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Hampden-Sydney College: Spring 2016 Music 121.01: Fundamentals of Music TR 10:00-11:20 a.m. Classroom: Winston 203 Professor: Dr. R. David Salvage E-mail: dsalvage@hsc.edu Office: Winston 204 Office Hours: Tuesday, 12:00 noon – 1:30 p.m.; Friday, 2:30 – 3:50 p.m.; or by appointment

SYLLABUS

Introduction In Music 121, successful students will acquire basic musical literacy, familiarity with concepts fundamental to the structure of music, and an improved ability to identify musical events by ear, thereby becoming better prepared to compose, perform, or study music. The course is intended for those with little or no prior experience with music. Required Text Please bring this book—and a pencil--to class every day.

Ghezzo, Marta Árkossy. 2005. Solfège, ear training, rhythm, dictation, and music theory: A

comprehensive course. 3rd ed, revised. Tuscaloosa: University of Alabama.

Requirements and Grading Lesson Quizzes 35% Most class meetings will begin with a short quiz on the material covered the previous meeting. Except for classes when we focus on music skills and composition, we will cover one lesson from Ghezzo per meeting. There will be twenty-one quizzes, the lowest six of which will be dropped. Music Skills 15% Over the course of the semester, you will need to demonstrate your ability to complete some basic musical tasks. You will choose one of two tracks to fulfill this requirement: keyboard or choir. These tracks are described in the “Music Skills” section after the syllabus. The keyboard track requires three short individual meetings with me during the semester; the choral track requires that you join the H-SC Men’s Chorus and earn at least a B average in that class. Both tracks are generally graded pass/fail. Compositions (2) 10% You will compose two original, short compositions this semester. The pieces will be for solo piano, and I will perform them in class. They will be fully notated, and, time permitting, you will introduce your music to the class. Exams 35% We will have a midterm exam that covers the material from lessons 1 through 9 in Ghezzo; the midterm is worth 10% of your grade. The final exam will cover all the material in the class and will be worth 25%.

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Concert Attendance 5% You are required to attend two of three recommended concerts this semester. At both

concerts, you must turn in your program to me in person and signed after the concert. (I will not accept programs the day after.) If you have too many scheduling conflicts with the Series concerts, you may—with advance approval—attend a concert off campus. Important Dates Thursday, January 21 First lesson quiz (lessons 1 and 2, combined) Wednesday, February 10 Concert 1: Crawley Forum, 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, February 16 Last day to complete keyboard 1 Thursday, February 18 Composition 1, group 1 Tuesday, February 23 Composition 1, group 2 Thursday, February 25 Midterm March 8 and 10 NO CLASS. Spring Break Thursday, March 31 Last day to complete keyboard 2 Thursday, April 7 Concert 2: Crawley Forum, 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, April 12 Composition 2, group 1 Thursday, April 14 Composition 2, group 2 Friday, April 22 Concert 3: Crawley Forum, 7:30 p.m. Saturday, April 30 Final Exam: 9:00 a.m.-12:00 noon Wednesday, May 4 Last day to complete keyboard 3 Miscellaneous Course Policies The attendance policy is built into the lesson quiz drop policy. Because I drop so many lesson quizzes, I will not allow any retakes or make ups, even if your absence is excused. If you miss more than six lesson quizzes, I will alert the Associate Dean of the Faculty.

Except while we are waiting for everyone to finish the day’s quiz, leaving class for any length of time for any reason except a health emergency will count as half an unexcused absence. Going to the bathroom does not count as a health emergency.

Naturally, you may make up the midterm only if you have an excused absence that day. Music Skills meetings take place outside of class and can therefore be scheduled around your

other obligations and any unforeseen circumstances. You are not allowed to use laptop computers in class. They are a distraction, and studies have

shown that students remember more and acquire a deeper understanding of course material when taking notes in longhand.1 How to Prepare for this Class Excluding class meetings, I expect you to work anywhere from two to five hours each week on this class. Here is one way you might organize this time.

• Study at least one hour for each lesson quiz. In addition to the theoretical material presented in each lesson, work on playing the Intonation Exercises found in each lesson on a piano or other

1 “Take Notes by Hand for Better Long-Term Comprehension.” Association for Psychological Science, last modified April 24, 2014, http://www.psychologicalscience.org/index.php/news/releases/take-notes-by-hand-for-better-long-term-comprehension.html

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instrument. (Electric keyboards can be checked out from the Fuqua Center downstairs in the library.) Or, you might input them and play them back using one of the many free music notation software programs available on the internet. (One of them, Finale Notepad, is linked to on the course Blackboard site.) If you are really ambitious, you might even try to do the Dictation found at the end of each lesson in the book.

• Work on your music skills component between a half hour and two hours each week. The particular work you do depends on which track you choose. For more information, see “Music Skills” below.

• When you have a composition to write, you will probably need to work 30 minutes every day on it for a week.

