Eckerd Colleges Music Video Course Turns Undergraduates into Cultural Analysts
Eckerd College in St. Petersburg, Florida, is using music videos as a classroom tool to teach students how to read sound and image in the same way a film class reads narrative and mise‑en‑scène. Assistant Professor of Music Ryan J. Lambe runs a course called Music Videos and Identities in the Autumn Term that blends technical analysis of music with broader cultural questions.
Lambe explains that music videos are “bite‑sized” media that are easy for first‑year students to engage with. He says, “Pretty much everyone has immediate responses to music videos, so there’s a buy‑in there already.” The first part of the semester focuses on developing a vocabulary for describing melody, bass layers, and the timing of instruments entering and leaving a track. Students then apply that language to the visual component of a video.
After establishing a technical foundation, the class moves to cultural analysis. Lambe uses contemporary examples such as the hyper‑pop duo 100 Gecs, whose member Laura Les is transgender. The band’s use of autotune and rapid vocal modulation creates a visual and sonic ambiguity that challenges viewers’ assumptions about gender. Lambe also discusses how artists respond to social issues, citing Childish Gambino’s “This Is America” as a case study of musicians addressing racism, gun violence, and police brutality.
Student reactions highlight the course’s impact. AJ Mondala, a first‑year majoring in marine science and Spanish, says he was uncertain about taking a music class but now enjoys it. Mondala, who plays drums, guitar, bass and piano, notes that the video for Green Day’s “Basket Case” was a turning point. The clip uses a black‑and‑white aesthetic combined with a “digital medium” that adds fake colors, giving the video a distinctive look. He says, “It’s funny, I’ve kind of already started doing that.” Mondala now watches music videos more frequently, asking what messages the creators intend to convey.
Lambe stresses the value of a liberal‑arts education that allows students to explore subjects outside their major. He says, “Students have come to me feeling as though they cannot study music in college. I tell them they can.” Lambe holds a doctorate in music education and cross‑cultural musicology and has published ethnographic work on performance and emotion in U.S. queer open mics.
The course is part of Eckerd’s music department, which offers undergraduate and graduate programs in classical, pop, rock and jazz traditions. The college’s emphasis on interdisciplinary study aligns with the course’s approach, which blends music theory, media studies, and cultural criticism.
While the course is still in its Autumn Term iteration, early feedback suggests that students are gaining a new appreciation for the role of music videos in contemporary culture. The class demonstrates how a short visual piece can serve as a lens for examining broader social issues, and it provides students with analytical tools that can be applied to other media.
Eckerd College’s Music Videos and Identities course illustrates how music education can extend beyond performance and composition to include critical media literacy. By engaging with both the sonic and visual elements of popular videos, students learn to interpret cultural messages and to recognize the ways in which music and image intersect in the digital age.
