Analysis of Popular Music Syllabus

Special Topics: Analysis of Jazz and Popular Music MUSI 4397, section 35749 MUSI 6394, section 35738 Dr. Tim Koozin
Spring 2013	office: MSM 116 (713)743-3318
MW 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 in areas of popular music where they have particular interest. 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: January 30. Last day to drop or withdraw: March 27

UH Policies on Academic Honesty can be found online at: http://www.uh.edu/provost/policies/uhhonesty_policy.html. Students with disabilities are asked to bring to the instructor's attention any special accommodations they may require.

Selected Topics and Readings (Subject to change. Please check back for updates)

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

8. Koozin, Timothy. 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. eReserve

II. Harmony and Form in Rock

1. Everett, Walter. 2004. “Making Sense of Rock's Tonal Systems.” Music Theory Online 10.4. http://mto.societymusictheory.org/issues/mto.04.10.4/toc.10.4.html     Study Questions

2. Biamonte, Nicole. 2010. “Triadic Modal and Pentatonic Patterns in Rock Music.” Music Theory Spectrum 32.2:95-110.   eReserve

3. Spicer, Mark. 2004. “(Ac)cumulative Form in Pop-Rock Music.” 20th-Century Music 1.1:29-64. eReserve   Study Questions

4. Koozin, Timothy. 2011. "Guitar Voicing in Pop-Rock Music: A Performance-Based Analytical Approach." Music Theory Online 17/3. http://www.mtosmt.org/issues/mto.11.17.3/mto.11.17.3.koozin.php

III. Jazz Studies A web page of listening examples for these articles is available through eReserve << These links don't work right now. Please stay tuned!

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. 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  Study questions

3. Martin, Henry. 2012. Charlie Parker and "Honeysuckle Rose": Voice Leading, Formula, and Motive. Music Theory Online 18.3: http://mtosmt.org/issues/mto.12.18.3/mto.12.18.3.martin.php   Study Questions

4. 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     Study Questions

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

6. Progler, J.A. 1995. “Searching for Swing: Participatory Discrepancies in the Jazz Rhythm Section.” Ethnomusicology 39.1:21–54 eReserve

7. Larson, Steve. 1999. "Swing and Motive in Three Performances by Oscar Peterson." Journal of Music Theory 43.2: 283–313. eReserve

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

9. Folio, Cynthia and Robert W. Weisberg. 2006. “Billie Holiday's Art of Paraphrase: A Study in Consistency.” In New Musicology (Interdisciplinary Studies in Musicology) Poznan, Poland: Poznan Press, 247–75. eReserve

IV. Performer Interaction and the Groove

1. Butterfield, Matthew W. 2010. “Variant Timekeeping Patterns and Their Effects in Jazz Drumming.” Music Theory Online 16.4. http://mto.societymusictheory.org/issues/mto.10.16.4/toc.16.4.html

2. Butterfield, Matthew W. 2006. “The Power of Anacrusis: Engendered Feeling in Groove-Based Musics.” Music Theory Online 12.4 http://mto.societymusictheory.org/issues/mto.06.12.4/mto.06.12.4.butterfield.html Study Questions

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

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

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

V. Country Music

Neal, Jocelyn R. 2007. “Narrative Paradigms, Musical Signifiers, and Form as Function in Country Music.” Music Theory Spectrum 29.1: 41-72.

Neal, Jocelyn R. 1998. “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.

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

VI. Popular Music in Film

Assignments

Week 1, January 15: Begin readings listed above, Part I, 1-3 and Part II1 by Everett. Be ready to discuss issues of identity and "voice" as discussed in the first three readings. Consider how the readings might apply is discussing a song you choose to study. The Burns reading lays out categories of "content analysis" that are useful. Also, listen for the chord patterns in the song and see how they may relate to Everett's six classifications of tonal systems in rock.

Week 1, January 17: Complete Part I, 1-3 and Part II.1 by Everett. Refer to the study questions provided above on the Everett reading.
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 Thursday, January 24.

Week 2, January 22-24: Complete one page essay for next class (January 24). 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.

Week 3, Jan 29-31:

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 Study Questions

Week 4 and 5: Feb 5-14

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 Tuesday, Feb 12: 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.

