Special Topics: Analysis of Jazz and Popular Music MUSI 4397, section 27957 MUSI 6394, section 27956 Dr. Tim Koozin
Spring 2009	office: MSM 148   (713)743-3318
TTh 10:00 - 11:30	email: tkoozin@uh.edu
MSM 116	web page: http://www.uh.edu/~tkoozin/   Assignments   eReserve   Study Questions     Final paper assignment

 

Note: When off-campus, students may need to enter the eReserves by way of the Music Library:
http://library.uh.edu/screens/anderson_reserves.html

 

Course Description: How can listening, transcription, and analysis enrich our understanding of jazz and popular music? We will study works from jazz and popular repertoires from perspectives of music theory, performer interaction, and meaning in social/historical context. Students will study assigned readings, prepare transcriptions “by ear” for analysis, and complete three research/analysis papers. Class meetings will take the form of a seminar, without formal lectures. Preparation and readiness to contribute in each class discussion is the student's responsibility.

 

Required readings and listening assignments are available through UH e-Reserve.

 

Grading and Policies
Class participation / assignments	25%
Papers (3 x 25%)	75%

Last day to drop without a grade: February 2.         Last day to drop or withdraw: April 7

UH Policies on Academic Honesty can be found online at: http://www.uh.edu/provost/stu/stu_syllabsuppl.html.

 

Students with disabilities are asked to bring to the instructor’s attention any special accommodations they may require.

 

 

Selected Topics and Readings

      Many pieces are discussed in the readings. Listen to any works you are less familiar with.

   

I. Popular music, gender, and meaning

  

1. Kruse, Holly. 1999. “Gender” in Key Terms in Popular Music and Culture.  Edited by Bruce Horner and Thomas Swiss. Blackwell, pp 85-95. eReserve

2. Burns, Lori and M. Lafrance. 2002. Disruptive Divas: Feminism, Identity, and Popular Music. Routledge Press. eReserve

3. Frith, Simon. 1996. Performing Rites. Oxford University Press. Chapter 9, pp. 183-202. eReserve

4. Middleton, Richard. 2001. “Pop, Rock, and Improvisation.” Cambridge Companion to Pop and Rock. New York: Cambridge University Press. Chapter 9, pp. 213-25. eReserve

5. Dibben, Nicola. 1999. “Representations of Femininity in Popular Music.” Popular Music 18: 331-355. eReserve

6. Clarke, Eric. 2005. Ways of Listening: An Ecological Approach to the Perception of Musical Making. Oxford University Press, Chapter 5 excerpts. eReserve

7. Allan F. Moore. 2005. The Persona-Environment Relation in Recorded Song. Music Theory Online, Volume 11/4. http://mto.societymusictheory.org/issues/mto.05.11.4/toc.11.4.html

8. Timothy Koozin. 2007. “Fumbling Towards Ecstasy: Voice Leading, Tonal Structure, and the Theme of Self-Realization in the Music of Sarah McLachlan” in Expression in Pop-Rock Music: A Collection of Critical and Analytical Essays, ed. Walter Everett. Garland, 2nd ed. eReserve

 

II. Harmony and Form in Rock

 

1.Everett, Walter. Making Sense of Rock's Tonal Systems. Music Theory Online, Volume 10/4 (December 2004).  http://mto.societymusictheory.org/issues/mto.04.10.4/toc.10.4.html   Listening search list   Study Questions

2. Spicer, Mark.  “(Ac)cumulative Form in Pop-Rock Music.” 20th-Century Music 1/1 (2004): 29-64. eReserve   Listening search list   Study Questions

   

III. Jazz Studies  A web page of listening examples for these articles is available through eReserve

 

1. Folio, Cynthia. 1995. “An Analysis of Polyrhythm in Selected Improvised Jazz Solos.” Concert Music, Rock, and Jazz Since 1945: Essays and Analytical Studies, ed. Elizabeth West Marvin and Richard Hermann. University of Rochester Press, 103–34. eReserve  Study questions

2. Larson, Steve. 2006. “Rhythmic Displacement in the Music of Bill Evans.” Structure and Meaning in Tonal Music: A Festschrift for Carl Schachter, ed. Poundie Burstein and David Gagne. Hillsdale, NY: Pendragon Press, 103–122. eReserve

3. Waters, Keith. 1996. “Blurring the Barline: Metric Displacement in the Piano Solos of Herbie Hancock” Annual Review of Jazz Studies 8, pp. 19-37.

