MUS 24:
An Introduction to Opera (Winter 2012)
Great introduction to opera and
was very enjoyable.
I wanted to learn more about
opera so that I might better enjoy it. I learned a great deal and I will now
listen with “enlightened ears”[.]
he is clearly knowledgeable and
very enthusiastic about opera. I think there was novices and opera buffs in
class and he seemed to appeal to all
I’ve taken a number of
continuing studies courses and Ilias did a great job organizing the course and
designing a curriculum that was appropriate for all knowledge levels. Plus, he
always took the extra step to stay after class to answer questions, answer
emails, and to respond to feedback. I’d definitely look for his courses again.
Just great! Well-prepared,
clear, extremely interesting, fun. Gave us extra time at the end. Delightful.
The professor was very
approachable and provided lots of information that was very valuable. I know
nothing about opera and he helped you to learn by watching. I really enjoyed
the class.
Ilias kept the class’ attention
the entire time and shared his knowledge in a very interesting way. Great
speaker.
The instructor clearly loved
the subject and was delighted to share his knowledge. It was a joy to be in the
classroom. As a side, he clearly is not a native American and his word choice,
expression and explanations of the material was superior to that of many native
speakers teaching at universities and colleges in the U.S.
MUS
121: Practical Music Theory (Fall 2011)
Teaching style was excellent
for the heterogeneity of the group. He strove hard to be sure everyone could
understand the concepts.
It was an interesting approach
to music theory, with much of it requiring listening to music, both of
recordings and live piano.
He is very open to questions,
and does his best to make everything clear. He was well prepared each week, and
arrived early to enable students to ask additional questions. Very pleasant.
He is an excellent teacher. I
have limited knowledge of music theory and learned a lot. He was able to teach
effectively, both to students with minimal knowledge of music theory and to
those who are quite sophisticated.
There was a broad range of
backgrounds in music and music theory in the class; the instructor did an
excellent job of bridging the differences.
Illias [sic] is hands down one
of the best instructors in any field. Not only did he carefully and in detail
answered everyone’s questions, but he came up to twenty minutes earlier each
class session and stayed as much time after in order to answer questions and
explain the material. He emailed us frequently encouraging us to come to class
and to practice theory at home. Simply a wonderful teacher and person.
A great experience overall.
Great instructor. Inspiring.
Very interesting subject
matter. Audio samples provided on course website were useful for developing
one’s understanding.
Ilias Chrissochoidis was an
excellent instructor - earnest, dedicated, and patient, with a willingness to
explain, share, and inspire. His e-mail communications and website updates were
very appropriate for this class.
The instructor was
conscient[i]ous and obviously cared about the students’ understanding of the
material he chose to present.
The instructor was very
knowledgeable and experienced and this depth of knowledge was particularly
helpful in this class.
The teacher was good, inspiring
and well prepared.
Thank you for a magnificent
course. You opened my eyes to many things that were previously mystery.
Thanks so much for
teaching this excellent course. I’ve
enjoyed classical music for many years but have never understood it very well.
You’ve motivated me to want to learn more.
I have to admit that at first I
was a little skeptical thinking that this would be ‘light weight’, but as we
progressed I found that your approach was based on establishing a foundation
and has provided me with a structure through which I can now develop my
understanding of music theory, particularly harmony, shaping and cadence. I now
feel well prepared to venture further into my music interests.
I want you to know that I
thoroughly enjoyed your class, and found the concepts easier to understand as
you presented them than I have in another music theory class. Listening is the
key.
After attending your classes I
enjoy listening to music more and in [a] different way.
MUS
152: Music’s Anatomy: Classical Music from the Inside (Summer 2009)
Extremely knowledgeable, very
willing and able to communicate with students at all levels, Passionate about
music!
I was extremely impressed with
Ilias’s ability to play selections from complex classical works with such
apparent ease on the piano. That really added to the learning experience.
He’s a superb pianist, with a
broad knowledge of classical music at his fingertips. His knowledge of the
history of music is broad and deep.
Interesting (nontraditional)
approach to enhancing listening to classical music!
Even though this class was
different than I thought, I enjoy his teaching. I learned a lot from this
class.
Exactly what I was looking for.
I think that the vast majority
of students got a lot of information from this course, and I think that for
most students, this class was extremely helpful.
If there were a course that is
a natural extension of the material covered in this course, I would take it.
This has been one of the most
informative and enjoyable courses I’ve ever had the fortune to attend.
MUS
121: Practical Music Theory (Summer 2008)
Excellent instructor.
Very knowledgeable and
talented.
Excellent choice of material.
Very responsive to our needs.
As an introduction, well done!
Excellent instructor. Very
careful preparation <?> made very interesting.
Another class please.
Great course.
I would like to attend a second
part of this course.
Instructor’s piano playing
ability is excellent and really made the course.
I’d love to take a follow up to
this music class by Dr. Chrissochoidis.
Thank you Dr. C for a fantastic
class. You make piano / music a wonderful <?>
Very well prepared and
organised.
Excellent course &
delightful instructor.
MUS
144: Mozart and the Enlightenment (Spring 2008)
Very knowle[d]g[e]able – great
breadth of information.
