Music has always stirred controversy - sometimes through bold originality, other times through scandal. In the Classical tradition, composers like Beethoven, Stravinsky, and Smetana pushed boundaries that shocked audiences and critics. On Broadway and in Hollywood, changing attitudes toward race, consent, gender, and sexuality have prompted debates and revisions of works such as Annie Get Your Gun and South Pacific. Does social sensitivity enhance art, or does it risk erasing cultural heritage? Should works with outdated views on religtion, domestic violence, or prejudice be changed - or kept for historical context? Explore plagiarism and musical borrowing in pop and film music, including controversies surrounding The Beatles, Pink Floyd, and Peter Frampton. Filled with audiovisual examples, anecdotes, and humor, this course offers a lively dive into music’s most provocative debates and scandals. Click here for a promo video.
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