4. Progler, J.A. 1995. “Searching for Swing: Participatory Discrepancies in the Jazz Rhythm Section.” Ethnomusicology 39/1: 21–54 eReserve

5. Larson, Steve. 1999. "Swing and Motive in Three Performances by Oscar Peterson." Journal of Music Theory 43/2: 283–313. eReserve

7. Huang, Hao and Huang, Rachel V.. 1994–5. “Billie Holiday and Tempo Rubato: Understanding Rhythmic Expressivity.” Annual Review of Jazz Studies 7: 181–199.

7. Burns, Lori. 2005. “Feeling the Style: Vocal Gesture and Musical Expression in Billie Holiday, Bessie Smith, and Louis Armstrong.” Music Theory Online 11/3: http://mto.societymusictheory.org/issues/mto.05.11.3/mto.05.11.3.burns.html

8. Folio, Cynthia and Robert W. Weisberg. 2006. “Billie Holiday's Art of Paraphrase: A Study in Consistency,” co-authored with Robert W. Weisberg, T, in New Musicology (Interdisciplinary Studies in Musicology) Poznan, Poland: Poznan Press, 247–75. eReserve

 

IV. Performer Interaction and the Groove

 

1. Matthew W. Butterfield. The Power of Anacrusis: Engendered Feeling in Groove-Based Musics. Music Theory Online 12/4 (December 2006). http://mto.societymusictheory.org/issues/mto.06.12.4/mto.06.12.4.butterfield.html Study Questions

2. Fernando Benadon. A Circular Plot for Rhythm Visualization and Analysis, Music Theory Online 13/3 (September 2007). http://mto.societymusictheory.org/issues/mto.07.13.3/toc.13.3.html 

3. Luis-Manuel Garcia. On and On: Repetition as Process and Pleasure in Electronic Dance Music. Music Theory Online, Volume 11/4 (October 2005). http://mto.societymusictheory.org/issues/mto.05.11.4/toc.11.4.html  Study Questions

4. Butler, Mark.  Unlocking the Groove: Rhythm, Meter, and Musical Design in Electronic Dance Music.  Indiana University Press, 2006. (selections)

 

V. Country Music

 

Lewis, George H.  All That Glitters: Country Music in America.  Bowling Green University Press, 1993.

Neal, Jocelyn R.  “Narrative Paradigms, Musical Signifiers, and Form as Function in Country Music.”  Music Theory Spectrum 29/1 (2007): 41-72.

Neal, Jocelyn R.  “The Metric Makings of a Country Hit.”  Reading Country Music: Steel Guitars, Opry Stars, and Honky-Tonk Bars, ed. Cecelia Tichi, 322-337.  Duke University Press, 1998.

   

VI. Popular Music in Film

 

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Assignments

 

January 20: Begin readings listed above, Part I, 1-3 and Part II.1 by Everett. Be ready to discuss issues of identity and "voice" as discussed in the first three readings. Please listen to Kate Bush's "Moments of Pleasure" and consider how these ideas apply. The Burns reading lays out categories of "content analysis" that are useful. Also, listen for the chord patterns in the Kate Bush song and see how they may relate to Everett's six classifications of tonal systems in rock.

 

January 22: Complete Part I, 1-3 and Part II.1 by Everett. Refer to the study questions provided above on the Everett reading. Here is a listening search list for songs discussed.
WRITTEN ASSIGNMENT: Write a short essay (one full page, double-spaced) on one song of your choice, making use of ideas and methodologies employed in the assigned readings. Your objective is to write a thoughtful essay on the song that demonstrates your understanding of the readings. Due in one week, on Thursday, the 29th.

 

January 27: Complete one page essay for next class. Wrap up Everett reading and the first three readings on gender. The next new reading will be the first jazz reading (III.1) by Cynthia Folio.

