StMaryMusic

assignment for the weekend of sepember 29:
edit and type your papers. a TYPED second draft is due on tuesday. (see below)

listen to the beethoven sound files on the other website. (see below)

i'm working on a field trip for thurdsay, october 25 to see the New York Philharmonic....more details on that later.

assignment for wednesday, september 27:

read pp. 31-38

vocab: esoteric, suffuses, sanctum, arbitrary, circumspect, sullying, subordinate, proliferate, paradox, misnomer, abide

ROUGH DRAFT OF PAPER (HANDWRITTEN) IS DUE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

discussion questions:
why do so many cultures put so much meaning into music? (p 32)
how does current album cover art present values associated with the music? (p. 34, fig. 13)
do we NEED words to give music meaning? (pp37-38)

assignment for tuesday, september 26:

read pp. 24-31 in Cook

vocab: abate, ferment, efface, subordinate, congeal, aspiration, shambolic, intrinsic, sobriquet, coalesce, edification, valorization

discussion questions:
is there a way to avoid the creation of a "musical museum?" (p29, last line)
can a composer claim "authority" over a composition that he/she does not perform?
what is the role of the performer in other forms of music?
is performing a "cover" song in a rock context the same as a classical performer playing a piece by beethoben?
is an undeucated listener less "important" than and educated one?
what is your reaction to beethoven's music?

Urgent: turn in rough drafts by thursday. i'll return them on friday so that you can edit them over the weekend. HANDWRITTEN FIRST DRAFT OF PAPER IN RESPONSE TO COOK DUE THURSDAY!!! Final draft due monday.

assignment for monday, september 25 (continued):

read pp 19 - 24 in Cook.
listen to the posted audio files at www.hotcuprecords.com/music/Beethoven...(see below)

vocab: bourgeoisie, subjectivity, subversion, promulgate, epitomize, altruism
(vocab will be handed in all at once on friday)

discussion questions:
What is your reaction to Beethoven's 5th symphony or the Appassionata Sonata? (see page 21 in Cook)
How did capitalism effect music?
How does Rossini differ from Beethoven?
Is it easier to listen to Beethoven in the manner described in lines 1-5 on page 23?
How does Beethoven resemble the "American Dream?"

by friday, you'll need to turn in a handwritten draft of a 500 word (or so) paper on one of the discussion questions or some other idea relating to the Book. (no random ideas) i'll also collect the week's vocab on friday.

assignment for monday:
log on to www.hotcuprecords.com/music/BeethovenS51.mp3 and listen to Beethoven's 5th symphony. there are 4 movements, and to hear each one, change the number after "BeethovenS5_.mp3 to the numbers 2 (second movement), 3, and 4.
eg: www.hotcuprecords.com/music/BeethovenS52.mp3

it is important to be familiar with a great deal of Beethoven's music if you are to understand the next chapeter in Cook.

there are also several movements from his piano sonatas posted:
first movement of the "Waldstein" sonata ...music/BeethovenP1.mp3
"appassionata" sonata ....../music/BeethovenP2.mp3 through ...music/BeethovenP5.mp3

listen to these while you're reading.
i'll post the pages to read and vocab for monday tomorrow.

on that note....i'm not into getting 4 separate pages of vocab so.....

turn in all the vocab for the week on friday in one packet.

assignment for friday/monday:

you should be finished with chapter 1 in cook.
all vocab lists should already have been turned in.
late assignments can be dropped off monday.
i should also have your re-written and typed version of your first paper.

assignment for thursday, september 21:
read pp. 14 to 18 in Cook.

vocab: continuity, antecedent, evanescent, petpetuate, nexus, corpus

vocab and edited, typed versions of your summer paper are due Friday!!!

discussion questions:
what are some other shortcomings of the current system of music criticism?
how do you feel about the GCSE syllabus and curriculum? would you like to see it used here?
are the opinions in the last paragraph widespread in popular culture?

CLARIFICATION!!!
you only need to turn in VOCAB on a daily basis. the posted questions are to guide you in your weekly essays. (this week's essay is a re-typed and edited version of last week's) over the weekend you will write a 1-2 page, handwritten paper in response to one of the questions, or some other idea you have about the text. if you have questions, ask me by posting a comment on this page.

assignment for wednesday, september, 20.
read pages 6 to 14 in Cook "Authenticity in Music"

vocab: oppress, porcine, artifice, viceral, derivative, aficionado, transgression, anachronistic, acumen, disparage, cynically, pandering, charismatic, capicious, conspicuous.

vocab is due thursday.

discussion questions:
is there a difference between groups like the spice girls, and milli vanilli?
how does the record industry promote authenticity?
why were people so outraged at ashlee simpson?
why do people assume what they are seeing is "real"?
can the term "hyperreality" be used to describe current pop music?
in the middle paragraph on p. 14, whose values are being stated?

the listening website is up. i'll be posting mp3 files for you to listen to. they'll correspond with the readings...most of the time.
to access it, you'll need to always type in the full URL for the specific track. right now, there's only one file: www.hotcuprecords.com/music/BeethovenS51.mp3....yes, i used my site for my quasi-existent record label, but it'll do the job. that track is symphony #5, first movement....hence the file name. more on the way...

assignment for tuesday, sept 18: read pages 1-6 in Cook.

vocab: wistful, aspiration, juxtaposition, authenticity, sonorities, culminate, oratory, emigre, tenacious, hierarchy, poignantly, adulate.

Discussion questions:
Do any current commercials use the same technique as the one discussed by Cook?
Have our associations and connotations towards "rock" and "classical" music changed at all since this book was written?

vocab is due wednesday.

for friday: rewrite your "summer music" papers with corrections, and turn in a TYPED, yes, TYPED version by Friday.

the first reading assignments for the class will be from Cook. anyone who still needs to purchase a copy must do so very quickly. for this weekend, read the 4 page introduction. vocab format is on the syllabus, and the following questions may be used as topics for next week's response paper.

Vocab: pluralism, suffuse, association, connotation

vocab is due tuesday

Discussion questions:
What is the Mercury Prize and what is its importance?
What do shopping malls have to do with musical pluralism?
What is the meaning of Elvis Costello's quote on the third page?
How is Mr. Costello right and how is he wrong?

essays on the music you listened to this summer is due by 2:30 friday in the auditorium.

Hello all!
This will be where you check for assignments, ask questions, or argue about music for St. Mary's independent study class.
We will be meeting after school on Monday, Septemper 11.