Exploring the music of Richard Strauss
From the heady waltzes of Der Rosenkavalier to the awe-inspiring opening of Also sprach Zarathrustra, come and delve into the life and works of the brilliant – and controversial – composer and conductor, Richard Strauss.
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Learning modes and locations may be different depending on the course start date. Please check the location of your chosen course and read our guide to learning modes and locations to help you choose the right course for you.
- Start Date: 16 Sep 2025End Date: 25 Nov 2025Tue (Daytime): 10:30 - 12:30In PersonLocation: Keeley StreetDuration: 10 sessions (over -11 weeks)Course Code: MD036ATutors: Katy HamiltonFull fee £269.00 Senior fee £215.00 Concession £188.00
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What is the course about?
There are few musical genres that don’t feature in the output of Richard Strauss, a prolific composer of songs, stageworks, chamber music and huge orchestral spectaculars. He was also hugely admired as a conductor – and, in the 1930s and 1940s, seemed to support (or at the very least be prepared to play along with) the National Socialist regime in Germany. We discover his prestigious musical family, his brilliant operatic successes and scandals, and the knotty history of his final decade during and after the Second World War.
Break week 28 October 2025.What will we cover?
- Biographical details of Richard Strauss, including his musical training and the influence of his father
- Case studies of Strauss’s key works (orchestral, operatic and vocal), placing them in their appropriate context, historically and musically, and analysing them in terms of their musical style and content
- Tracing Strauss’s move from late Romanticism to Modernism – and discussing whether or not he later went ‘backwards’, stylistically
- His importance as an influence on composers of his own day, as well as his impact as a performer and advocate for other musicians
What will I achieve?
By the end of this course you should be able to...
- Identify the key biographical moments in Strauss’s life, and the works that made his reputation
- List some of his most important compositions
- Recognise the importance that Strauss had as a composer and performer on his contemporaries
- Identify the formal, harmonic and melodic characteristics of certain key works by Strauss, and describe the changes to his approach over time
What level is the course and do I need any particular skills?
This course is designed as an overview for both beginners and enthusiasts. However, we will look at some music manuscripts and learn to identify key features of music notation (how many voices are singing, etc…) so this course will be most suitable for those who are curious and ambitious to learn.
How will I be taught, and will there be any work outside the class?
- Sessions will comprise combinations of lecture, discussion, quizzes, guided listening, video and score study.
- Course materials (handouts, scores, links to online videos) will be shared via google classroom.
- You will be encouraged to do extra reading outside class.
Are there any other costs? Is there anything I need to bring?
Please have a notebook and pen handy for note-taking.
You may wish to buy some of the music or books recommended in class.
When I've finished, what course can I do next?
To find out more about music history classes Music history courses in London and online which lists our full programme of classes ordered by term, and by day of the week. You may then click on each title to read the full course outline.
Dr Katy Hamilton is a freelance researcher, writer and presenter on music. She is fast becoming one of the UK’s most sought-after speakers on music, providing talks for a host of organisations including the Wigmore Hall, Southbank Centre, BBC Proms, Ryedale Festival and Oxford Lieder Festival. In addition, she regularly writes programme notes for the Salzburg Festival, North Norfolk Festival and the Philharmonia Orchestra, and is a frequent contributor to BBC Radio 3’s Record Review. Katy worked as Graham Johnson’s research assistant for his monumental Franz Schubert: The Songs and their Poets (Yale University Press, 2014) and is co-editor of Brahms in the Home and the Concert Hall (Cambridge University Press, 2014) and Brahms in Context (Cambridge University Press, 2019). In addition to her research and presentation work, Katy has taught at the Royal College of Music, City Lit, the University of Nottingham and Middlesex University, working with students in performance workshops and music history classes. She has been teaching Music History courses at City Lit since 2015. She is also Public Events Programmer at the Foundling Museum in central London.
Please note: We reserve the right to change our tutors from those advertised. This happens rarely, but if it does, we are unable to refund fees due to this. Our tutors may have different teaching styles; however we guarantee a consistent quality of teaching in all our courses.
