Humanities/Social Science   

This is a fun and adventurous look at the magic behind the visual effects seen in motion pictures today. From the earliest days of motion pictures, we’ll explore the twists and turns in the history and evolution of basic filmmaking technologies that have enabled storytellers to bring fantastic and beautiful worlds to the silver screen, dazzling audiences from the days of Georges Melies to the Marvel Movie Universe.

Class Size Limit: 15

This course takes you behind the scenes of MOFA’s fall exhibitions. You will learn about the artwork, making and installation of two exhibitions: Homo Sargassum--contemporary artists considering the migration of seaweed--and The Quilts of Mrs. Gussie Beatrice Arnold Hill, a collection inherited by School of Dance professor and fifth-generation Tallahasseean Anjali Austin.

Class Size Limit: 15

Mendelssohn is beloved among Romantic-era composers, and his writing for strings is lyrical and compelling. He created beautiful music from the heart, including many favorites like the Italian Symphony, the Violin Concerto, his oratorio Elijah, the Overture to the Hebrides, and the Christmas carol, Hark! The Herald Angels Sing. In this course, we'll investigate Mendelssohn’s life, his significance and his compositional trademarks through an exploration of his glorious string quartets.

Class Size Limit: 90

This course offers individuals who have little or no piano experience the chance to receive a thorough introduction to playing this versatile instrument. The group setting will help make learning less daunting and more enjoyable. Students will develop elementary note-reading skills, the ability to play chords, simple repertoire pieces and familiar tunes. Additionally, the class will include collaborative learning activities such as playing duets and other ensemble pieces.

Class Size Limit: 7

What is philosophy, and what do philosophers do? In this course, we answer these questions by exploring even bigger questions that have captivated philosophers over millennia: What gives life value? What can we know? Does God exist? And more!

Class Size Limit: 90

This course is designed for students with some working knowledge of Spanish who want to enhance their conversational skills. The aim of the class is to provide an informal and enjoyable environment where students feel comfortable learning about and speaking this beautiful language-- español! Using interactive activities to encourage speaking there will be a fun, immersive feeling -- as if you are actually visiting a Hispanic country.

Suggested Reading: Spanish for Everyone (on Amazon)

Class Size Limit: 15

This course follows Gauguin, van Gogh, Seurat, Cézanne, Matisse and Kandinsky from the late 1880s to the late 1910s. Each artist broke with Impressionist spontaneity and naturalism to create more ordered views of nature, express emotional responses to nature, or depict deeper spiritual symbolism. Using simplified colors and definitive forms, their art was characterized by stylistic innovations that led to 20th-century abstraction.

Class Size Limit: 60

Using recordings, photos and live music, the course traces the mountain dulcimer from its Appalachian origins to the present. From mountain family gatherings and church services through the Greenwich folk revival to the current crossover into other musical genres, such as jazz, blues and rock 'n roll, the course explores the role this simple instrument has played in American culture.

Class Size Limit: 60

Linda Schuyler Ford combines intriguing biographical sketches, anecdotes and oral storytelling in this fascinating celebration of "America's author," Washington Irving. A colorful presentation carries listeners from Irving's life in New York City to the Hudson Valley, with forays into government service and, ultimately, writing. Woven into this presentation are folktales that may well have shaped the author's passion. We'll close with a retelling of The Legend of Sleepy Hollow!

Class Size Limit: 90