Music History / Appreciation is a one semester class for students interested in understanding musical styles and forms and their origins. It also gives the serious music student a preparatory course that will be helpful in college. Students explore the Baroque, Classical and Romantic Periods. A complimentary one semester class offered in alternate years will cover American music from Folk Styles, Ragtime, Blues, Jazz and Swing through the early years of Rock and Roll. Students compare and contrast the styles and influences and the overall direction of American music.