Reviews of professor John Rakes

Rating: 4.0/5, difficulty: 3.0/5
Very enthusiastic about the material and is always willing to help! Overall a very caring professor. The class is lecture-heavy and may not come naturally to those with no background in music, so make sure to take good notes and pay attention in class. A great class to take to get your music gen ed out of the way!

Rating: 4.0/5, difficulty: 2.0/5
Fairly easy class in my book (I do have a musical background). Dr. Rakes' expectations are very clear and he clearly has a passion for the subject. Class can be boring, but he livens it up with lots of listening to (classical) music and fun facts about the composers. He's very understanding of personal circumstances and flexible with deadlines.

Rating: 4.0/5, difficulty: 2.0/5
He's very passionate about what he teaches, but recognizes that it's a gen ed class. For bigger assignments, just fulfill the requirements and you're fine. A little harder if you don't have any background in music going in, but entertaining. Quizzes are directly lecture based, so presence in class helps. Don't worry about participation though.