The Aquila Report

Your independent source for news and commentary from and about conservative, orthodox evangelicals in the Reformed and Presbyterian family of churches

  • Biblical
    and Theological
  • Churches
    and Ministries
  • People
    in the News
  • World
    and Life News
  • Lifestyle
    and Reviews
    • Books
    • Movies
    • Music
  • Opinion
    and Commentary
  • General Assembly
    and Synod Reports
    • ARP General Synod
    • EPC General Assembly
    • OPC General Assembly
    • PCA General Assembly
    • PCUSA General Assembly
    • RPCNA Synod
    • URCNA Synod
  • Subscribe
    to Weekly Email
  • Biblical
    and Theological
  • Churches
    and Ministries
  • People
    in the News
  • World
    and Life News
  • Lifestyle
    and Reviews
    • Books
    • Movies
    • Music
  • Opinion
    and Commentary
  • General Assembly
    and Synod Reports
    • ARP General Synod
    • EPC General Assembly
    • OPC General Assembly
    • PCA General Assembly
    • PCUSA General Assembly
    • RPCNA Synod
    • URCNA Synod
  • Subscribe
    to Weekly Email
  • Search
Home/Featured/Oxford May Ditch Sheet Music Because It’s ‘Colonialist’

Oxford May Ditch Sheet Music Because It’s ‘Colonialist’

It's part of a faculty effort to 'decolonize' the curriculum

Written by Phil Shiver | Thursday, April 1, 2021

In one of the documents seen by the Telegraph, professors state, “Arising from international Black Lives Matter demonstrations, the Faculty Board proposed making changes to enhance the diversity of the undergraduate curriculum.” Similar rebranding is ongoing in colleges, secondary, and elementary schools across the United States, as progressive educators and school board members push critical race theory ideas into classrooms.

 

The University of Oxford is reportedly considering removing sheet music from its music curriculum as part of sweeping changes intended to “decolonize” the program.

What are the details?

Professors within the university’s music department branded musical notation as a “colonialist representational system” amid a revamp of their musical education offerings, the Telegraph reported on Saturday.

The notation, which has not “shaken off its connection to its colonial past” would be a “slap in the face” for some students of color, professors stated in proposal for change documents obtained by the news outlet.

Elsewhere in the documents, members of the music faculty reportedly questioned the current curriculum’s “complicity in white supremacy.”

They specifically took issue with the classical collection taught at the school — which includes works by Mozart and Beethoven — alleging it focuses too much on “white European music from the slave period.”

Additionally, the faculty members proposed that certain classical musical skills such as playing the piano and conducting orchestral arrangements should no longer be mandatory, given that these “structurally center white European music,” causing “students of color great distress.”

Read More

Related Posts:

  • Living Life with a Constant Musical Soundtrack
  • Curriculum Battle in Texas
  • The Biggest Problem in Worship Education
  • The Psalms’ Quiet Case for Musical Diversity
  • The Power of Song in the Life of the Church

Subscribe to Free “Top 10 Stories” Email

Get the top 10 stories from The Aquila Report in your inbox every Tuesday morning.

Name(Required)

Archives

Subscribe, Follow, Listen

  • email-alt
  • facebook
  • twitter
  • apple-podcasts
  • anchor
Belhaven University

Books

Tool Small by Craig Biehl - Why Atheists Can't Know What They Say They Know
Drawing Water with Joy: 100 Devotions from the Wells of Salvation - click for details
That Hideous Strength: A Deeper Look at How the West was Lost (Expanded Edition)
  • About
  • Advertise Here
  • Contact Us
  • Donate
  • Email Alerts
  • Leadership
  • Letters to the Editor
  • Principles and Practices
  • Privacy Policy

Free Subscription

Aquila Report Email Alerts

Books

The Letter of Jude - book from Tulip Publishing
  • About
  • Advertise Here
  • Contact Us
  • Privacy Policy
  • Principles and Practices
  • RSS Feed
  • Subscribe to Weekly Email Alerts

DISCLAIMER: The Aquila Report is a news and information resource. We welcome commentary from readers; for more information visit our Letters to the Editor link. All our content, including commentary and opinion, is intended to be information for our readers and does not necessarily indicate an endorsement by The Aquila Report or its governing board. In order to provide this website free of charge to our readers,  Aquila Report uses a combination of donations, advertisements and affiliate marketing links to  pay its operating costs.

Return to top of page

Website design by Five More Talents · Copyright © 2026 The Aquila Report · Log in