People often say that "music is a universal language." But is music a language? And is it really universal? This course explores how people actually communicate - or think they communicate - using music and language. We look at how different cultural contexts shape the ways in which people talk about music, make meaning out of music, and decide who (or what) has a "voice." You will learn how to analyze scholarship in ethnomusicology and linguistic anthropology, understand how people interact through music and language, and think critically about why music moves you.