For this assignment, I’m asking you to be a music investigator and look for clues as to what is going on in a certain performance. Think about what you read in the Slobin/Titon article “The Music Culture” — you may want to include quotes to support your ideas.
Write a 500 word paper (approximately two double-spaced, typed pages) on one of the three music cultures listed below. Choose one, watch the indicated You Tube video (in the “Paper #1 videos” folder under Course Documents), and:
– Describe the social setting of the music and type of event / space. – Describe the ensemble lineup and instrumentation.
– Describe the basic social organization of the performance, including (if possible) the interaction between the performers and audience; how is the audience reacting to the music? If you can’t see the audience, why not?
– Briefly describe a timeline of the linear form of the performance (for example, it might be: opening theme, vocal verse 1, vocal chorus, verse 2, chorus, guitar solo, trumpet solo, chorus, group instrumental, etc.). Using music terms like verse, chorus, etc. is optional. Just do your best to tell the story of the musical events that take place during the performance.
– Based on this video performance, speculate on the music’s social functions. What are the underlying social purposes of this performance, in your opinion? (For help with this, you could investigate the music culture on the web, although this is not intended to be a research paper.)
– Feel free to ask your own questions, and make your own observations, in addition.
– Conclude with a paragraph about the “global” or “transnational” nature of this music culture. What are the roots of this music and how did it come to the US? Has it moved out from the US to other corners of the globe? Consult the respective readings from the syllabus for background and/or investigate on the web.
Please use standard MLA paper format (see
for details) — pay attention to writing style, grammar, and spelling. Please be sure to proofread your paper carefully and run spell check. Do not plagiarize: if you do research on the web, be sure to put it into your own words. If you want to include a direct quotation from the reading or a website, use quotation marks and cite your source.
Music Examples (pick ONE):
1) Manny Oquendo y Conjunto Libre (Nuyorican Salsa) – “Elena Elena” (from 0:15 – 3:30)
2) The Klezmatics (Jewish klezmer / Yiddish song) — “Shprayz ikh mir”
3) Black Stalin (West Indian Soca) – “Black Man Feeling to Party” (from 0:00 – 3:00)
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