The Informal
Music Presentation
Media & Music – Spring 2002
Purpose: To get you connecting issues
in the course with music that you find interesting. Also, this guarantees that you’ll hear at least
one song you like (if you want) during the course. And I don’t know what a media and music course
would be like without a lot of music.
The
Task:
- Bring a piece of music
to class that you think would be interesting to discuss. The song can be on a CD, CD-R, or tape.
If you record a version of the song yourself, make
sure it sounds alright before you come to class (for instance,
that the CD-R will play in a regular CD player).
- Before class, send me
an email with
the title of the song, the name of the performers and any
other important contributors (like a producer, for
instance),
album title, and date that the song was first available.
If the artist has a website (or if there’s a good
fan site), provide the link to the site as well.
I will post that information on the website.
- Tell the class about the
song and why you think it is interesting:
·
Place
the song in context: what genre is it?
If a person didn’t know anything about the kind
of music you’ve chosen, what would he or she have to know
in order to “get” it?
·
Is
there anything in particular that makes this song distinctive
(hooks, groove, timbres, production, performance style)?
·
Choose
ONE of the following options:
1.
Relate the song to one idea from
a reading or class discussion we’ve had. Is there a particular reading or topic we’ve
discussed that helps us to understand the song
in a new way?
Or, does this song help us understand something
we’ve
read or discussed in a new way?
2. Use the song to discuss one important intellectual
dimension of your semester project. What's interesting
about the song? How does it connect with what you're
trying to do?
Guidelines
and Tips:
- The song should be longer
than 1 minute, and shorter than 6 minutes.
- Your verbal presentation
(apart from the song) should be no more than 5 minutes, and
can be as short as 1-2 minutes.
- We will decide on the
first day of class whether there are any content guidelines
in terms of lyrics or tone for the songs.
- If you can’t think of
a good link between the song and something we’ve discussed
in class, then it’s probably a good idea to choose a different
song.
- This assignment cannot
be made up, but you may arrange with a classmate to switch
times if a conflict arises.
Just let me know that you’ve switched.
- Feel free to consult with
me if you have questions about what to do, or if you want
to run ideas by me.
Evaluation:
Presentations
are evaluated on the same scale as journals.
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