Maximillian Schmeder

Max’s is so good that I cannot put down leisure in this cozy Friday night and write this review. He is the best instructor I’ve had in Columbia, not one of. If you are in his section, I would think you are really blessed. His class is great in 2 aspects. 1.The Evaluation Structure: A concert report is a required component for music hum. Students in some sections may have headache how to write it. In Max’s class, I do not have such agony. Max does not expect you to write a mellifluous paper that may provoke him, or bash you how bad you appreciate music. So when you are in concert(whose attendance is required for music hum), you can really enjoy the concert or opera without distraction of finding clues how to fill in several words in report. The grade is based on attendance, participation, midterm, final, quizzes and homework. Homework is not hard and very useful. It helps you understand the pieces.(fugue) His penalty to absence is harsh but I promise his class is so interesting that you would enjoy every class. Almost each class has a quiz: one for assigned reading and one for listening. There are a lots of quizzes but it is not hard if you keep up to his schedule. Reading is not long at all. He usually writes reading by himself, with pictures of his choice. It not only saves you lots of money but also his reading handout is very neat! Listening quiz is to give an answer if the…

Max was a great teacher and his lectures were always engaging. I had his class in the Spring 09, it seems like he toned down the work load a bit from the previous review... If you are looking for a great experience and to learn something, then this is the class for you. If you are just looking to fulfill your Music Hum requirement and get an easy A - this is NOT the class for you.

Max Schmeder made Ear Training an extremely enjoyable class. I had never taken a music class before and Max made me feel really comfortable. He is really funny and really interested in his students, often going on wild tangents about something a student brings up. His classes usually involve him asking students to sing or tap some of the homework exercises and then doing dictations or interval training. His tests are tough but fair and he gives you a lot of time to prepare. He could do a better job teaching intervals because he puts them on the tests but makes you learn them from this interactive website,

He was one of the best professors I've met in my several semesters at Columbia; making involved into materials for even non-music majors. No writing and no reading materials, unlike other Music Hum professors. Study guide is given for exams, and exams are fairly easy if you just study the guide thoroughly. Also, he's a nice guy with humors. Strongly recommended professor. One note: His lectures might be difficult at first. Also, there are lots of terminology you should know for the exam. But you can rely on the study guide, which means that even you are lost during his lectures, no need to be scared of. Because the exams are only based on the study guide. I'm a non-music major, this was my first time in my life to actually take a course in music, and frankly speaking, didn't study at all for this class (except doing the weekly listening assignments). But I still ended up with an A-. This is probably the only course at Columbia that I didn't study at all (except the study guides and listening assignments) an was still on the A range.

Several homework assignments (especially at the beginning of the semester). min. 3 hrs of music to KNOW for each exam + lots of vocab terms, BUT he gives you a review sheet that has all of the non-music that you need to know; midterm, final + 2 concerts + 1 opera... we didn't have to write a review on our concerts...

daily singing and rythm exerices. He says he gives pop quizzes but he only gave one and it was announced. Midterm and final composed of intervals, chordal progressions, sight and prepared singing, and tapping exercises.

Max is an engaging (and fun) lecturer, and he's always willing to meet with you (and on pretty short notice) if you're having trouble with anything he assigns. I liked him and liked going to the class. However, the class he teaches is really much too freaking hard for a core class intended for non-majors. I constantly felt like I was in a 2000-level music theory class. From talking to friends, I figured out that no, it wasn't my imagination, Max's class is actually just about the hardest music hum. For example, 20% of his final is a 19-page, 12 point font list of terms (with paragraphs, not sentences defining them) that you need to memorize (in addition to the rest of the final, which is two hours of music you need to spend about 20 hours learning, and timelines you need to memorize, and class notes you need to review). I mean, I felt like it wasn't a class taught at the level non-majors should be expected to do well in, and also like it should have been a 4-credit class, not a 3-credit one. However, maybe this isn't all THAT bad since he's one of the most helpful, available professors I've had. Yet, I probably would be getting a MUCH better grade had I chosen a less demanding professor who teaches a less comprehensive class.....

In the beginning of an assignment, I felt the workload is a lot. after I got one done, I felt I would like to have more.

Low, comparing to other Music Hum classes. If you just keep up with the weekly listening assignments, you'll be fine. Weekly Quiz, Weekly HWs, 1 midterm, 1 final.

you need to attend two concerts, and write a 2-3 page paper about one you need to learn 2-3 hours of music for each final (be able to identify compositions when you hear them played) quizzes- some pop quizzes homeworks due just about every class, some of which can be extremely hard and time-consuming