 

February 3 and 5: Be ready to discusss new readings -

      Folio, Cynthia. 1995. “An Analysis of Polyrhythm in Selected Improvised Jazz Solos.” Concert Music, Rock, and Jazz Since 1945: Essays and Analytical Studies, ed. Elizabeth West Marvin and Richard Hermann. University of Rochester Press, 103–34. eReserve  Study questions

      Spicer, Mark.  “(Ac)cumulative Form in Pop-Rock Music.” 20th-Century Music 1/1 (2004): 29-64. eReserve   Listening search list   Study Questions

      Matthew W. Butterfield. The Power of Anacrusis: Engendered Feeling in Groove-Based Musics. Music Theory Online 12/4 (December 2006). http://mto.societymusictheory.org/issues/mto.06.12.4/mto.06.12.4.butterfield.html

     WRITTEN ASSIGNMENT, due next Tuesday, Feb 10: Transcribe the bass line for a pop song of your choice. Write in chord symbols to form a lead sheet for the essential patterns in the song. Add Roman numerals and/or other analytical markings. Write a half-page of observations concerning rhythm, chord patterns, form, and/or lyrics.

 

February 10 and 12:

     Continue with assigned readings.
 
FIRST PAPER ASSIGNMENT. DUE THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 26. Focus on an aspect of rhythm in a song of your choice. Your five-page paer should include:
- A transcription rendered "by ear" of the bass line, chords, and vocal melody for essential material in the song.
- A five-page essay that explores performer interaction and meaning in the song through a focused study of rhythm. The essay should clearly draw upon aspects of out assigned readings.
- Come to class ready to discuss your work in progress.

  

      Discuss completed written assignments and new paper topics. Be ready to discuss your work in progress.

      Listen to audio clips in preparation for this weekend's UH Jazz Festival
Be ready to wrap up discussion of the Cynthia Folio article. Study questions

 

February 17, 19 and 24 . New readings:
Clarke, Eric. 2005. Ways of Listening: An Ecological Approach to the Perception of Musical Making. Oxford University Press, Chapter 5 excerpts. eReserve
Allan F. Moore. 2005. The Persona-Environment Relation in Recorded Song. Music Theory Online, Volume 11/4. http://mto.societymusictheory.org/issues/mto.05.11.4/toc.11.4.html
Larson, Steve. 2006. “Rhythmic Displacement in the Music of Bill Evans.” Structure and Meaning in Tonal Music: A Festschrift for Carl Schachter, ed. Poundie Burstein and David Gagne. Hillsdale, NY: Pendragon Press, 103–122. eReserve

 

February 26: Turn in paper assignment.
Discuss Matthew Butterfiled article. Study Questions
Discuss jazz pieces from recent concert. Audio clips
 
SECOND PAPER ASSIGNMENT: Analyzing the Groove. In this five-page essay with transcribed musical examples, focus in particular on the rhythmic nuances of performer interaction in a song of your choice. Consider issues of expressive microtiming (drawing from the Butterfield reading). How might performers' strategic choices for subdivision of the beat create specific qualities of directed motion? Consider also how musical gestures may create an embodiment of human action that is coded with expressive meaning. Think about ways that the layering of instruments may have form-developing functions (following the Spicer reading). Be on the lookout for polyrhythm (as discussed by Folio).
 

March 3 and 5:
Discuss new readings by Clarke, Moores, Larson.

 

Tuesday, March 10: In-class midterm essay on readings.

 

Thursday, March 12 and Tuesday, March 24 (after break): Discuss new paper topics, returned papers, and readings.

 

Thursday, March 26: Paper II due.

 

March 31-April 2: Readings:
Larson, Steve. 2006. “Rhythmic Displacement in the Music of Bill Evans.” Structure and Meaning in Tonal Music: A Festschrift for Carl Schachter, ed. Poundie Burstein and David Gagne. Hillsdale, NY: Pendragon Press, 103–122. eReserve
Luis-Manuel Garcia. On and On: Repetition as Process and Pleasure in Electronic Dance Music. Music Theory Online, Volume 11/4 (October 2005). http://mto.societymusictheory.org/issues/mto.05.11.4/toc.11.4.html   Study Questions
Burns, Lori. 2005. “Feeling the Style: Vocal Gesture and Musical Expression in Billie Holiday, Bessie Smith, and Louis Armstrong.” Music Theory Online 11/3: http://mto.societymusictheory.org/issues/mto.05.11.3/mto.05.11.3.burns.html

 

April 7 & 9
Discuss readings by Garcia (Study Questions) and Burns. Discuss final paper topics.
 
