New Classes-Spring 2006

For immediate release:

Cal State L.A. to Offer New Courses in
Music, Dance, Korean and Archaeology
this Spring Quarter

Los Angeles, CA – Tap dancing, Asian music, the Korean language, and the realm of ancient cave rituals will be explored in four new courses offered at California State University, Los Angeles, this spring quarter, which begins March 27.

“The Music of Greater Asia” will examine music and culture of many Pan-Asian regions including China, Japan, Korea, Mongolia, Tibet, Pakistan, India, Iran and Armenia. It will also explore how cultures use music as a means to advance politics and religion. Taught by Satik Andriassian, the four-unit course (MUS 454L) is open to all majors and will meet every Tuesday and Thursday, 9:50-11:30 a.m. For class location, call the Department of Music at (323) 343-4060.

“The Evolution of Tap from Jig to Be-Bop” is a historical lesson on tap dance from the 19th century to the 21st century. It will be taught by the “Ambassador of Tap” Ardie Bryant, who has performed at the Disney Hall. Known as the “innovator of modern jazz tap,” Bryant’s career has spanned seven decades and included performances with legendary jazz artists Duke Ellington, Nat “King” Cole, Dizzy Gillespie, and Charlie Parker. The class (DANC 454L) will meet every Friday, 1:30-4:10 p.m., at Biological Sciences 144. For details, call the Department of Theatre Arts and Dance at (323) 343-4110.

“Elementary Korean” will examine the fundamental structure of the Korean language through hearing, speaking, reading and writing. The four-unit course (KOR 100A) also introduces students to the customs, culture and institutions of the Korean people. This class, taught by new part-time faculty Meena Chung, will meet every Tuesday and Thursday, 9:50-11:30 a.m., at King Hall B2005. For details, call the Department of Modern Languages and Literatures at (323) 343-4230.

“Mesoamerican Cave Archaeology” is possibly the only course of its kind in the country exploring ritual cave use among the ancient Olmec, Maya and Aztec. As it focuses on ancient Mesoamerican religious concepts of sacred landscape, the course also debates the importance of rituals involving human sacrifice in caves. Taught by James Brady, a pioneering scholar in Mesoamerican cave archaeology, this four-unit course (ANTH 454L) will meet every Tuesday and Thursday, 4:20-6 p.m., at King Hall C4073. (The class is also available through Open University.) For details, call the Department of Anthropology at (323) 343-2440.

Working for California since 1947: The 175-acre hilltop campus of California State University, Los Angeles is at the heart of a major metropolitan city, just five miles from Los Angeles’ civic and cultural center. More than 20,000 students and 185,000 alumni—with a wide variety of interests, ages and backgrounds--reflect the city’s dynamic mix of populations. Six colleges offer nationally recognized science, arts, business, criminal justice, engineering, nursing, education and humanities programs, among others, led by an award-winning faculty. Cal State L.A. is home to the critically-acclaimed Luckman Jazz Orchestra and to a unique university center for gifted students as young as 12. Among programs that provide exciting enrichment opportunities to students and community include an NEH- and Rockefeller-supported humanities center; a NASA-funded center for space research; and a growing forensic science program, to be housed in the Los Angeles Regional Crime Lab now under construction. www.calstatela.edu