Notes on the Final Project

Now that we're at the halfway point of the course, it's time to start thinking about the final project. I had originally included a performance/composition project as part of the course, but I'm going to jettison that, and just have a final paper, 8-10 pages on a topic of your choice, approved by me. You can write on a piece covered in class, or (preferably) a work we haven't discussed. I'd like to meet with each of you individually for about 15 minutes or so, to discuss possible projects during the coming week. Perhaps right after class? I'll bring in a sign-up sheet for appointments.

As part of your paper, I'd like each of you to make a brief (ca. 5 minutes) presentation on your topic on Wednesday, August 1.

A good analysis should help the listener or reader understand something about a piece or composer he or she hadn't realized before; it should be non-trivial; and it should have the ring of truth. In other words, the analysis not only has to guide the listener, it must convince them, as in an argumentative essay.

Some of the most in-depth analyses we've read so far inlude Ligeti's analysis of Structures, and Brenda Ravenscroft's analysis of A Mirror on Which to Dwell. K. Robert Schwartz's long Reich article is also quite good, but since he is covering Reich's entire career up to 1981, he does not go into great detail. His analysis of Drumming (part 2, pp. 230-38) more or less describes what's happening in the piece, with some well-chosen musical examples; but still, when I read it I come away from the analysis feeling like I know the piece better than before.

Charts, graphs, and musical examples

For your analyses, I would like you to include at least one carefully made chart or graph; your charts for Varese and Ligeti are an example. Ravenscroft's charts depicting the piano and vibraphone cross-rhythms, and their relationship to the poem 'Anaphora" (pp. 273-74) are particularly powerful.

Another example: after class yesterday, it occurred to me that one could learn a lot about Laurie Anderson's "O Superman" just by making a formal chart of the piece: how long is each verse? Where do the lyrics change subject, and how often? Is there a climax to the song? Where? Even though I said there were only two chords in the piece, and an incessant middle C vocal sample, there is still much to study.

Finally: musical examples are also enormously helpful, as I'm sure you've figured out. If at all possible, include them in the body of your paper, not as a separate appendix.

We will discuss all this in class on Monday, but I'd like you to think about it over the weekend. Have fun!