BFVPROD)
Film Studies (BFV)
Film and Media Studies (MFMV)
Media Studies (BMV)
Music Performance (MMUSP)
Music Performance Studies (BMUSP)
Music Performance Studies - Jazz (BMUSK)
Music Technology (BMUST)
Musicology (BMUSV)
Musicology (MMUSV)

Credit reductions

Course code	Reduction	From
MUSV6004	7.5 sp	Autumn 2025

This course has academic overlap with the course in the table above. If you take overlapping courses, you will receive a credit reduction in the course where you have the lowest grade. If the grades are the same, the reduction will be applied to the course completed most recently.