I found his enthusiasm &
passion giving me energy & his way of describing the life of Mozart was
easy to understand.
Very good instructor.
What questions were asked were
always answered with insight.
The class was a real pleasure!
MUS
121: Practical Music Theory (Summer 2007)
What a wonderful first class on
Monday night! I’ve long been an avid consumer of classical music -- the theory
you presented feels like a new beginning toward really understanding what I’m
hearing.
MUS
131: Beethoven’s Symphonies (Fall 2006)
I just wanted to thank you
again for a truly great class. Your organization of the class was terrific and
your comments greatly improved my understanding of the works.
MUS
121: Practical Music Theory (Summer 2006)
I have enjoyed your MUS121
course thus far; it’s been great theoretical reinforcement for the more
practically-oriented guitar lessons I have been taking for the past two years.
Thank you Ilias for an
enjoyable and informative class.
Ilias, Thank you again for a
great course.
I would like you to know that I
enjoyed your course very much. I have been listening to 18th and 19th Century
music with more awareness of the structure and methods used by the composers.
Thank you for all the information you provided in six short weeks.
Belated thanks for an excellent
music theory course this summer. I was amazed each week by your ability to keep
us captivated for two straight hours, and by your encyclopedic knowledge and
memory of the music. I’d be most interested in a followup course that gets
deeper into chord progressions, modulations, etc., if one is ever offered.
Thank you again for an
outstanding course
MUS
127: Practical Introduction to Harmony (Spring 2006)
Fantastic! Opens doors in
listening and appreciating music.
I am very much enjoying your
course in harmony. The examples you give of the “harmonic progression” from the
18th to the 19th century are particularly interesting!
The class on harmony sounded
too interesting not to enroll in; I’m finding it extremely interesting. I opted
to take it for credit.
It was challenging at times,
but eye-opening.
The class was fantastic … one
of the best I’ve ever taken through Continuing Studies, and something that will
stay with me for the rest of my life, so I’m very grateful. I hope you will
consider teaching other classes in the future, whether on theory, history or
something else.
Thank you very much for the
enlightening class. My husband and I appreciate the introduction of the theory
followed by well-chosen examples.
I have always found harmony and
music theory very complex and
frustrating, but you have the gift of making the whole thing logical,
intelligent and even(gasp) fun!! Many, many thanks.
I really enjoyed your class and
learned very much. Please remind us if you will have another class in the future.
Thank you very much for the
words of support, but more than that, thank you for a wonderful course, brief
as it was. Your instruction was very insightful and extremely interesting. […]
Again, the course was a true joy for me. And it’s gotten me back to the
keyboard to noodle through the learnings.
HIS
122: Handel’s London (Fall 2005)
Instructor was very good at
connecting political, historical, cultural events with development in Handel’s
music.
The review of previous topics
at the start of each class was helpful.
The course was very focus[ed]
on connect[ing] the historical context of London with Handel’s development.
He is very knowledgeable and
thorough. He made the subject easy enough to comprehend yet hard enough to keep
us stimulated.
I learned a lot about Handel’s
life and how much the society he had lived in affected his work (and vice
versa).
Thanks for taking the time
after class last week to answer my questions about The Messiah. It was quite
extraordinary to see it and hear it on Saturday night. Is it too late for me to
opt to take your class for credit?
You certainly have linked
Handel to the outside world politically and socially, and I’ve got to
congratulate you on that.
MUS
121: Practical Music Theory (Summer 2005)
Despite a slow start, this
turned out to be the BEST music theory course I have ever taken!!
Extremely well chosen examples
on CD’s and also instructor playing others on the piano.
Extraordinarily well
organized!! Building logically in small, easily digested steps.
Wonderful! Clas[s]ified for me
many murky concepts from previous courses.
This course went way beyond
my expectations and I would implore you to provide more music theory
class of this caliber – preferably with this instructor! He was wonderful!!
the best teacher I have had for
music instruction. Very clear, practical, and enlightening.
the examples presented in class
were outstanding and have given me much greater understanding of everything I
listen to.
This was exactly the type of
course I was looking for as it is very immediate and practical in approach to
music theory. Would love to see more courses like this and would really
like to see more music theory and appreciation courses to continue taking.
Responsive to class individuals
& our questions. encouraging.
combination of musical examples
on CD, piano playing, humming, black board, was very helpful, teaching us to
hear.
Review, review, review helped
concepts & examples sink in.
I’d taken some piano lessons as
a child, have heard classical music all my life, but never gotten the structure
under it. Now I have something to listen for & participate in the
music more actively.
Ilias, thank you for the update
on last night’s class and for offering to stay a bit after the lecture
tomorrow. I have enjoyed your class and am hopeful music theory will be offered
on a regular basis. If you know of future classes, I would be interested in
signing up.
I want to tell you how much I
enjoyed your class. […]. It was very helpful to receive a well-organized
presentation of basic musical concepts. Some of the information was not new to
me, but much of it was. Now, when I look at a musical work, I see more to it.
Ilias, first I want to thank you
for an excellent theory class--it was nice that you stayed so late for us on
the last night.