Week 6: Feb 19-21
     Rhythm studies:
           Folio. An Analysis of Polyrhythm in Selected Improvised Jazz Solos
           Butterfield. The Power of Anacrusis: Engendered Feeling in Groove-Based Musics (MTO) (Study Questions)
      Harmony in Rock:
           Koozin. Guitar Voicing in Pop-Rock Music: A Performance-Based Analytical Approach
           Biamonte. Triadic Modal and Pentatonic Patterns in Rock Music

FIRST PAPER ASSIGNMENT. DUE TUESDAY, MARCH 5. Focus on an aspect of rhythm in a song of your choice. Your five-page paper 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.Be ready to discuss your work in progress.

Weeks 7 & 8: Feb 26 - March 7. 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
     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

Spring Break

Week 9: March 19-21(after break): Discuss new paper topics, returned papers, and readings
     Tuesday, March 19: In-class midterm essay on readings.
     Begin new readings:
          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    Study Questions
          Henry Martin. Charlie Parker and "Honeysuckle Rose": Voice Leading, Formula, and Motive. Music Theory Online 18.3 (2012). http://mtosmt.org/issues/mto.12.18.3/mto.12.18.3.martin.php    Study Questions
          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    Study Questions

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 (discussed in Koozin guitar article). 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).
- As you develop your essay and transcriptions, be ready to discuss and sing/play your material in class.
- Due Tuesday, April 2.

Not yet updated for 2013:

I. Assignment for listening and analysis: The Beatles, Abbey Road

1. Select one or several tracks for detailed listening. What do you find most interesting about the song, in terms of…

material and structure (melody, chords, rhythm, form, arrangement, etc.)

performance elements (how the music is played, sung; it embodied expression)

its qualities as a recording (how the studio is used as a creative tool; how human expression comes through in a fixed commercial recording)

2. The album overall: How do the Beatles unify the album overall while expressively resisting values of structural unity?

II. Two famous writings on the aethetics and social-political consequences of audio recording:

Walter Benjamin, “The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction.” (1936)
http://www.marxists.org/reference/subject/philosophy/works/ge/benjamin.htm

Theodor Adorno, “The Form of the Phonograph Record” (1934), trans. Thomas Y. Levin.
http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici=0162-2870%28199024%2955%3C56%3ATFOTPR%3E2.0.CO%3B2-Z

III. CLASS LIST of YOUR PICKS for listening and analysis.

Maintain a notebook of observations and analysis on the songs discussed by you and your classmates. This notebook is due on the last day of class, Monday, May 2. Outline format for each song is ok. Your grade will be based on depth (richness of detail) and breadth (all the music discussed).

IV. More readings in specific genres of popular music

Garcia, Luis-Manuel. 2005. “On and On: Repetition as Process and Pleasure in Electronic Dance Music.” Music Theory Online, 11.4. http://mto.societymusictheory.org/issues/mto.05.11.4/toc.11.4.html Study Questions

Neal, Jocelyn R. 2007. “Narrative Paradigms, Musical Signifiers, and Form as Function in Country Music.” Music Theory Spectrum 29.1: 41-72. eReserve Study questions

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. Each student will offer a presention, beginning by April 13. Presentation should include the following: (1) A preparatory assignment for the class, to get everybody familiar with your topic; (2) Essential discussion of the specific elements you are studying in your paper; (3) An analytical sketch and transcription; (4) some musical element that you present through example by playing and/or singing.
Final draft of paper is due on the last day of class, Thursday, April 25.

Working together: Collaborate with a classmate in exploring a performance aspect of your final paper music. Share your ideas and skills in exploring an aspect of how the music is played and/or sung. Be ready to report on your results to the class.

ADDITIONAL READINGS AND RESOURCES

Music Theory Online articles on popular music

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

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

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

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

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

Timothy Koozin. "Guitar Voicing in Pop-Rock Music: A Performance-Based Analytical Approach." Music Theory Online 17/3 (October 2011). http://www.mtosmt.org/issues/mto.11.17.3/mto.11.17.3.koozin.php. (Note: This volume includes nine articles on musical form in rock.)

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

Volume 18.3, September 2012 includes four jazz analysis articles.

Odds and Ends: More material we may explore as time allows

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

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

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

Article by Watson & Burns on the Dixie Chicks, Popular Music (2010) eReserve