• Study extra for the midterm and final. Beginning a week before the midterm, you should prepare by studying one hour every day. Beginning a week before the final, you should study an hour a day, and two hours on each “study day.”

MUSIC SKILLS To fulfill the music skills part of this class, you need to complete the keyboard or choral track. Keyboard Track

You will need to demonstrate your ability to perform basic keyboard skills within a strict time limit. You will demonstrate these skills one-on-one with me. These sessions will for the most part be graded pass/fail, though I may on occasion give an intermediate grade. If you fail to show up for your appointment without prior notice, you will receive a 0. Each demonstration is worth 5% of your final grade.

1. Treble Clef (due by February 16) Having some facility at the keyboard will help you grasp the concepts we cover in class.

It all begins, however, with learning the treble clef. At your first keyboard test, you will read notes in treble clef and play them on the piano.

You will get more of a sense of how to do this after the second class meeting. Afterwards, you should try playing the scales, musical examples, intonation exercises, and solfège exercises in the book. (Ignore the rhythm if it is too hard for you: you won’t be required to play any rhythm on this test.)

2. Bass Clef and Intervals (due by March 31)

You will have to demonstrate that you can read the bass clef and play bass-clef notes on the piano. After you do this, you will need to play several intervals that I select at random. You may play them on any notes you choose. By the time late September rolls around, you should have a good sense of how to play different intervals—but we don’t hit bass clef until after fall break.

3. Triads and Scales or Bach’s Prelude in C Major (due by May 4)

For the third and final meeting, you have a choice. The easier option: You can play randomly selected major, minor, diminished, and

augmented triads. You will also select two scales—one major (except C), one minor (except A)—to play; you will play both scales with your right and then your left hand.

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The harder option: You can learn Bach’s Prelude in C Major and play it from the score. You’ll find the music on the Blackboard site.

Practice Pianos and Keyboards: You may use the pianos in the Winston mainspace and rooms 201, 203, and 207 to practice keyboard work. Winston is open all night (or, at least, until very late). You may use the mainspace piano at any time, unless an art class is in session nearby. Room 201 is open when I am on campus (usually M-F, 9:30-5:30). Room 203 is open all the time, though is often used for classes. Room 207 is open and available at all times. You may also check out an electric keyboard from the Fuqua Center, downstairs in the Library, and use the keyboard there or in your dorm room. Finally, there are pianos located in College Church which may be used for practice.

Choral Track

Alternatively, you may enroll in Men’s Chorus to meet your music skills requirement. If you earn at least a B in Men’s Chorus, you will receive the full 15% available for this component of the class. Men’s Chorus meets Tuesday and Thursday evenings from 7:30-8:50 p.m. in Winston 203. To enroll, register for MUSI 250, Theory and Practice of Choral Music. The class is worth one academic credit.

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MISCELANOUS INFORMATION Music Minor

The requirements for a minor in Music are 15 credit hours; Music 221 and 321 (Music Theory I

and II) are required, as is any one additional 300-level music class other than Music 350-353 (Theory and Practice of Choral Music) or Music 354-357 (Theory and Practice of Instrumental Ensemble Music); to complete the minor, students must take any two courses from among the following: Music 101 (Introduction to Music Literature), Music 216 (Music of the Twentieth Century), Music 217 (American Music), Music 218 (Jazz History), Music 219 (History of Opera), and Physics 135 (The Physics of Sound). Students pursuing the minor in Music are strongly encouraged to participate in two semesters of Music 250-253 (Theory and Practice of Choral Music) or Music 254-257 (Theory and Practice of Instrumental Ensemble Music). Private Instrument Lessons at Longwood

Students interested in taking private music lessons for academic credit can do so at Longwood

University by enrolling in Music 155/156, 255/256 through the Longwood University Cooperative Program. The lessons cost $355 per semester, take place weekly, last a half hour, and count for one credit. Interested students should contact immediately the professor who teaches the instrument they would like to learn. If the professor can take you on as a student, you will need to fill out paperwork with the H-SC registrar. Elizabeth Brightbill Flute brightbillem@longwood.edu David Niethamer Clarinet niethamerdb@longwood.edu J. Chris Thomas Percussion ct.music@netscape.com George Tuckwiller Trumpet, French Horn gtuckwil@vsu.edu Stephanie F. Ycaza Low Brass (434) 395-2504 Lisa Edwards-Burrs Voice burrsle@longwood.edu Roland Karnatz Clarinet karnatzra@longwood.edu Christopher Swanson Voice swansoncl@longwood.edu Fran Coleman Voice (434) 395-2504 Kristen Topham Piano (434) 395-2504 Andrew McEvoy Guitar (434) 395-2504 Music Interest Club (MIC) MIC is one of the largest and most active clubs on campus. MIC’s activities include informal jams, electronic music production, and more. Interested students should contact Taylor Chamberlin (chamberlint17@hsc.edu).