The course deals with the relationship between music and society in the following twofold aspects: a) “music as agency” in everyday life; b) the social construction of the carriers of musical texts and musicians. The first part of the course will provide to the students the analytical tools for understanding how and to what extent the music can contribute to construct the social meanings of experience, time and space. The second part will address and problematize the notion of musical genius, by showing its social aspects.