FINAL PAPER ASSIGNMENT: Prepare a five-page paper on a topic in performance and analysis of jazz/pop music.

• As you develop the paper, be ready to discuss and demonstrate (vocally, with guitar or piano, etc.) the musical elements you are studying.
• Briefly explain within the paper how the goal of the paper relates to a personal/professional goal involving jazz/pop music.
• As before, the paper should make some use of transcription, with score rendering and analysis of what you hear in the music.
• Integrate assigned class readings and/or other source readings in developing your approach. Provide appropriate citations in the paper.
• Be ready at each class meeting to contribute aspects of your paper in our class discussion. You will receive two grades on the paper: one for the written document and one for your class contributions.

April 14 & 16
Discuss readings by Garcia (Study Questions) and Burns. Discuss final paper topics.

 

April 21 & 23
GUEST LECTURE BY HOWARD POLLACK. Download and study the two Irving Berlin songs he will discuss. eReserve   listening search list
Discuss Burns reading and final paper topics.

 

April 28 & 30
Hear presentations on final papers; More in-class listening as you prepare your papers. Paper due date: Tuesday, May 12, noon.
Wrap up discussion of Burns and other readings.
Rhythm and meaning in funk music: Please listen to this short list of pieces and be ready to discuss what you hear. I'll share some material from a paper I presented at the Experience Music Project in Seattle. Examples. Listening:
    James Brown, Get Up Offa That Thing    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pq1w0syylZI
    Average White Band, Cut the Cake    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t96syG4-Li8
    Tower of Power, What is Hip?    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VUFxj59Fa9o
    Jimi Hendrix, You Got Me Floatin'    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6hvM8nbj6Bw
    

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ADDITIONAL READINGS AND RESOURCES

 

BOOKS ON RESERVE (under construction)

 

MTO ARTICLES ON POPULAR MUSIC

   

Lori Burns, Marc Lafrance, and Laura Hawley. Embodied Subjectivities in the Lyrical and Musical Expression of PJ Harvey and Björk. Music Theory Online 14/4 (December 2008). http://mto.societymusictheory.org/issues/mto.08.14.4/toc.14.4.html

 

Fernando Benadon. A Circular Plot for Rhythm Visualization and Analysis, Music Theory Online 13/3 (September 2007). http://mto.societymusictheory.org/issues/mto.07.13.3/toc.13.3.html

 

Matthew W. Butterfield. The Power of Anacrusis: Engendered Feeling in Groove-Based Musics. Music Theory Online 12/4 (December 2006). http://mto.societymusictheory.org/issues/mto.06.12.4/toc.12.4.html

 

Luis-Manuel Garcia. On and On: Repetition as Process and Pleasure in Electronic Dance Music. Music Theory Online, Volume 11/4 (October 2005). http://mto.societymusictheory.org/issues/mto.05.11.4/toc.11.4.html

 

Allan F. Moore. The Persona-Environment Relation in Recorded Song. Music Theory Online 11/4 (October 2005). http://mto.societymusictheory.org/issues/mto.05.11.4/toc.11.4.html

 

Lori Burns. Feeling the Style: Vocal Gesture and Musical Expression in Billie Holiday, Bessie Smith, and Louis Armstrong. Music Theory Online 11/3 (September 2005). http://mto.societymusictheory.org/issues/mto.05.11.3/toc.11.3.html

 

Walter Everett. Making Sense of Rock's Tonal Systems. Music Theory Online, Volume 10/4 (December 2004).  http://mto.societymusictheory.org/issues/mto.04.10.4/toc.10.4.html

 

Lori Burns and Alyssa Woods. Authenticity, Appropriation, Signification: Tori Amos on Gender, Race, and Violence in Covers of Billie Holiday and Eminem, Music Theory Online 10/2 (June 2004). http://mto.societymusictheory.org/issues/mto.04.10.2/toc.10.2.html